Virginia Form 763 is the Nonresident Individual Income Tax Return that you file with the Virginia Department of Taxation when you live outside Virginia but earn income from a Virginia source. You report your Virginia-source wages, business income, or property income, then pay tax only on the share that comes from Virginia.
The form solves a real problem: Virginia wants its cut of money earned inside its borders, even when the earner lives in Maryland, North Carolina, or anywhere else. Get the nonresident allocation percentage on Line 16 wrong, and you either overpay by hundreds of dollars or trigger a notice that holds up your refund for weeks. The current version is the 2025 Form 763 (Rev. 05/25), and it is due May 1, 2026.
Over 4 million Virginia taxpayers filed electronically last year, and the Department reports that e-filed refunds clear in about one week while paper refunds take up to eight. Speed and accuracy both reward filers who understand the form before they start.
Here is what you will learn in this guide:
- 🧾 Who must file Form 763 and the exact income threshold that triggers it
- 📋 A line-by-line walkthrough of every box, with sample entries
- 👥 Three full filled-out examples using real-life nonresident situations
- 🚫 The most common mistakes that delay refunds or trigger notices
- ❓ Plain-English answers to the questions nonresident filers ask most
What Form 763 Is and Who Must File It
Form 763 is Virginia’s income tax return for people who are not Virginia residents but still earned money from Virginia. The form is received by the Virginia Department of Taxation, the state agency that collects individual income tax. It exists because Va. Code § 58.1-325 requires nonresidents to pay Virginia tax on income from Virginia sources.
You must file Form 763 if you are a nonresident with Virginia Adjusted Gross Income (VAGI) at or above the filing threshold and any of your income comes from Virginia. The Department defines Virginia-source income as money from labor performed, business done, or property located in Virginia. That covers wages from a Virginia job, profit from a Virginia rental, and your share of a partnership or S corporation that does business in the state.
The filing thresholds for 2025 are clear. A single filer must file once VAGI reaches $11,950. Married couples filing a joint return must file at a combined VAGI of $23,900. The same $11,950 floor applies to a married person whose spouse has no income and to each spouse filing separately.
A nonresident is anyone who did not maintain a home in Virginia and was physically present in the state for 183 days or fewer during the year. Cross that 183-day line, and Virginia treats you as an actual resident who files Form 760 instead. Part-year residents who moved in or out mid-year use Form 760PY, not Form 763.
Filing the wrong form is a common and costly error. Carlos, a North Carolina resident who drove to a Virginia job site for six months, files Form 763 because he never lived in Virginia. A misconception trips up many filers here: people believe that having Virginia tax withheld from a paycheck makes them a Virginia resident. It does not. Withholding only means an employer sent money to Richmond; your residency depends on where you live and how many days you were present.
Before You Start: Documents and Information You Need
Gather everything before you open the form. Filing with a missing document is the fastest way to stall a refund, because the Department cross-checks your entries against the records employers and the IRS already sent them. The pre-filing checklist below covers the essentials.
- A complete copy of your federal return (Form 1040). Line 1 of Form 763 starts with your federal Adjusted Gross Income, so without the federal return you cannot begin. Virginia requires you to enclose the full federal copy.
- All W-2 forms. These show your total wages and, in Box 16, your Virginia wages. Missing a W-2 means an inaccurate allocation and a likely notice.
- All 1099 forms. Interest, dividends, contractor pay, and retirement income arrive on 1099s. Leaving one out understates income and invites a correction letter.
- Any VK-1 schedules. If you own part of a partnership or S corporation, the VK-1 reports your Virginia-source share. Without it, you cannot fill the Virginia column of the allocation table.
- Your Social Security Number and your spouse’s SSN. A wrong or missing SSN stops processing cold because the return cannot be matched to you.
- Your Virginia driver’s license number and issue date. The Department uses this to fight refund fraud; supplying it speeds verification.
- Your bank routing and account numbers. Direct deposit is the fastest refund, but only to a U.S. account; foreign accounts are rejected.
- Records of Virginia estimated payments. If you paid estimated tax during the year, you need the totals for Lines 20 and 21 or you will lose credit for money you already paid.
Pull together your state-of-residence return too, especially if you live in a state that taxes the same income. You may need it to claim a credit and to confirm reciprocity rules. Keep every record for at least three years from the due date, because that is how long the Department can review your return.
