If you live or work in York County, Pennsylvania, your local tax return is a separate filing from your federal 1040 and your Pennsylvania state return. The main one is the annual local earned income tax (EIT) return, due April 15 and filed in most cases through Berkheimer Tax Administrator at a rate that generally runs between 1% and 1.5% of wages and net self-employment profits. Depending on where you work and what you do, you may also owe a Local Services Tax withheld by your employer, or, if you run a business, a business privilege or mercantile tax on gross receipts.
Who Has to File a Local Return
Two things pull you into the York County local tax system: residency and work location. If you live in a York municipality and earned wages, salary, commissions, or net profits from self-employment during the year, you need to file a local earned income tax return. If you live elsewhere but worked in a York municipality, you may owe local tax to that jurisdiction, particularly if your home municipality’s rate is lower.
Not every resident has to file. Under the Local Tax Enabling Act, a person with no taxable income is not required to file a return or pay local income tax.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Local Tax Enabling Act One exception: if you filed last year but had no taxable income this year, the tax collector can still require a final return explaining the change. Retirees, people who lost a job, and people who moved out often file one last return to close the loop.
Before you file, confirm your six-digit Political Subdivision (PSD) code. The code routes your payment to the correct municipality and school district, and the wrong one can send your money to the wrong jurisdiction and generate delinquency notices for a tax you actually paid.2Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. PSD Codes and EIT Rates You can look up the PSD code and combined rate for your address through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development’s search tool.3Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development. Find Local Withholding Rates by Address
One boundary worth knowing: active-duty military pay has been exempt from Pennsylvania’s local earned income tax since January 2016. If you’re serving on active duty, attach a copy of your orders and Leave and Earnings Statement to your return. Other income you earn, such as from a side business, is still taxable locally.
What Income the Local EIT Covers
The local earned income tax applies to a narrower slice of income than people often expect. It hits wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, tips, and net profits from a business or profession. It does not apply to interest, dividends, capital gains, rental income from personal investments, or Social Security benefits.
Retirement income is also outside the EIT. Distributions from pensions, 401(k) plans, and IRAs are not subject to Pennsylvania state or local taxes.4Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement System. Taxes If you’re retired and your income comes from retirement accounts and Social Security, you generally don’t need to file a York local return at all.
For self-employed filers, “net profits” means the net income from running your business or profession, calculated in a way that closely mirrors your federal Schedule C: gross receipts minus allowable business expenses.5Berkheimer. Taxpayer Annual Local Earned Income Tax Return (F-1) FAQ Investment-type income earned by the business, like interest on a business bank account, doesn’t count. Farmers get additional exclusions for gains on the sale of farm machinery, livestock held 12 months or more for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, and other farm capital assets.
How to Calculate What You Owe
Combined municipal and school district EIT rates in York County generally fall between 1% and 1.5% of earned income. Confirm your exact rate through the DCED lookup before you calculate.2Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. PSD Codes and EIT Rates
If you’re a W-2 employee, two boxes do most of the work. Box 18 shows your local wages; Box 19 shows the local tax your employer already withheld. Multiply Box 18 by your combined EIT rate to get your total liability, then compare that against Box 19. If withholding fell short, you owe the difference. If your employer withheld too much, you can request a refund or apply the overpayment as a credit to next year.
Self-employed filers calculate on net profits rather than W-2 wages. If you received a Form 1099-NEC reporting nonemployee compensation,6Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1099-NEC, Nonemployee Compensation subtract allowable business expenses to arrive at net profit, then apply the local rate. Because no employer withholds for you, expect a balance due when you file. Local tax offices cross-reference data with state records, so missing a 1099 tends to produce an inquiry.
Deadlines and How to File
The annual local earned income tax return is due April 15, the same day as your federal and state returns. For the 2025 tax year, that is Wednesday, April 15, 2026.7Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Tax Day Reminder
Most York County municipalities use Berkheimer Tax Administrator (also known as HAB) as their designated collector. You can file electronically through Berkheimer’s e-file portal,8Berkheimer. Individuals & Taxpayers which lets you enter income data, upload W-2s and supporting schedules, and pay any balance by electronic funds transfer or credit card. The digital confirmation receipt is your proof of timely filing.
If you file on paper, Berkheimer uses different PO boxes depending on what’s enclosed:9Berkheimer. Contact Us
- Refund request: HAB-EIT, PO Box 25160, Lehigh Valley, PA 18002
- Payment enclosed: HAB-EIT, PO Box 25158, Lehigh Valley, PA 18002
- No payment or refund: HAB-EIT, PO Box 25159, Lehigh Valley, PA 18002
Sending to the wrong box doesn’t invalidate your return, but the right one processes faster. Check that signatures are present and schedules are attached before it goes in the mail.
