Live in Colorado, Work in Rhode Island: Which State Taxes Your Paycheck?
Answer
Rhode Island withholds and Colorado credits. Without an agreement between them, both states are entitled to tax income earned in Rhode Island by a Colorado resident. The mechanism that stops you paying twice is the credit on the Colorado resident return, which is why the Rhode Island return has to be completed first.
Last verified
Two states can lawfully tax the same wages: Rhode Island because the work happened there, Colorado because you live there. Nothing prevents the overlap in advance — it is unwound afterwards, on the Colorado return, through the credit for taxes paid to another state.
A Colorado resident taxed by another state on the same income claims the credit for taxes paid to other states on Form DR 0104CR. The credit is capped at the Colorado tax on that income, so it removes the double tax but never refunds the excess when the other state charges more.
What you file
- 1Nonresident return · Rhode IslandForm RI-1040NR
File the Rhode Island nonresident return FIRST — you need the Rhode Island tax figure before you can complete Colorado.
- 2Resident return · ColoradoForm DR 0104CR
File a Colorado resident return reporting all income, then claim the credit for tax paid to Rhode Island. The credit is capped at what Colorado would have charged on that same income, so if Rhode Island taxes it at a higher rate the difference is not refunded.
The two states, side by side
| Colorado | Rhode Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — flat | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | None | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form DR 0104 with Schedule DR 0104PN | Form RI-1040NR |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form DR 0104CR | Form RI-1040NR Schedule II |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | Yes | No |
| Revenue department | Colorado Department of Revenue — Taxation Division | Rhode Island Division of Taxation |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Rhode Island and working in Colorado gives:Both states — credit offsets the double tax.
Same two states, different situation
The withholding answer turns on how you are paid and where the work happens, not only on which two states are involved.
- Remote worker: Colorado → Rhode IslandHome state only
- 1099 contractor: Colorado → Rhode IslandHome state, plus the client state if you work there
- Moved mid-year: Colorado → Rhode IslandTwo part-year returns
Other Colorado pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Colorado and work in Rhode Island. Which state takes the tax out of my paycheck?
Rhode Island withholds and Colorado credits. Without an agreement between them, both states are entitled to tax income earned in Rhode Island by a Colorado resident. The mechanism that stops you paying twice is the credit on the Colorado resident return, which is why the Rhode Island return has to be completed first.
Which state should my employer be withholding for?
Rhode Island. The wages are sourced to Rhode Island, so Rhode Island withholding is correct and there is no Colorado withholding to set up.
Will I end up paying tax twice on the same income?
Not twice over, but you will pay the higher of the two rates. Colorado gives residents a credit for tax paid to Rhode Island on the same income, claimed on Form DR 0104CR. The credit is capped at the Colorado tax on that income, so if Rhode Island taxes it more heavily the excess is not refunded by either state.
How current is this?
The Colorado and Rhode Island rules on this page were last checked against Colorado Department of Revenue — Taxation Division and Rhode Island Division of Taxation on 2026-08-07. We re-check the full grid every December after state legislative sessions close, and re-check the convenience-of-the-employer states quarterly because that is where the rules move fastest.
Sources
Every fact above comes from the revenue department that publishes the rule. We do not cite secondary summaries, and we do not restate a figure we could not find at source.
- Colorado Department of Revenue — Taxation Division — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Rhode Island Division of Taxation — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07