Overview of Virginia Taxes
Virginia has a progressive state income tax system with four tax brackets that range from 2% to 5.75%. The bracket you fall into will depend on your income level. Since the highest rate applies to income over $17,000, most Virginia taxpayers will find themselves paying the top rate, at least partially. Filing status does not affect state income taxes in Virginia, and no cities in the state levy local income taxes.
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- Our Tax Expert
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Jennifer Mansfield, CPA Tax
Jennifer Mansfield, CPA, JD/LLM-Tax, is a Certified Public Accountant with more than 30 years of experience providing tax advice. SmartAsset’s tax expert has a degree in Accounting and Business/Management from the University of Wyoming, as well as both a Masters in Tax Laws and a Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center. Jennifer has mostly worked in public accounting firms, including Ernst & Young and Deloitte. She is passionate about helping provide people and businesses with valuable accounting and tax advice to allow them to prosper financially. Jennifer lives in Arizona and was recently named to the Greater Tucson Leadership Program.
Virginia Paycheck Calculator
Virginia Paycheck Quick Facts
- Virginia income tax rate: 2% - 5.75%
- Median household income: $76,456 (U.S. Census Bureau)
- Number of cities that have local income taxes: 0
How Your Virginia Paycheck Works
As in all other states, Virginia employers must withhold FICA taxes from their employee’s paychecks. FICA taxes consist of Social Security and Medicare taxes. Social Security withholding is 6.2% of your income, while Medicare withholding is 1.45% of your income each pay period. Your employer will match these percentages so that the total FICA contribution is double what you pay. If you're a single filer who earns a salary in excess of $200,000, wages over that amount are subject to a 0.9% Medicare surtax. For joint filers, this surtax applies to income above $250,000, while married people filing separately will see it added for any income above $125,000.
In some instances, you might assume the responsibility of paying 100% of your FICA taxes instead of the usual 50%. This is the case with self-employed taxpayers. Since these types of workers do not have the luxury of having an employer to contribute half of their FICA taxes, they must cover all of these taxes alone. However, there is a deduction available during tax season so that self-employed workers can recoup some of the “employer” portion of their FICA taxes.
Virginia employers also withhold money for federal income taxes. How much you pay will depend on various factors, including your salary, marital status and whether you have any dependents. Remember that whenever you start new employment or you undergo major life changes, like getting married or having a child, you will need to fill out a new Form W-4.
The IRS has recently made revisions to the Form W-4. The new version no longer lets you claim allowances, as it instead features a five-step process that asks you to enter annual dollar amounts for any additional income or jobs, as well as things like non-wage income, income tax credits, itemized and other deductions and total annual taxable wages. If you were hired before 2020, don't worry about completing the new version unless you plan on adjusting your withholdings or changing jobs. However, the new form is mandatory for all employees hired as of Jan. 1, 2020.
Keep in mind that your paycheck frequency also plays a role in your cash flow each month. More frequent but smaller paychecks may mean you budget a bit differently than if you get fewer, larger paychecks.
Like most states, Virginia also collects a state income tax. Taxpayers fall into one of four income brackets, depending on income level. The top tax rate of 5.75% applies to taxable income over $17,000, so most taxpayers will be paying that rate on at least some of their income. Virginia's income tax brackets apply to all residents regardless of filing status.
If you are looking to buy a home in Virginia or if you want to refinance a mortgage on a home you already own, make sure to check out our Virginia mortgage guide for important information on rates and details about getting a mortgage in the Old Dominion.
A financial advisor in Virginia can help you understand how taxes fit into your overall financial goals. Financial advisors can also help with investing and financial plans, including retirement, homeownership, insurance and more, to make sure you are preparing for the future.
How You Can Affect Your Virginia Paycheck
There's a simple way to have an impact your Virginia paycheck. For one, you can elect to set up an additional dollar withholding from each of your paychecks to go toward taxes. Yes, your paychecks will be smaller now, but it’s easier to avoid underpaying and it may increase your chances of getting a tax refund in April. At the very least, it'll make it less likely that you’ll face a big bill.
Do you have health and life insurance for you and your family through an employer-sponsored plan? Any premiums you pay for those are deducted from your paycheck. The same goes for your contributions to a retirement plan like a 401(k) or 403(b) via your company. Additionally, the money you put toward these retirement plans is subtracted from your wages before taxes are applied. This lowers your taxable income and you may owe less in taxes as a result.
Most Paycheck Friendly Places
SmartAsset's interactive map highlights the most paycheck friendly counties across the U.S. Zoom between states and the national map to see data points for each region, or look specifically at one of the four ranking factors in our analysis: Semi-Monthly Paycheck, Purchasing Power, Unemployment Rate, and Income Growth.
Methodology To find the most paycheck friendly places for counties across the country, we considered four factors: semi-monthly paycheck, purchasing power, unemployment rate and income growth.
First, we calculated the semi-monthly paycheck for a single individual with two personal allowances. We applied relevant deductions and exemptions before calculating income tax withholding. To better compare withholding across counties, we assumed a $50,000 annual income. We then indexed the paycheck amount for each county to reflect the counties with the lowest withholding burden, or greatest take-home pay.
We then created a purchasing power index for each county. This reflects the counties with the highest ratio of household income to cost of living. We also created an unemployment index that shows the counties with the lowest rate of unemployment. For income growth, we calculated the annual growth in median income throughout a five year period for each county and then indexed the results.
Finally, we calculated the weighted average of the indices to yield an overall paycheck friendliness score. We used a one-half weighting for semi-monthly paycheck and a one-sixth weighting for purchasing power, unemployment rate and income growth. We indexed the final number, so higher values reflect the most paycheck friendly places.
Sources: SmartAsset, government websites, US Census Bureau 2018 American Community Survey, MIT Living Wage Study, Bureau of Labor Statistics