Where to Get the Form and How to Access It
You get Form 763 straight from the Virginia Department of Taxation. The cleanest path is to download Form 763 and its instruction booklet from the official forms page as fillable PDFs. You can type your entries on screen, which cuts down on the math and transposition errors that handwriting invites.
If you prefer paper, you can order forms by phone at 804.367.8031. The Department mails them at no charge, though allow extra days for delivery during the busy filing season. Your local Commissioner of the Revenue office also stocks Virginia forms and can hand you a copy in person.
Most filers skip the PDF entirely and use software. Virginia partners with the Free File program, which lets eligible lower-income taxpayers prepare and e-file both federal and Virginia returns at no cost. Commercial software such as TurboTax or a paid preparer also supports Form 763 and handles the allocation math automatically.
A nuance worth knowing: confirm you have the 2025 version before you start. The revision date “Rev. 05/25” prints at the bottom of Page 1. A common mistake is downloading a prior-year form because it ranked higher in a search engine; the Department rejects returns filed on the wrong year’s form, and you have to start over. The misconception that “a tax form is a tax form” costs filers weeks, since thresholds, the standard deduction, and credits change every year.
Step-by-Step: How to Fill Out Form 763 Line by Line
Work through the form in printed order. The top of Page 1 holds your identity and status; the middle holds the income math; Page 2 holds the all-important Nonresident Allocation section and your signature. Use the exact box names below, and italicized entries show what actually gets written on the form.
Name, Address, and Social Security Number
The top block asks for your legal name, home address, birth date, state of residence, and SSN. Enter your First Name, MI, Last Name, and Suffix exactly as they appear on your Social Security card, because the Department cross-checks names against SSA records. For a joint return, add your spouse’s name and SSN in the labeled spouse fields.
Write your SSN with no dashes, your birth date as mm-dd-yyyy, and your full mailing address including ZIP. Maria Reyes enters MARIA K REYES, SSN 412-55-6789, and birth date 04-18-1990.
A common edge case is the state-of-residence box, which trips up nonresidents who work in Virginia. You enter the state where you actually live, such as MD or NC, never VA. A mismatch between a Virginia address and a nonresident return is the single fastest way to get flagged.
Skip this block and the return cannot be matched to you, which freezes the refund and may trigger an identity-verification letter. Many filers wrongly believe a nickname is fine; the Department reads names literally, so “Mike” instead of “Michael” can cause a hold.
Virginia City or County of Income Source and Locality Code
This box asks for the name of the Virginia city or county where your principal place of business, employment, or income source sits, plus its Locality Code. Check whether your work site is an independent city or a county, then write the name and look up the matching code in the instruction booklet.
David Cole, who works in Richmond, writes Richmond as a City and enters the locality code 760. If your income comes from more than one locality, use the one that produced the most income.
A frequent mistake is confusing a city with the county that surrounds it, such as writing “Fairfax County” when the job was in the independent City of Fairfax. The wrong code routes local-use data incorrectly and can slow processing. People often assume this box is optional; it is not, and a blank locality code is a common reason returns get kicked back.
Filing Status
The Filing Status box takes a single code. Enter 1 for Single, 2 for Married Filing Joint (both spouses must have Virginia income), 3 for Married with a spouse who has no income from any source, or 4 for Married Filing Separate returns.
A married couple where only one spouse earned Virginia wages and the other had no income anywhere enters 3. If you file status 3 or 4, you must also write your spouse’s SSN at the top and the spouse’s name on the line provided.
The big edge case is Status 2: it requires both spouses to have Virginia-source income. Couples often pick Status 2 out of habit from their federal return, but if only one spouse has Virginia income, Status 3 is correct. Choosing the wrong status changes your standard deduction and exemptions, which can either inflate your tax or trigger a recalculation notice. A common misconception is that your Virginia status must match your federal status; it does not have to.
Exemptions (Sections 1 and 2)
The Exemptions block has two sections. Section 1 gives $930 for yourself, your spouse, and each dependent. Section 2 gives an extra $800 for each box checked for age 65 or over and for blindness, for you and your spouse.
Count your personal exemptions, multiply by $930, then add any age and blindness exemptions at $800 each. A married couple with two children checks the boxes for two adults and two dependents: 4 x $930 = $3,720, and with no age or blindness boxes, the total carries to Line 12.
