Virginia State Income Tax Guide (2026)
Virginia has a progressive income tax with a top rate of 5.75% on income over $17,000.
Top State Rate
5.8%
$100k Take-Home
$74,191
/year (single)
State Tax on $100k
$4,989
single filer
Virginia Income Tax Brackets (2026)
| Marginal Rate | Taxable Income (Single Filer) |
|---|---|
| 2% | $0→$3,000 |
| 3% | $3,000→$5,000 |
| 5% | $5,000→$17,000 |
| 5.75% | Over $17,000 |
Each rate applies only to income within that bracket. Your effective rate is the average across all brackets — noticeably lower than your top marginal rate.
Standard deduction: $8,000 single / $16,000 married filing jointly
Brackets reflect the most recently published schedules. Some states inflation-index thresholds annually — specific 2026 amounts may shift slightly. Verify with your state's Department of Revenue before filing.
Want exact numbers for your situation?
The dedicated Virginia paycheck calculator lets you adjust salary, filing status (single, MFJ, HOH, MFS), 401(k) and HSA contributions, dependents for your exact 2026 take-home figure.
The 30-second version
- 1.Virginia's progressive brackets max out at 5.75% — but that top rate kicks in at just $17,000 of taxable income, so most working professionals are effectively in a flat 5.75% world.
- 2.Virginia is the federal-employee and military-retiree capital of the country. The state offers a generous military retirement pay subtraction (up to $40,000 in 2026, phased up from $20K in 2024) and a $12,000 age 65+ retirement income deduction per filer.
- 3.DC commuter dynamics: VA has reciprocity with DC and MD on wages — a VA resident working in DC owes only VA tax, no DC tax. Same for VA-MD commuters. This makes the NoVA-DC commute one of the cleanest cross-state tax setups in the country.
- 4.Property tax is moderate (~0.8% effective, varies by county). NoVA counties (Fairfax, Arlington, Loudoun) run higher. No state estate or inheritance tax.
- 5.VA529 (CollegeAmerica/Invest529) offers a $4,000 per account deduction — modest but worth claiming.
A quick hello before we start
Pour yourself a coffee — bonus points if it's from a NoVA cafe between two federal contractor offices. This is the last Virginia-tax page you should need this year.
Quick note up top: nothing here is personal tax, legal, or financial advice. It's a friendly explainer with real numbers and honest opinions. Your situation has wrinkles only your CPA can iron out — treat this like a thoughtful friend at a Tysons Corner happy hour, not your accountant.
Last reviewed: April 2026 · Reviewed annually each January when new brackets publish
Why you can trust these numbers
Numbers reflect 2026 IRS federal brackets, caps, and current Virginia Department of Taxation schedules. The calculator at the top applies VA's $8,500 / $17,000 standard deduction when computing VA taxable income — same as the actual VA return. VA-specific subtractions (military retirement up to $40K, age 65+ subtraction, 529 contributions) aren't modeled, so if you qualify for those your real bill will be lower than the calculator shows. For typical earners with no special subtractions, the calculator is within $100–$200 of your actual VA bill.
Reviewed annually each January and updated mid-year when rules change. Spot something off? Tell us — reader corrections genuinely make these guides better.
Sources: federal brackets + standard deduction from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32; state brackets verified against the Tax Foundation 2026 State Income Tax Rates compilation and the official Form 760 Individual Income Tax Forms (VA Department of Taxation).
The brackets — "progressive" in name only at most income levels
Virginia's four-bracket structure (2%, 3%, 5%, 5.75%) hits the top bracket at just $17,000 of taxable income. For anyone earning above ~$30,000, you're effectively in the 5.75% bracket on most of your income. The progressive structure is mostly a relic of an earlier era when those bracket thresholds were meaningful.
The actual variables that move VA tax bills meaningfully aren't the brackets — they're the subtractions. Virginia offers a long list of state-specific income subtractions: military retirement pay (up to $40,000 in 2026), age 65+ retirement income (up to $12,000 per filer, income-tested), Social Security (fully exempt), federal civil service pension (no special subtraction but follows federal ), 529 contributions (up to $4,000 per VA529 account per year), and others. For federal employees and military retirees specifically, these subtractions can reduce your VA tax bill by $2,500–$5,000+ annually.
Standard deduction is $8,000 single / $16,000 — substantially below the federal $16,100/$32,200 figure. So your VA taxable income is meaningfully larger than your federal taxable income on the standard-deduction path.
