The Virginia withholding tax rate is a four-bracket progressive schedule that runs from 2% on the first $3,000 of taxable wages up to 5.75% on taxable wages above $17,000. Your employer applies those rates to your gross pay after subtracting the Virginia standard deduction and $930 for each personal or dependent exemption you claim on Form VA-4. Because the system is progressive, each rate only touches the slice of income inside its bracket, not your whole paycheck.1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 58.1-320 – Imposition of Tax
The Four Brackets
Virginia’s brackets have held steady for decades:1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 58.1-320 – Imposition of Tax
- 2% on the first $3,000 of taxable income
- 3% on the next $2,000 (income from $3,001 to $5,000)
- 5% on the next $12,000 (income from $5,001 to $17,000)
- 5.75% on everything above $17,000
A worker with $20,000 of Virginia taxable income pays 2% on the first $3,000, 3% on the next $2,000, 5% on the next $12,000, and 5.75% on the last $3,000. The 5.75% top rate is what most full-time earners will see on the majority of their pay, since $17,000 is a low threshold relative to typical annual wages.
What Gets Subtracted Before the Brackets Apply
The rates don’t hit your gross wages. They hit taxable wages, which is what’s left after the standard deduction and exemptions come out. Getting these numbers right on your VA-4 is what keeps your withholding from running too high or too low.
Standard Deduction
For tax years 2025 and 2026, the standard deduction is $8,750 for single filers and $17,500 for married couples filing jointly. Married filing separately uses $8,750.2Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 58.1-322.03 – Virginia Taxable Income Deductions These went up from $8,500 and $17,000 in prior years, so an older payroll setup may still be running the old figures.
Personal and Dependent Exemptions
Virginia grants a $930 exemption for each personal and dependent exemption you claim. You get one for yourself, one for a spouse when filing jointly, and one for each dependent on your federal return. An extra $800 exemption applies for each filer who turns 65 by January 1 or who is blind under the federal definition.3Virginia Tax. Exemptions A couple in their late sixties adds $1,600 in age-related exemptions on top of their two personal ones.
How Form VA-4 Drives Your Withholding
Every Virginia employee tells the employer how to withhold by filing Form VA-4, the Employee’s Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate. Line 1 is the total number of exemptions you’re claiming. Your employer multiplies that by $930 (or $800 for age and blindness) to reduce each paycheck’s taxable wages before running the bracket math. Line 2 lets you request an additional flat dollar amount withheld from each check, which helps when you have side income that isn’t otherwise taxed.4Virginia Department of Taxation. Form VA-4 – Employees Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate
If you never file a VA-4, your employer must withhold as if you were single with zero exemptions. That produces the maximum withholding amount and usually more than you actually owe.
Claiming Exempt Status
You can claim full exemption from Virginia withholding if you had no Virginia tax liability last year and expect none this year. The income floors for that exemption are $11,950 for single filers and $23,900 for joint filers.4Virginia Department of Taxation. Form VA-4 – Employees Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate The exemption resets every calendar year, so you have to file a fresh VA-4 to keep it.
Bonuses and Other Supplemental Wages
Bonuses, commissions, and similar one-time payments can be withheld at a flat 5.75% instead of running through the bracket calculation, as long as the employer is already withholding on your regular wages.5Virginia Department of Taxation. Income Tax Withholding Guide for Employers The 5.75% flat rate matches the top bracket. Employers who prefer to lump a bonus into a normal paycheck can instead run the full bracket calculation on the combined total.
If You Live in DC, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, or West Virginia
Virginia has reciprocity agreements with those five jurisdictions.6Virginia Tax. Reciprocity If you live in one of them and commute to a Virginia job, you can check Line 3 on Form VA-4 and your employer will stop withholding Virginia tax on your wages.4Virginia Department of Taxation. Form VA-4 – Employees Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate Your home state taxes those wages instead.
Reciprocity covers wages and salary only. Rental income, business profits, and other Virginia-source income from those states remain taxable to Virginia. And if a Virginia employer withheld from your pay by mistake, the fix is a Virginia refund claim, not a credit on your home state return.
If Your Withholding Doesn’t Match Your Tax Bill
You can still owe at tax time even when your employer follows your VA-4 exactly, especially if you have freelance income, investment income, or claimed more exemptions than your situation supports. Virginia expects you to cover at least 90% of your annual tax liability through withholding or estimated payments during the year. A remaining balance of $150 or less avoids any underpayment penalty.7Virginia Department of Taxation. Instructions for Form 760C – Underpayment of Virginia Estimated Tax
If you consistently owe at filing, submit a new VA-4 with a higher Line 2 amount or fewer exemptions on Line 1. You don’t have to wait until January. A mid-year VA-4 takes effect on the next paycheck the employer processes.