An edge case: if someone else can claim you as a dependent, do not claim a personal exemption for yourself. Overstating exemptions lowers your taxable income artificially, and the Department will correct it and bill the difference plus interest. Filers often think dependents earn the $800 age amount; that $800 applies only to the taxpayer and spouse for age 65+ or blindness, never to dependents.
Line 1 – Adjusted Gross Income from Federal Return
Line 1 asks for your federal Adjusted Gross Income — not federal taxable income. Copy the AGI figure straight from your federal Form 1040, before any deductions Virginia handles separately.
Maria Reyes copies 82,400 from her federal 1040 onto Line 1. Enter whole dollars only, with no cents in the dollar field.
The boldest warning on the whole form lives here: it says AGI, not taxable income. The most common single mistake on Form 763 is entering federal taxable income, a smaller number, which throws off every line below it. People assume “income is income,” but AGI sits above the standard or itemized deduction on the federal return, so grab the right line.
Line 2 – Additions from Schedule 763 ADJ
Line 2 captures additions to income that Virginia requires but the federal return does not, pulled from Line 3 of Schedule 763 ADJ. The most common addition is interest on bonds from other states.
Complete Schedule 763 ADJ first, then copy its Line 3 total here. A filer with $300 of out-of-state municipal bond interest enters 300. If you have no additions, enter 0.
The edge case most filers miss is interest from another state’s municipal bonds, which is federally tax-free but taxable in Virginia. Skip this addition and you understate income, which the Department can catch through bond-reporting data and assess later with interest. A misconception is that “tax-free” federal interest stays tax-free everywhere; Virginia taxes other states’ bond interest.
Lines 3 Through 8 – Building Toward Virginia AGI
These lines assemble your subtractions. Line 3 adds Lines 1 and 2. Line 4a/4b is the Age Deduction for you and your spouse, figured on the Age Deduction Worksheet. Line 5 subtracts Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement benefits taxed federally. Line 6 subtracts any state tax refund counted as federal income. Line 7 carries subtractions from Schedule 763 ADJ, Line 7. Line 8 adds Lines 4a, 4b, 5, 6, and 7.
Work each line in order and enter 0 where nothing applies. A retiree born in 1955 with $14,000 of Social Security enters that amount on Line 5, removing it from Virginia income.
A key edge case is the Age Deduction, which phases out at higher income for taxpayers born after 1938, so use the worksheet rather than guessing. Forgetting Line 5 is a costly mistake because Virginia does not tax Social Security at all, and skipping it means you overpay. Many believe Virginia taxes retirement income like wages; in fact, Social Security is fully subtracted here.
Line 9 – Virginia Adjusted Gross Income (VAGI)
Line 9 is your Virginia Adjusted Gross Income, found by subtracting Line 8 from Line 3. This is the number the filing-threshold test uses.
Maria, with Line 3 of 82,400 and Line 8 of 0, enters 82,400 on Line 9. The math is simple subtraction, but it must be exact.
If VAGI lands below the threshold and you had no withholding, you are not required to file. The mistake here is arithmetic: a transposed digit on Line 9 cascades through every line below. People assume software-free paper filing is fine, but hand math is exactly where the Department’s “fewer mistakes” pitch for e-file pays off.
Lines 10 and 11 – Itemized or Standard Deduction
Line 10 is for itemized deductions from Virginia Schedule A, and Line 11 is the standard deduction if you do not itemize. Use one or the other, never both.
For 2025 the standard deduction is $8,750 for single filers and $17,500 for married filing jointly. A single filer who does not itemize enters 8,750 on Line 11 and leaves Line 10 blank.
The edge case is that Virginia ties your choice to your federal choice: if you itemized federally, you generally must itemize in Virginia. Claiming both deductions is a classic mistake that the Department instantly corrects, raising your tax. A misconception is that the standard deduction is the same every year; it rose for 2025 and 2026 and is set to drop sharply after 2026.
Line 12 – Exemption Amount
Line 12 carries the total exemption amount from Sections 1 and 2 at the top of the form. It is a transfer line, not a fresh calculation.
The couple from the exemption example carries 3,720 to Line 12. Double-check that the number matches the box totals above.
The edge case is a mid-year birth or death affecting who counts; use the status of the household for the tax year. The mistake is forgetting to carry the figure at all, which leaves money on the table and raises your tax. Filers sometimes think exemptions and the standard deduction are the same thing; they are separate subtractions that both reduce taxable income.
Line 13 – Deductions from Schedule 763 ADJ
Line 13 carries deductions from Schedule 763 ADJ, Line 9, such as the child and dependent care deduction. Complete the schedule first, then transfer the total.