Quarterly Estimates for the Self-Employed
Self-employed filers can’t wait until April 15 to settle up. If you have gross earnings from services, you’re required to make quarterly estimated local EIT payments through the year. For the 2026 tax year, the due dates are:10Berkheimer. Quarterly Estimated Local Earned Income Tax Withholding
- 1st Quarter: April 30, 2026
- 2nd Quarter: July 31, 2026
- 3rd Quarter: October 31, 2026
- 4th Quarter: January 31, 2027
Each payment is based on your projected net profits for that quarter. You still file an annual reconciliation return by April 15 of the following year to true up the difference between what you estimated and what you actually owed. Underpaying can trigger penalty and interest, so estimating a little high is usually the safer choice.
The Local Services Tax
Separate from the EIT, many York municipalities levy a Local Services Tax (LST) on people who work within their borders. The LST is capped at $52 per year per taxpayer.11PA Department of Community & Economic Development. Local Services Tax Your employer withholds it. When the combined municipal and school district LST rate is more than $10, the tax must be deducted from paychecks on a pro-rata basis across the year; when it’s $10 or less, it can be collected in a single payment.
If you work for more than one employer, you’re only subject to the LST at one place of employment per payroll period. Give your secondary employer a pay stub from your primary job and a principal employment certification form, and the secondary withholding stops.
There’s a mandatory low-income exemption: if the combined LST rate is more than $10 and your total earned income and net profits from all sources in the taxing jurisdiction come to less than $12,000, you’re exempt. Submit an exemption certificate to your employer to stop the withholding.
Business Privilege and Mercantile Taxes
Business owners operating in the City of York or surrounding municipalities face another layer under Act 511, the Local Tax Enabling Act.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Local Tax Enabling Act The business privilege tax covers service-based businesses like consultants and contractors; the mercantile tax covers retail and wholesale sales. They function as essentially the same tax applied to different activities.12Pennsylvania Department of Education. Act 511 Taxes Glossary
Both are calculated on gross receipts, not net profit, so every dollar of revenue before expenses counts. Rates vary by municipality. In the City of York, the service rate is 3.5 mills, or $3.50 per $1,000 of gross receipts.13City of York, Pennsylvania. Business Privilege and Mercantile Tax Regulations Confirm the rate for your specific municipality before filing.
Rental Property Income
Whether rental income triggers the business privilege tax depends on jurisdiction and scale. In the City of York, receipts from leasing real property are generally treated as service receipts and subject to the tax. The city’s regulations then carve out an exclusion for landlords, defined as anyone leasing three or more dwelling units or one or more commercial buildings. If you meet that definition, your rental receipts are excluded.13City of York, Pennsylvania. Business Privilege and Mercantile Tax Regulations The structure effectively taxes smaller-scale rentals while exempting larger landlord operations.
Filing
You report total gross volume of business for the preceding calendar year on a local business tax form, with evidence of gross receipts. Willful failure to file under Act 511 is a misdemeanor; conviction can carry fines up to $1,000 and up to a year of imprisonment.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Local Tax Enabling Act In practice, late filers more often see interest and civil penalties from the local collector, but the criminal exposure is real.
If You Moved During the Year
Moving into or out of a York municipality mid-year means you owe local EIT on the income earned while living in each jurisdiction. You’ll file as a part-year resident and complete the Part-Year Resident schedule on the back of the annual return, listing the months you lived at each address.14Berkheimer. Part Year Resident Earned Income Tax Worksheet Keep documentation of your residency periods, such as leases or utility records, in case the collector asks.
Berkheimer’s online worksheet prorates your wages and withheld tax based on the months in each municipality. For wage data, use Box 16 of your W-2 for Pennsylvania wages and Box 5 for wages from other states. Multiple wage entries on a single W-2 go in as separate employment records. The part-year worksheet isn’t available for anyone who worked in the City of Philadelphia, which runs its own local tax system.
Penalties for Filing Late or Underpaying
Missing April 15 or underpaying the local EIT triggers both penalty and interest. For 2026, the annual interest rate on Pennsylvania tax underpayments is 7%, applied as simple interest.15Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. What Is the Current Interest Rate Individual municipalities may add their own late-filing penalties on top of that.
Act 511 raises the stakes for willful noncompliance. Making false statements on a return is a second-degree misdemeanor with fines up to $2,000 and up to two years of imprisonment. Willful refusal to file is a third-degree misdemeanor with fines up to $1,000 and up to a year of imprisonment.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Local Tax Enabling Act Criminal prosecution is rare, but local taxes in Pennsylvania are not optional. If you realize you’ve missed a filing, contact Berkheimer or your local tax collector and resolve it before they come looking.