How to Complete and File Maryland Form 515: Nonresident Local Tax

Maryland Form 515 is the nonresident local income tax return for people who work in Maryland but live in an out-of-state city or county that imposes its own income or earnings tax on Maryland residents. Because of that reciprocal taxation, Maryland charges these nonresidents the county income tax rate where they work rather than the 2.25% special nonresident tax that other out-of-staters pay on Form 505. The return for the 2025 tax year is due April 15, 2026, and it has to be mailed to the Comptroller of Maryland because the state’s free iFile system does not accept it.¹

Who Has to File Form 515

The form applies to a narrow group. You file it if you earned wages, salary, or other compensation for work performed in a Maryland county or Baltimore City and you live in an out-of-state jurisdiction that taxes Maryland residents who work there. The states containing qualifying localities are Alabama, Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Not every town in those states counts. Only the ones that actually impose a local earnings or income tax on Maryland residents trigger Form 515. A Delaware resident outside Wilmington files Form 505; a Wilmington resident files Form 515, because Wilmington taxes Maryland residents’ earnings.²

Maryland Tax-General Code § 10-103 lets each Maryland county charge nonresidents the county income tax on wages earned in that county. The obligation drops away if the Comptroller determines that the nonresident’s home jurisdiction does not tax Maryland residents’ income, exempts it, or grants a full credit and withholding exemption for it.³ That’s why most out-of-state workers never deal with Form 515 at all.

Pennsylvania is the common case worth flagging. The PA-Maryland reciprocal agreement exempts Pennsylvania residents from Maryland state income tax on wages, but Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and other PA localities tax Maryland residents’ earnings. Those PA residents still have to file Form 515 to pay the Maryland county-level local tax.⁴ Residents of York or Adams counties in Pennsylvania can sometimes claim an exemption from Maryland local withholding by completing the appropriate lines on Form MW507 with their employer.⁵

Virginia, West Virginia, and DC residents generally owe no Maryland tax on wages at all under their reciprocal agreements, so they file neither Form 515 nor Form 505 as long as wages are their only Maryland-source income.³

You have to file if your Maryland gross income tops the minimum filing threshold. For the 2025 tax year, that threshold is $15,750 for single filers under 65, $31,500 for joint filers, and $23,625 for head of household. The single-filer threshold rises to $17,750 at age 65.⁴

Deadline and Extensions

Form 515 for 2025 is due April 15, 2026.⁶ If you can’t file in time, submit Form PV with payment of what you expect to owe by April 15 and you get an automatic six-month extension to file. The extension buys time to file, not time to pay. Interest accrues on any unpaid balance from the original deadline.⁷

Military and support personnel serving in a designated combat zone or qualified hazardous duty area get the same six-month extension to both file and pay that the IRS allows, with no interest or penalty during that period.⁷

What to Gather Before You Start

Your completed federal Form 1040 or 1040-SR. Maryland’s calculation starts with your federal adjusted gross income.
W-2s showing Maryland wages. Independent contractors need 1099-NECs or other records of Maryland-source compensation.
A days-worked breakdown from your employer if you split working time between Maryland and another state. That determines how much of your income Maryland can tax.
Last year’s Maryland return for reference and for estimated-tax safe harbor math.

If you have Maryland-source income beyond wages, such as rental income or business profits, you’ll file Form 505 in addition to Form 515.⁴

How the Tax Is Calculated

Start with federal adjusted gross income. Subtract income you did not earn in Maryland to arrive at your Maryland adjusted gross income. If you worked for the same employer in Maryland and another state, use the days-worked allocation to find the Maryland share. Then apply the Maryland-specific additions and subtractions that would apply on Form 505.