A filer with $3,000 of qualifying child-care expenses enters 3,000 here after computing it on the ADJ schedule. Enter 0 if none apply.
The edge case is the child-care deduction, which Virginia ties to the federal credit amount, so you need your federal Form 2441 figures. Skipping eligible deductions is a quiet mistake that simply costs you money. People wrongly assume all deductions sit on the main form; several live only on Schedule 763 ADJ.
Lines 14 and 15 – Virginia Taxable Income as a Resident
Line 14 adds Lines 10, 11, 12, and 13. Line 15 subtracts Line 14 from Line 9 to give Virginia Taxable Income computed as a resident. This is the figure you would owe on if you lived in Virginia all year — but you do not, which is why Line 16 follows.
Maria, with Line 9 of 82,400 and Line 14 of 8,750, enters 73,650 on Line 15. Keep this number; it is the base for the allocation.
The edge case to grasp is conceptual: Line 15 pretends you are a resident on purpose, so the rate is fair, and then Line 16 scales it down. The mistake is assuming Line 15 is your final taxable income and stopping early. A widespread misconception is that nonresidents are taxed only on Virginia income at this point; the form taxes total income first, then prorates.
Page 2 Nonresident Allocation Section – Columns A and B
This is the heart of Form 763. The allocation table has Column A – All Sources and Column B – Virginia Sources across Lines 1 through 14. You list each income type — wages, interest, dividends, business income, rents, and so on — in both columns.
Put your total income for each type in Column A and only the Virginia portion in Column B. Line 14 totals each column. Maria, who earned 82,400 total but only 40,000 from her Virginia job, enters 82,400 in Column A, Line 1 and 40,000 in Column B, Line 1.
The critical edge case is wages earned partly in and partly out of Virginia: only the days worked physically in Virginia go in Column B. The biggest mistake on the entire form is putting the same number in both columns, which makes Virginia tax 100% of your income. Filers often misbelieve that interest and dividends from a Virginia bank are Virginia-source; passive income like that is usually sourced to your home state, so it belongs in Column A only.
Line 16 – Nonresident Allocation Percentage
Line 16 is the percentage from the Nonresident Allocation Section, computed by dividing Column B, Line 14 by Column A, Line 14, to one decimal place. This percentage decides how much of your resident-level tax you actually owe.
Maria divides 40,000 by 82,400, getting 48.5%, and enters 48.5 on Line 16. Always round to exactly one decimal.
The edge case is rounding: the form demands one decimal place, so 48.54% becomes 48.5%, not 48.54 or 49. The most damaging mistake is leaving Line 16 blank or entering 100%, which makes you pay Virginia tax on every dollar you earned anywhere. A stubborn misconception is that the percentage should be your Virginia days divided by 365; it is Virginia income divided by total income.
Line 17 – Nonresident Taxable Income
Line 17 is your Nonresident Taxable Income, found by multiplying Line 15 by the Line 16 percentage. This is the income Virginia actually taxes.
Maria multiplies 73,650 by 48.5% and enters 35,720 on Line 17. Round to the nearest whole dollar.
The edge case is a very low percentage, which can drop your taxable income below the point where any tax is due. The mistake is multiplying by the wrong line — using Line 9 instead of Line 15 — which overstates the result. People sometimes think this line should equal their Column B wages; it is a prorated slice of total taxable income, not raw Virginia wages.
Line 18 – Income Tax from the Tax Table
Line 18 is the Income Tax owed on Line 17, read from the Tax Table or Tax Rate Schedule in the instruction booklet. Virginia’s rates run from 2% up to 5.75%.
Maria looks up 35,720 in the tax table and enters 1,738. Use the table for income under $90,000 and the rate schedule above it.
The edge case is income near a bracket boundary, where reading the wrong row costs a few dollars; the table removes the guesswork. A mistake here is applying the rate to Line 15 instead of Line 17, which inflates the tax. A misconception is that 5.75% applies to all your income; it is a graduated rate that only the top slice hits.
Lines 19a Through 26 – Withholding, Payments, and Credits
Line 19a is your Virginia tax withheld from W-2s, W-2Gs, 1099s, and VK-1s; Line 19b is your spouse’s. Line 20 is 2025 estimated payments, Line 21 is a 2024 overpayment credited forward, and Line 22 is any extension payment made on Form 760IP. Lines 23 through 25 carry credits for low-income individuals, the credit for taxes paid to another state from Schedule OSC, and Schedule CR credits. Line 26 totals all payments and credits.