Federal employees + military — Virginia's audience
About 175,000 federal employees live in Northern Virginia, plus tens of thousands of military service members and contractors in Hampton Roads, Norfolk, and the Quantico/Fort Belvoir corridors. Virginia's tax code reflects that constituency through several meaningful provisions:
Military retirement pay subtraction: up to $40,000 of military retired pay is excluded from Virginia taxable income for tax year 2026 (phased up from $10K in 2022, $20K in 2023, $30K in 2024–2025). The subtraction applies to retired pay, not active-duty pay. This is a $2,300+ annual VA tax savings for a typical military retiree.
Age 65+ retirement income deduction: up to $12,000 per filer (income-tested with phase-out starting at $50K for single, $75K ). Reduces the VA tax bite on private pensions, IRA, and withdrawals for retirees.
Social Security: fully exempt from VA tax — no income limit.
Federal civil service pensions: no special VA subtraction (taxed normally), but federal employees can use the age 65+ retirement deduction once eligible.
What you'll actually pay — five real-life scenarios
Five scenarios that cover most readers, weighted toward the federal-employee and DC-commuter audience. Find the one closest to you. If none match, the calculator at the top is for you.
Illustrative numbers — single filer unless noted, federal standard deduction, full-year VA residency, W-2 income unless specified. Two-earner MFJ households pay more FICA than the calculator shows because each spouse has their own Social Security cap. Ballparks, not invoices.
Scenario 1: GS-13 federal employee in Arlington, $130,000
| Federal income tax | ~$20,200 |
| Virginia income tax | ~$6,355 |
| FICA (Social Security + Medicare) | ~$9,950 |
| Total income taxes | ~$36,505 |
| Annual take-home | ~$93,495 |
| Effective VA tax rate | ~4.9% |
Classic NoVA federal worker — locality pay puts a GS-13 step 5 around $130K in the DC area. The $6,355 VA bill is meaningfully lighter than Maryland's equivalent (~$7,000) and dramatically lighter than DC's (~$8,500). FERS retirement contributions and both reduce taxable income further. If this employee transfers to a federal job in DC or MD, they keep VA residency for the tax break (no reciprocity needed because VA-DC have a wage tax compact).
Scenario 2: Software engineer / contractor in Tysons Corner, $185,000
| Federal income tax | ~$33,650 |
| Virginia income tax | ~$9,500 |
| FICA | ~$14,100 |
| Total income taxes | ~$57,250 |
| Annual take-home | ~$127,750 |
| Effective VA tax rate | ~5.1% |
NoVA tech / federal contractor at Booz Allen, MITRE, Leidos, or one of the AWS US-East-region offices in Loudoun. Same comp in DC: would owe ~$13,500 in DC tax, plus 0.5% locality nuances. VA's $9,500 saves ~$4,000 annually vs DC. Plus VA's lack of a city income tax keeps things simple.
Scenario 3: Two-income family in Fairfax, $300,000 combined (MFJ)
| Federal income tax | ~$50,500 |
| Virginia income tax | ~$14,970 |
| FICA (two earners + Additional Medicare) | ~$23,400 |
| Total income taxes | ~$88,870 |
| Annual take-home (pre-housing) | ~$211,130 |
| Effective VA tax rate | ~5.0% |
Classic Fairfax / Vienna / McLean professional family — both spouses split between federal contracting, BigLaw, or NoVA tech jobs. The same income in NJ would owe ~$18K state + $19K property tax = $37K; in VA, $15K state + ~$10K property tax (Fairfax County ~1.0%) = $25K. The total state-and-local burden is meaningfully lighter than Northeast suburbs. Public schools (FCPS, ACPS) are excellent.
Scenario 4: BigLaw senior associate at a DC firm, living in Arlington, $415,000
| Federal income tax | ~$113,050 |
| Virginia income tax | ~$22,750 |
| FICA + Additional Medicare | ~$19,650 |
| Total income taxes | ~$155,450 |
| Annual take-home (pre-housing) | ~$259,550 |
| Effective VA tax rate | ~5.5% |
DC BigLaw associate (Latham, Skadden, Williams & Connolly) living in Arlington or Alexandria. The same comp domiciled in DC would owe ~$31,200 in DC tax (top rate 10.75% above $1M but 8.5–9.25% in this band). VA's $22,750 saves ~$8,500/year — which is exactly why so many DC BigLaw associates live across the Potomac. Note: DC tax doesn't apply to non-residents working in DC (DC v. NY-style commuter rule), which is the entire game.