If you’re filing Form 515 alongside Form 505, use Form 505NR for the nonresident income tax calculation. The 505NR instructions include a section specifically for Form 515 filers.⁸

Exemptions

Each personal exemption subtracts $3,200 from taxable income, and the number you claim should match your federal return. The exemption begins phasing out when federal adjusted gross income passes $100,000 ($150,000 joint) and is gone entirely above $150,000 ($200,000 joint).⁶ An additional $1,000 exemption applies if you’re 65 or older or legally blind, and that one does not phase out.⁹

Local Tax Rate

This is where Form 515 differs from the standard nonresident return. Instead of the flat 2.25% special nonresident tax, you pay local income tax at the rate set by the Maryland county where you work. County rates range from 2.25% to 3.30%, so your liability depends on your employer’s location.⁸ The county rate replaces the special nonresident tax; it is not added to it.¹⁰

No Credit for Taxes Paid to Another State

Nonresidents cannot claim the credit for taxes paid to another state on the Maryland return. The Form 502CR instructions say so directly: filers of Forms 505, 515, or 504 are not eligible.¹¹ Your home state will usually offer a credit or deduction for taxes paid to Maryland, which keeps you from being taxed twice. Look for that credit on your home-state return.

How to File and Pay

Maryland’s free iFile system does not accept Form 515.¹ File by mail, or use commercial tax software that supports Maryland nonresident forms. The mailing address is:

Comptroller of Maryland
Revenue Administration Division
110 Carroll Street
Annapolis, MD 21411-0001¹²

If you owe a balance, you can pay online through the Comptroller’s payment portal by electronic funds withdrawal from a bank account. Credit cards are accepted but a third-party processor adds a convenience fee. For checks or money orders, include Form PV, make the payment out to “Comptroller of Maryland,” and write the last four digits of your Social Security number, the tax year, and the tax type on the check. Leaving that off slows processing.¹³ Form PV is also what you use to request the six-month extension, and Form PVW helps you estimate what you’ll owe if you aren’t sure.¹⁴

Estimated Payments During the Year

If employer withholding isn’t covering your Maryland tax and you expect to owe more than $500 at filing, you have to make quarterly estimated payments. Use Form PV and check the “Estimated Payment/Quarterly” option.¹⁵ Quarterly due dates:

First quarter: April 15
Second quarter: June 15
Third quarter: September 15
Fourth quarter: January 15 of the following year

If the date falls on a weekend or holiday, the payment is due the next business day.¹⁵ First-time estimated filers, and anyone whose filing status changed, must also check the designated box on Form PV to establish the account.¹³ You can pay electronically through the Comptroller’s website instead of mailing the voucher.

Penalties and Interest

Late filing carries a penalty of up to 25% of the tax due.¹⁶ Interest runs on top of that from the original due date. For the 2025 tax year, the rate is 10.8133% annually, or 0.9011% per month or partial month, on amounts paid after April 15, 2026 but before January 1, 2027.⁶ The Comptroller resets the rate each January, so the number changes again on January 1, 2027.

A separate underpayment penalty can apply if you fell short on estimated payments during the year. Maryland follows a safe harbor similar to the federal one: pay at least 90% of the current year’s tax, or 110% of last year’s if your adjusted gross income exceeded $150,000. Form 502UP calculates whether an underpayment penalty applies.

If you catch an error after filing, call the Comptroller’s office at 410-260-7980 to work out your options before penalties and interest compound further.

1
Comptroller of Maryland. iFile – Help
2
Comptroller of Maryland. Tax Guidance – Filing Information for Individual Income Tax
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Comptroller of Maryland. Administrative Release No. 3 – Reciprocity
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Comptroller of Maryland. 2025 Maryland Nonresident Tax Forms and Instructions
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Comptroller of Maryland. Employee’s Maryland Withholding Exemption Certificate – Form MW507
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Comptroller of Maryland. What’s New for the 2026 Tax Filing Season (2025 Tax Year)
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Comptroller of Maryland. Tax Guidance – Extensions
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Comptroller of Maryland. 2025 Maryland Form 505NR Nonresident Income Tax Calculation
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Comptroller of Maryland. Exemptions Worksheet
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Comptroller of Maryland. 2026 Maryland State and Local Income Tax Withholding Information
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Comptroller of Maryland. 2024 Maryland Form 502CR Income Tax Credits for Individuals
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Comptroller of Maryland. Individual Tax Forms and Instructions
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Comptroller of Maryland. Maryland Form PV Personal Tax Payment Voucher
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Comptroller of Maryland. Payment Voucher Worksheet for Estimated Tax and Extensions
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Comptroller of Maryland. Personal Tax Tip 54 – Should You Pay Estimated Tax to Maryland?
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Comptroller of Maryland. Tax Guidance – Penalty and Interest Charges