Copy Virginia withholding from Box 17 of each W-2, not the federal Box 2. Maria adds the Virginia tax withheld on her W-2, 2,050, to Line 19a. You must enclose the W-2s and 1099s that support these amounts.
The edge case is the Schedule OSC credit, which prevents double taxation when your home state also taxes the Virginia income; nonresidents usually claim that credit on their home return, not here. The mistake that costs the most is entering federal withholding on Line 19a, which the Department rejects because it cross-matches Virginia withholding only. A common misconception is that any tax withheld counts; only Virginia state withholding belongs on these lines.
Lines 27 and 28 – Tax You Owe or Overpayment
Line 27 is the Income Tax You Owe when Line 18 is larger than Line 26. Line 28 is the Overpayment when Line 26 is larger than Line 18. Only one of these lines gets a number.
Maria’s payments of 2,050 exceed her tax of 1,738, so she enters 312 on Line 28 as an overpayment. Subtract carefully and confirm which figure is larger first.
The edge case is a tie, where both lines are zero and nothing is owed or refunded. The mistake is filling both lines, which confuses the calculation downstream. Filers sometimes think a big refund means they did well; it often means too much was withheld all year, an interest-free loan to the state.
Lines 29 Through 36 – Contributions, Use Tax, and Your Final Number
These lines fine-tune the result. Line 29 credits part of an overpayment to 2026 estimated tax. Lines 30 and 31 are voluntary contributions from Schedule VAC. Line 32 adds penalty and interest from Schedule 763 ADJ. Line 33 is Consumer’s Use Tax on untaxed online or out-of-state purchases. Line 34 totals Lines 29 through 33. Line 35 is the final Amount You Owe, and Line 36 is the final Refund.
Maria owes no use tax, checks the box on Line 33 confirming none is due, and carries her 312 overpayment to Line 36 as her refund. Enter your bank routing and account numbers in the Direct Bank Deposit block to get that refund fast.
The edge case is Consumer’s Use Tax, which catches tax on items you bought online without sales tax; you must check the “no tax due” box if you owe none, or the line reads as incomplete. A mistake is ignoring use tax entirely, which is technically underreporting. The misconception that online purchases are always tax-free is exactly what this line corrects.
Signature, Date, and Direct Deposit
The bottom of Page 2 holds the signature block. Sign and date the return, add your phone number, and have your spouse sign too if filing jointly. An unsigned return is not a valid return.
Maria signs, dates it 04-15-2026, and enters her checking account routing and account numbers for direct deposit. Choose Checking or Savings, and use only a U.S. account.
The edge case is direct deposit to a foreign bank, which Virginia flatly refuses and which will force a paper check and a long delay. The mistake of forgetting a spouse’s signature on a joint return makes the whole filing invalid. People assume e-filing skips the signature; it does not — software captures an electronic signature instead.
Three Filled-Out Examples Using Real Scenarios
These three filers cover the situations the Department sees most: a commuting worker, a remote earner with split income, and a military spouse with a refund claim.
Example 1 — Carlos, a North Carolina resident who worked a six-month Virginia contract. Carlos earned $60,000 total, $30,000 of it from his Virginia job site, and had $1,450 of Virginia tax withheld.
| Form Section | What Carlos Enters |
|---|---|
| State of Residence | NC |
| Filing Status | 1 (Single) |
| Line 1 – Federal AGI | 60,000 |
| Line 11 – Standard Deduction | 8,750 |
| Line 15 – VA Taxable as Resident | 51,250 |
| Allocation Col A / Col B Wages | 60,000 / 30,000 |
| Line 16 – Allocation Percentage | 50.0 |
| Line 17 – Nonresident Taxable Income | 25,625 |
| Line 19a – Virginia Withholding | 1,450 |
| Line 36 – Refund | 283 |
Example 2 — Priya, a remote worker living in Tennessee with split-source income. Priya earned $95,000 total, but only $20,000 came from days she physically worked at her employer’s Virginia office; the rest was remote from Tennessee.