Scenario 5: Retired federal/military couple in Williamsburg, $180,000 MFJ
| Federal income tax (after SS partial taxation) | ~$21,200 |
| Virginia income tax (after subtractions) | ~$4,505 |
| FICA | $0 (retirement income exempt) |
| Total income taxes | ~$25,705 |
| Annual take-home | ~$154,295 |
| Effective VA tax rate | ~2.5% |
Composition: $50K Social Security + $90K federal civil service pension + $30K military retired pay + $10K IRA distributions = $180K gross. VA exempts the SS entirely and excludes the $30K of military retired pay (within the $40K subtraction). The age 65+ retirement deduction further reduces taxable income. Net VA tax bill is unusually low for $180K of household income — about 2.5% effective. Williamsburg, Virginia Beach, and the Hampton Roads corridor are popular retirement-friendly destinations specifically for this math.
Got the number you came for? Open the calculator to run your specific salary. Or keep reading — the next section is the DC commuter math that makes NoVA the tax-favored side of the river.
Open Virginia calculator →Property tax + the DC commuter advantage
Virginia property tax effective rates by county (approximate): Arlington ~0.81%, Fairfax ~0.93%, Loudoun ~1.00%, Prince William ~1.00%, Alexandria City ~1.05%, Henrico (Richmond suburbs) ~0.93%, Virginia Beach ~0.85%, rural counties 0.5–0.8%. Statewide average is ~0.78% — meaningfully better than NJ (2.5%), CA Prop 13–free buyers (1.0%+), or even NY suburbs (1.5–2.0%).
DC commuter math: Virginia has wage-tax reciprocity with DC under the DC-MD-VA compact. A VA resident working in DC pays only VA income tax; DC doesn't tax non-residents on wages. Same the other way for DC residents working in VA. This is the cleanest interstate tax setup in the country and the reason NoVA real estate prices are what they are. Your DC employer will withhold VA tax on your behalf if you submit DC Form D-4A (Certificate of Non-Residence). Everyone working in DC who lives in VA should file this.
MD commuter is similar — VA-MD also has reciprocity. A VA resident working in Bethesda or Silver Spring pays only VA tax. MD residents working in NoVA pay only MD tax. File the appropriate non-residence certificate with your employer.
The "should I leave Virginia?" math — actually run
Virginia is one of the lower-friction states tax-wise — no estate tax, moderate property tax, generous federal/military subtractions, clean DC commuter setup. Reasons to consider leaving are usually NOT tax-driven. Run the numbers honestly:
- Annual income tax savings: For a $200K wage earner, moving to TX or FL saves ~$10K/year in state income tax. For a $400K family, ~$20K. The 5.75% rate is moderate but not negligible at high comp.
- Property tax delta: VA's ~0.8% average is competitive — moving to NJ or Long Island would dramatically increase property tax. Moving to FL or TX is mixed (FL slightly better on average, TX slightly worse in major metros).
- Estate tax: Virginia has no state estate or inheritance tax — already in the favorable bucket. No relocation upside on this dimension.
- Federal employment angle: Many VA residents work for federal agencies that require continuing VA residency (security clearance considerations, agency policies). If you're a current federal employee, talk to HR about residency requirements before relocating; some agencies have geographic restrictions.
- Lifestyle assets that don't move: Schools (FCPS, ACPS, LCPS rank among the best public systems in the US), commute access, proximity to DC institutions, mountain getaways. Real and worth weighing.
For most NoVA federal employees and contractors: stay. The tax math is favorable, the schools are good, and your career is tied to the DC ecosystem. For HNW retirees willing to swap winter weather: FL or TX leaves more on the table. For tech professionals with full remote flexibility: NC, TN, or FL all warrant a serious comparison — but bring honest numbers.
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Things financially comfortable Virginians actually do
Virginia's tax structure has some specific levers that work better than generic advice:
- Max your ($24,500 in 2026) — pre-tax for federal AND Virginia. Saves ~$1,400/year in VA tax for typical professionals.
- Federal employees: max your (functionally a ). Same VA tax benefit. The G Fund is a uniquely good option not available outside TSP — worth understanding before you leave federal service.
- Max your if eligible ($4,400 single / $8,750 family) — pre-tax for federal AND VA. Federal employees with FEHB-paired HDHPs should evaluate the HSA option carefully; the -FEHB pairing is more common.
- Backdoor Roth IRA — fully legal, well-established, mostly free.
- Mega backdoor Roth if your employer's plan allows after-tax contributions (most large NoVA contractors do).
- VA529 (Invest529 or CollegeAmerica) — Virginia offers a $4,000 per account per year deduction (carryforward available for excess contributions). Multi-account stacking is allowed for households with multiple kids — often missed by new VA529 contributors.
- Military retirement subtraction — if you're retired military, ensure you're claiming the full subtraction (up to $40,000 for 2026). This is a Schedule ADJ item on Form 760 — easy to miss in self-prepared returns.
