Tax forms and a calculator on a desk, West Virginia Corporation Net Income Tax

West Virginia Corporation Net Income Tax: 6.5% Rate, Single Sales Factor and No Franchise Tax

West Virginia Corporation Net Income Tax: 6.5% Rate, Single Sales Factor and No Franchise Tax

If your company is taxed as a C corporation and earns income from West Virginia, the state's corporate income tax is the tax you need to plan for. The rate is 6.5%, the state apportions income with a single sales factor, and West Virginia no longer levies a business franchise tax. That combination catches many owners off guard. Some expect a franchise tax line on their state return, and others assume an LLC pays the corporate rate. This guide explains how the West Virginia corporate income tax works, who pays it, and what to confirm with the Tax Division before you file.

Informational content only. This guide is not legal or tax advice. Tax rules and agency forms change, and the figures here come from our verification on October 23, 2026. Talk with a qualified CPA or tax attorney before you choose an entity type or file a return.

Who Pays the West Virginia Corporate Income Tax

The corporation net income tax is 6.5% of West Virginia taxable income under W. Va. Code 11-24-4. It applies to domestic corporations, which are formed in West Virginia, and to foreign corporations, which are formed outside the state but have West Virginia taxable income. Corporations report on Form CIT-120, filed with the West Virginia Tax Division at tax.wv.gov.

Whether a corporation with no West Virginia office has a filing obligation depends on its nexus in the state. That is a fact-specific question to put to a CPA rather than settle by looking at where the company's office sits.

How the Single Sales Factor Works

West Virginia does not tax every dollar of a corporation's income. The Tax Division starts with federal taxable income and apportions the part that belongs to West Virginia. Apportionment uses a single sales factor, meaning the share of your sales that are sourced to West Virginia. For tax years before 2022, the state used a four-factor formula. Beginning with tax year 2022, the single sales factor applies, and receipts from services are sourced under market-based rules.

Because only sales drive the share, a company can have significant payroll or property in West Virginia and still apportion little income to the state. Market-based sourcing generally looks at where the customer receives the benefit of a service, not only where your employees do the work. Whether a particular receipt is West Virginia sourced can be technical, so have your CPA check the sourcing for each revenue stream.

A simplified example

This hypothetical shows the arithmetic. Assume a corporation with $1,000,000 of federal taxable income and 20% of its sales sourced to West Virginia.

  • Federal taxable income: $1,000,000
  • Share apportioned to West Virginia (20% single sales factor): $200,000
  • Tax at 6.5%: $13,000

Actual returns include additions, subtractions and other adjustments that change the result, so treat this as a rough check only.

Losses and Estimated Payments

No loss carryback

West Virginia eliminated the net operating loss carryback beginning with tax year 2021. A loss in the current year cannot be applied to recover tax you paid in earlier years. Ask your CPA how any carryforward is handled for your facts.

Estimated payments

You must make estimated payments when you expect West Virginia taxable income above $10,000. At 6.5%, that is about $650 of tax. Payments are four equal installments due on the 15th day of the 4th, 6th, 9th and 12th months of the tax year. For a calendar-year corporation, those dates are April 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15. Make the payments on Form CIT-120ES.

Combined Reporting for Unitary Groups

If a parent company and its subsidiaries operate as a unitary business, West Virginia requires a combined report for the group rather than separate returns for each company. Whether your businesses are unitary depends on how they operate together, which is a fact-specific question. Confirm it with a CPA before you file separately.

What West Virginia Does Not Tax at the Entity Level

The business franchise tax was repealed effective January 1, 2015. Corporations and LLCs pay no state franchise tax. An LLC taxed as a partnership or S corporation does not pay the corporate income tax itself. Its owners report their share of income on the personal income tax, which runs from 2.11% to 4.58% across five brackets for tax year 2026.

Entity typeWho pays the income tax on the company's profitEntity-level corporate income tax (6.5%)
C corporationThe corporation, on its West Virginia taxable incomeYes
LLC taxed as a partnershipOwners, on the personal income taxNo
LLC taxed as an S corporationOwners, on the personal income taxNo

The Tax Division also lists an elective pass-through entity tax under SB 151 for partnerships and S corporations. Because it changes how owners are taxed, ask a tax professional whether it fits your company before you decide.

Registration and Filing Steps Around the Tax

The income tax is one piece of compliance. For a corporation formed in West Virginia, the core steps are:

  1. File Articles of Incorporation (Form CD-1) with the Secretary of State for the $100 filing fee. Nonprofits use Form CD-1NP.
  2. Get the Business Registration Certificate from the Tax Division. It costs $30, is permanent until the business name, location or ownership changes, and is required for each fixed business location. Apply on Form WV/BUS-APP or online at business4.wv.gov. Registering with the Secretary of State does not replace it.
  3. Register for sales tax if you sell taxable goods or services, through the Tax Division's business registration page.
  4. File the annual report with the Secretary of State every year between January 1 and June 30. The fee is $25, and for-profit corporations owe a $50 late fee for filings made after the deadline.
  5. Keep your agent for service of process current. West Virginia does not require a separate commercial registered agent, and the Secretary of State can accept service on your company's behalf. If you name an agent, keep the name and address current, and file changes on Form AAO for $15.00.

This guide does not list a due date for Form CIT-120 because that date is not in our verified figures. Confirm the filing deadline and the current CIT-120 and CIT-120ES instructions on tax.wv.gov before you file.

Other West Virginia Taxes People Confuse With the Corporate Tax

  • State sales tax: 6%. In addition, 101 municipalities add a 1% local sales tax to the state rate, and that number rises to 107 on January 1, 2027.
  • Business and occupation (B&O) tax: The state B&O tax applies only to utilities. The gross-receipts tax that hits shops, contractors and service businesses is levied by cities, together with a city business license and a weekly per-worker city service fee. Confirm each city's rates with that city.
  • Personal income tax: For owners of pass-through entities, as described above.

Where to Confirm Current Figures

When to Bring In a Professional

Get a CPA involved before you file if any of these apply: your sales reach several states, your companies may form a unitary group, you have a loss you want to use, you expect West Virginia taxable income above $10,000 and need to set up estimated payments, or you are weighing the SB 151 pass-through entity tax. An attorney should review the entity choice itself, including whether a C corporation or an LLC fits your owners and financing plans.

West Virginia's corporate income tax is a straightforward rate once you know the apportionment rules. The planning work is in the details: sourcing your receipts, tracking estimated payments and confirming whether a corporation or an LLC fits your situation. This guide is informational content, not legal or tax advice.

Keep exploring: related West Virginia guides