| Form Section | What Priya Enters |
|---|---|
| State of Residence | TN |
| Filing Status | 1 (Single) |
| Line 1 – Federal AGI | 95,000 |
| Line 11 – Standard Deduction | 8,750 |
| Line 15 – VA Taxable as Resident | 86,250 |
| Allocation Col A / Col B Wages | 95,000 / 20,000 |
| Line 16 – Allocation Percentage | 21.1 |
| Line 17 – Nonresident Taxable Income | 18,199 |
| Line 19a – Virginia Withholding | 1,050 |
| Line 36 – Refund | 222 |
Example 3 — Janet, a military spouse claiming a Virginia exemption. Janet lives in Virginia because of her servicemember husband’s duty station but keeps Florida as her SCRA-elected state. Her Virginia wages are SCRA-protected, so she files Form 763-S to recover withholding rather than Form 763 for the protected wages — but she files Form 763 for $5,000 of non-protected Virginia rental income.
| Form Section | What Janet Enters |
|---|---|
| State of Residence | FL |
| Filing Status | 1 (Single) |
| Line 1 – Federal AGI | 5,000 |
| Line 11 – Standard Deduction | 8,750 |
| Line 15 – VA Taxable as Resident | 0 |
| Allocation Col A / Col B Rents | 5,000 / 5,000 |
| Line 16 – Allocation Percentage | 100.0 |
| Line 17 – Nonresident Taxable Income | 0 |
| Line 19a – Virginia Withholding | 0 |
| Line 36 – Refund | 0 |
How to File the Completed Form
Virginia gives you several filing channels, and each has its own address, cost, and timeline. E-file is the Department’s strongly preferred route for speed and accuracy.
- E-file through software or Free File. File at no cost through the Free File program if you qualify, or use commercial software. There is no Department filing fee; you pay only any software cost. Refunds generally clear within one week and up to four. Keep the electronic confirmation as your proof of filing.
- Mail with a refund or no payment. Send paper returns to the Virginia Department of Taxation, P.O. Box 1498, Richmond, VA 23218-1498. There is no fee to mail. Paper refunds take about eight weeks, and Certified Mail adds about three more. Keep your Certified Mail receipt as proof.
- Mail with a payment due. Send returns with a balance due to the Department of Taxation, P.O. Box 760, Richmond, VA 23218-0760, enclosing a check or money order payable to the Virginia Department of Taxation. Write your SSN and “2025 Form 763” on the check.
- Pay online. Pay any balance from a bank account, credit, or debit card at Virginia Tax payments. Card payments may carry a processor fee. Save the online payment confirmation number.
The deadline is May 1, 2026. Virginia grants an automatic six-month extension to file, but it does not extend the time to pay; use Form 760IP to send any tentative tax by May 1 or face penalty and interest. Note the electronic-payment rule: if any single payment exceeds $1,500 or your total liability tops $6,000, you must pay electronically from then on.
What Happens After You File
After you file, the Department processes the return and matches it against employer and IRS data. E-filers usually see a refund within one week, while paper filers wait about eight weeks. You can track progress at where’s my refund or by calling 804.367.2486.
Before any refund goes out, Virginia law requires the Department to check for debts you owe to state agencies, local governments, or the court system. If it finds one, all or part of your refund is applied to that debt and the rest is delayed. Eligible debts can also be sent to the U.S. Treasury Offset Program, which can reduce your federal refund too.
If something looks off, you may get a letter asking you to verify your identity or supply a missing W-2. Respond fast, because the return sits frozen until you do. If you later discover an error, file an amended Form 763 with the correct reason code within the time limits — generally three years from the original due date to claim a refund.
Mistakes to Avoid When Filling Out the Form
Each line on Form 763 is its own chance to slip, so these errors come up again and again.
- Entering federal taxable income on Line 1 instead of federal AGI, which throws off every later line.
- Putting the same figure in Column A and Column B, which taxes 100% of your income.
- Leaving Line 16 blank or writing 100%, which erases the whole point of a nonresident return.
- Rounding the Line 16 percentage to a whole number instead of one decimal, which misstates your tax.
- Listing federal withholding on Line 19a, which the Department rejects on cross-match.
- Filing on a prior-year form, which the Department returns unprocessed.
- Putting “VA” in the state-of-residence box, which contradicts a nonresident filing.
- Skipping the Social Security subtraction on Line 5, which makes you overpay.
- Forgetting a spouse’s signature on a joint return, which voids the filing.
- Leaving the Consumer’s Use Tax box on Line 33 unchecked when no tax is due, which reads as incomplete.
- Missing the locality code, which stalls processing.