- Age 65+ subtraction — income-tested but worth claiming if you qualify. Document carefully if you're near the phase-out thresholds.
- DC reciprocity — file DC Form D-4A with your DC employer to ensure VA tax (not DC tax) is withheld. Saves the annual hassle of filing a DC non-resident return for refund.
- Retirement income planning: VA's age 65+ subtraction + military retirement subtraction + SS exemption stack to make VA unusually retirement-friendly. Roth conversions during low-income years can be especially efficient.
A friendly nudge: if you're going to do only one thing on this list, max your or . It's the easiest, biggest, fastest win — and in a 5.75% VA environment, it's a meaningful state-tax saving on top of the federal benefit.
Residency — clean in either direction
VA's Department of Taxation isn't aggressive on residency audits — the 5.75% rate isn't worth the FTB-style hardball. Standard playbook applies:
- VA driver's license, vehicle registration, voter registration, mailing addresses.
- Standard 183-day domicile rule. VA Department of Taxation accepts conventional documentation of move-in or move-out.
- DC and MD reciprocity is automatic — file the right non-residence certificate with your cross-state employer.
- If you're moving from CA, NY, or NJ: those states will fight to keep you. VA welcomes you. Read the relevant origin-state guide for the audit playbook.
- Federal employees and military: be careful with state-of-record / domicile-of-record. Active-duty service members can maintain home-of-record state residency under SCRA regardless of physical posting. Civilian federal employees typically follow physical residency.
For most movers in or out, VA residency is straightforward. The interesting case is military service members maintaining low-tax home-of-record states (TX, FL, WA) while stationed in VA — fully legal under SCRA, often valuable.
Real questions people actually ask
Q: I work in DC but live in VA. What do I file?
Just a VA resident return (Form 760). You don't owe DC tax under the DC-MD-VA reciprocity compact. File DC Form D-4A (Certificate of Non-Residence) with your DC employer to ensure VA tax (not DC tax) is withheld. If your employer accidentally withholds DC tax, you'll need to file DC Form D-40B (non-resident refund) to get it back. It's an annoying paperwork year but recoverable.
Q: How much military retirement pay can I subtract from VA tax?
$40,000 for tax year 2026 (the subtraction was phased up: $10K in 2022, $20K in 2023, $30K in 2024–2025, $40K in 2026 and beyond, indexed thereafter). The subtraction applies only to military retired pay (not active-duty pay, not federal civil service pension, not VA disability compensation, which is already federally tax-free). Claim on Schedule ADJ. For a typical military retiree with $35K of retired pay, this entirely zeros out the VA tax on that income — roughly $2,000/year savings.
Q: Does Virginia tax my federal civil service pension?
Yes, at regular VA rates. Unlike military retirement pay, federal civil service pensions (CSRS, FERS) don't have a special VA subtraction. However, the age 65+ retirement income deduction (up to $12K per filer, income-tested) can apply to federal pensions for retirees who qualify. Social Security is exempt either way. Net effect: VA is reasonably retirement-friendly for federal civilian retirees, especially compared to MD or DC equivalents.
Q: What's the deal with NoVA local taxes? I've heard about something extra.
Virginia doesn't have local income taxes on wages — the entire state tax is the 5.75% top bracket. What you may be thinking of is the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) regional sales tax surcharge (0.7% extra on top of state sales tax) and Hampton Roads regional surcharge — these are SALES taxes, not income taxes. Property tax is set by each county/city locally. NoVA personal property tax on vehicles (the famous "car tax") is a local levy assessed annually on the value of your registered vehicle.
Q: Why does Virginia's standard deduction lag the federal one so badly?
Historical inertia and budget caution. VA's $8,000 single / $16,000 standard deduction was raised from $4,500/$9,000 in 2022 — a meaningful increase but still well below the federal $15K/$30K. The General Assembly periodically considers further increases, but the fiscal impact is significant ($300M+ annually for a $5,000 single-filer increase), so progress is slow. For most VA filers using the standard deduction, your VA taxable income is meaningfully larger than your federal taxable income.
Q: Does VA have an estate or inheritance tax?
No to both. Virginia repealed its estate tax in 2007 and has never had an inheritance tax. For HNW residents, this is a real advantage vs MA ($2M exemption), NY ($7.16M), or even DC. Federal estate tax still applies (currently $13.61M exemption, scheduled to halve in 2026), but no state-level addition. For estate planning purposes, VA is in the friendly bucket alongside FL, TX, and most low-tax states.
