Live in Kentucky, Work in Utah: Which State Taxes Your Paycheck?
Answer
Utah withholds and Kentucky credits. Without an agreement between them, both states are entitled to tax income earned in Utah by a Kentucky resident. The mechanism that stops you paying twice is the credit on the Kentucky resident return, which is why the Utah return has to be completed first.
Last verified
Without an agreement between Kentucky and Utah, the overlap is handled after the fact rather than prevented. That is why the filing order matters: the Utah figure is an input to the Kentucky return, so completing Kentucky first means doing it twice.
A Kentucky resident taxed by another state on the same income claims the credit for taxes paid to other states on Schedule ITC. The credit is capped at the Kentucky 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 · UtahForm TC-40 with Schedule TC-40B
File the Utah nonresident return FIRST — you need the Utah tax figure before you can complete Kentucky.
- 2Resident return · KentuckySchedule ITC
File a Kentucky resident return reporting all income, then claim the credit for tax paid to Utah. The credit is capped at what Kentucky would have charged on that same income, so if Utah taxes it at a higher rate the difference is not refunded.
The two states, side by side
| Kentucky | Utah | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — flat | Yes — flat |
| Reciprocity partners | 7 (Form 42A809) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form 740-NP | Form TC-40 with Schedule TC-40B |
| Credit for other-state tax | Schedule ITC | Schedule TC-40S |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | Yes | No |
| Revenue department | Kentucky Department of Revenue | Utah State Tax Commission |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Utah and working in Kentucky 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: Kentucky → UtahHome state only
- 1099 contractor: Kentucky → UtahHome state, plus the client state if you work there
- Moved mid-year: Kentucky → UtahTwo part-year returns
Other Kentucky pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Kentucky and work in Utah. Which state takes the tax out of my paycheck?
Utah withholds and Kentucky credits. Without an agreement between them, both states are entitled to tax income earned in Utah by a Kentucky resident. The mechanism that stops you paying twice is the credit on the Kentucky resident return, which is why the Utah return has to be completed first.
Which state should my employer be withholding for?
Utah. The wages are sourced to Utah, so Utah withholding is correct and there is no Kentucky 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. Kentucky gives residents a credit for tax paid to Utah on the same income, claimed on Schedule ITC. The credit is capped at the Kentucky tax on that income, so if Utah taxes it more heavily the excess is not refunded by either state.
How current is this?
The Kentucky and Utah rules on this page were last checked against Kentucky Department of Revenue and Utah State Tax Commission 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.
- Kentucky Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Utah State Tax Commission — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07