- Sending the return to the wrong P.O. Box, which delays a refund or payment posting.
Do’s and Don’ts
These quick rules keep your return clean and your refund fast.
- Do start from your finished federal return, because Line 1 depends on it.
- Do report only physically-Virginia income in Column B, since that is what defines a nonresident’s tax.
- Do round the Line 16 percentage to one decimal exactly as the form demands.
- Do enclose every W-2, 1099, and VK-1, because the Department cross-checks them.
- Do e-file when you can, since it does the math and confirms receipt.
- Do keep your records for three years in case of review.
- Don’t enter “VA” as your state of residence, which contradicts the form’s purpose.
- Don’t claim both the standard and itemized deduction, which the Department corrects upward.
- Don’t use federal withholding figures on Lines 19a and 19b, which get rejected.
- Don’t assume the extension to file is an extension to pay, because penalty and interest accrue.
- Don’t direct-deposit to a foreign bank, which forces a slow paper check.
- Don’t forget to sign, since an unsigned return is invalid.
Pros and Cons of Filing on Your Own vs. With Help
Deciding whether to self-file or hire help depends on how complex your Virginia income is.
| Filing on Your Own | Filing With a Professional |
|---|---|
| Free or low cost, since you pay only software fees | Costs a preparer fee, often $150 or more |
| Full control over every entry and timing | Less hands-on, but expert review reduces errors |
| Software handles the allocation math for simple wage cases | Pros handle multi-state and reciprocity cases with confidence |
| Good for a single Virginia W-2 and nothing else | Better when you have VK-1s, rentals, or split-source wages |
| You learn the form for future years | You save time during a stressful season |
The pros of self-filing are cost, control, and speed for simple returns; the cons are the risk of an allocation error and no expert to catch it. The pros of professional help are accuracy on tricky multi-state situations and time saved; the cons are the fee and less direct involvement. A filer with one Virginia job and a single W-2 can comfortably self-file, while someone with a partnership VK-1 plus reciprocity questions usually benefits from help.
FAQs
Do I file Form 763 if I live in Maryland but work in Virginia?
No. Maryland has reciprocity with Virginia, so commuting wages are taxed by Maryland, your home state, not Virginia. File Form 763-S to recover any Virginia tax wrongly withheld.
Do I report my total income on Form 763?
Yes. You report total income in Column A and Virginia-only income in Column B, then Line 16 prorates your tax so you pay only on the Virginia share.
Do I write federal taxable income on Line 1?
No. Line 1 asks for federal Adjusted Gross Income, the larger number above your federal deductions. Entering taxable income is the most common error on the form.
Do I put the same number in Column A and Column B?
No. Column A is all income from every source; Column B is only Virginia-source income. Matching them taxes 100% of your earnings and overstates your bill.
Do I round the Line 16 percentage to a whole number?
No. The form requires one decimal place, such as 48.5%. Rounding to a whole number misstates your allocation and changes the tax you owe.
Do I enter “VA” in the state-of-residence box?
No. You enter the state where you actually live, such as MD or NC. Writing VA contradicts a nonresident return and triggers a review.
Do I list Virginia bank interest in Column B?
No. Interest and dividends are usually sourced to your home state, so they go in Column A only, unless tied to a Virginia business.
Do I have to file if my Virginia income is small?
No. If your Virginia Adjusted Gross Income is below $11,950 single or $23,900 joint and you had no withholding, you are not required to file.
Do I get an extension to pay if I file late?
No. The automatic six-month extension covers only filing, not payment. Send any tax due by May 1, 2026, using Form 760IP to avoid penalty and interest.
Do I use federal withholding on Line 19a?
No. Use only Virginia state withholding from Box 17 of your W-2. Federal withholding belongs on your federal return and is rejected here.
Do military spouses always file Form 763?
No. SCRA-protected wages are exempt; spouses use Form 763-S to claim a refund of withholding. File Form 763 only for non-protected Virginia income like rentals.
Do I have to e-file Form 763?
No. You can mail a paper return, but e-file is faster and required once a single payment exceeds $1,500 or your total liability tops $6,000.
Do I pay Consumer’s Use Tax on Line 33?
Yes. If you bought items online or out of state without paying sales tax, report it on Line 33; if none is due, check the box confirming so.
Related reading
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form 500 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form 502 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form 760 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form 760PY (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form 770 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Virginia Form VA-6 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out West Virginia Withholding Form IT-104 + FAQs