Our honest opinion (which is just an opinion)
Quick disclaimer before we get on the soapbox: what follows is one writer's perspective after reading a lot of tax data and talking to a lot of Virginians. You're encouraged to disagree, and we genuinely mean that.
Virginia is one of the more tax-favorable mid-tier states — modest top rate, no estate tax, no local income tax, generous military and retirement subtractions, clean DC reciprocity. The bracket structure is theoretically progressive but practically flat at most income levels. For its core constituencies (federal employees, military, contractors, NoVA professionals), the tax setup is genuinely well-designed.
The case for Virginia is real:
- +5.75% top rate is moderate — better than CA, NY, NJ, MA, IL at most income levels
- +No state estate or inheritance tax
- +DC and MD wage-tax reciprocity makes commuting clean
- +Generous military retirement pay subtraction (up to $40K in 2026)
- +Age 65+ retirement deduction stacks with SS exemption for retiree-friendly setup
- +Property tax meaningfully better than Northeast suburbs
- +Strong public school systems in NoVA, Richmond suburbs, and Hampton Roads
- +Diverse economy: federal/defense, finance, biotech, ports, agriculture
The case against is also real:
- −Standard deduction ($8K single) lags federal — taxable income is larger than federal
- −Top rate hits at just $17K, so most workers are effectively in a flat 5.75% world
- −NoVA cost of living is high (housing especially), even with favorable taxes
- −Federal civil service pensions don't get a special VA subtraction (military retirees do)
- −Personal property (car) tax in NoVA counties is real and underappreciated by newcomers
Honest take: if you're a NoVA federal employee, military retiree, or DC commuter, Virginia is exceptionally well-suited to your situation — the tax setup directly rewards your demographic. If you're a $200K tech worker considering between NoVA, MD, or DC: VA almost always wins on the after-tax math. If you're a $1M+ executive or HNW retiree: VA is competitive but not best-in-class — TX or FL leaves more on the table.
If you're considering moving here for a job: factor in the NoVA cost of living, which is real. The tax math is favorable but only partially compensates for housing prices in the inner ring.
Either way: it's your life and your money. We just want you to look at the whole picture instead of the parts that fit on a Washington Post headline.
What now
Run your numbers in the calculator above. The VA line is small and predictable for most income levels. If you're a federal/military retiree, expect your actual VA bill to be $2,000–$5,000 lower than the calculator shows due to subtractions the calculator doesn't model.
If you're a DC commuter and your employer is withholding DC tax instead of VA tax: file DC Form D-4A to fix it. If you have kids, max VA529 contributions to the $4,000 per account deduction. The biggest tax mistake most Virginians make isn't paying too much state income tax — it's missing the military retirement subtraction or VA529 deduction because they didn't know about them.
Sources & further reading
Where the numbers and rules on this page come from. Verify any claim against the primary source before making a decision based on it.
- →Virginia Department of Taxation — official tax tables and forms
- →VA529 (Invest529 / CollegeAmerica) — official program
- →Tax Foundation — annual state-and-local tax burden rankings
- →U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
- →U.S. Office of Personnel Management — federal pay tables (locality)
- →IRS — federal brackets, contribution limits, Publication 17
A few honest notes
Stuff worth keeping in mind:
- This is not personal tax, legal, or financial advice. It's a friendly, well-researched explainer. Your situation has details we can't see from here. Please run your specific numbers by a licensed CPA, EA, or tax attorney before making any meaningful decision.
- Tax law changes. This guide reflects 2026 IRS schedules and current Virginia Department of Taxation rules. Brackets, the military retirement subtraction phase-up, and rules can be updated by Congress, the VA General Assembly, or the courts at any time.
- Property tax estimates are illustrative and vary widely by county and city. Your actual bill depends on your specific parcel — check your county or city assessor's website.
- The numbers are illustrative. Scenarios assume standard filing situations and don't include every credit, deduction, NIIT, AMT, equity-comp wrinkle, K-1 income, VA-specific subtraction, or out-of-state complication that might apply to you.
- The calculator at the top doesn't model VA-specific subtractions (military retired pay subtraction, age 65+ deduction, etc.) — your actual VA bill may be lower than shown if you qualify for these.
- Reading this page does not create a client relationship with the writer, ProSalaryTax, or anyone affiliated. We're just here to help you think clearly.
- No judgment, regardless of which Virginia community you live in or how much you make. Federal workers, military, contractors, teachers, founders, retirees, and everyone in between — you're all welcome here.
Last updated April 2026 with 2026 IRS schedules and current VA Department of Taxation guidance. Numbers assume single filer except where noted. This is journalism with a calculator attached, not tax advice. Be kind to yourself in March.
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