Who is required to file a West Virginia tax return?
You need to file if:
- You lived in West Virginia all year.
- You lived in West Virginia part of the year.
- You were not a resident of West Virginia, but your federal adjusted gross income includes income from West Virginia sources.
If you don’t file a federal return, you must file West Virginia if:
- Your West Virginia adjusted gross income is greater than your exemption allowance:
- $2,000 per exemption, or $500 if you claim zero exemptions.
- Your income is to be determined as if you had been required to file a federal return.
- Your exemptions are to be determined following the rules on page 24.
- You are claiming certain credits (SCTC or HEPTC).
- You are due a refund.
What if a child has unearned (investment) income?
- If a child under 18 has investment income and the parents choose to report it on their own return, the child does not need to file a West Virginia return.
- If the parents do not report the child’s income, the child must file their own return and report all income.
What are the rules for using a different filing status on your West Virginia return compared to your federal return?
- If you filed a Married Filing Joint federal tax return, you can choose to file a married filing joint or married filing separate state return. If you choose to file as married filing separate, use Rate Schedule II when figuring your tax. Refer to the Instructions for further information on filing separate state returns when a joint federal return was filed.
- If you file a Married Filing Joint West Virginia return, the filing status on your federal tax return must be Married Filing Joint as well. However you can elect to file Married Filing Separate and use the state's Rate Schedule II to determine your state tax.
- If you filed your federal tax return as Married Filing Separate, you must file the West Virginia return as Married Filing Separate also.
What if I work in a reciprocal state of West Virginia?
West Virginia has reciprocal agreements with Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
- If you are a West Virginia resident working in one of these states, and your employer withheld the other state’s income tax, you must file for a refund from that state.
- You cannot claim a refund for taxes withheld to a reciprocal state on the resident return.