Updated September 5, 2026. Quick answer: West Virginia fully exempts military retirement pay from state income tax, and as of tax year 2026 it fully exempts Social Security benefits for everyone regardless of income after completing a multi-year phase-out. Most other pensions, IRA, and 401(k) income remain taxable as ordinary income, though filers 65 or older or certified permanently disabled can apply a flat $8,000 modification against that income.
Confidence note: high. This page is scoped to pension, IRA and 401(k) taxation specifically. For the state’s full retirement-tax picture (Social Security, tax rates, estate and probate), see how West Virginia taxes retirement income generally.
How pensions and retirement-account withdrawals are taxed
| Public (state/local government) pensions | West Virginia state and local police, deputy sheriff, and firefighter retirement systems, plus federal law enforcement retirement, are specifically exempt from state income tax. Other state and local government pensions are generally taxable, but a filer 65 or older or certified permanently disabled can apply the $8,000 modification under W. Va. Code sec. 11-21-12(c)(9) against this and other income. |
|---|---|
| Private (employer) pensions | Private employer pensions are taxable as ordinary income. A filer 65 or older or certified permanently disabled can apply the $8,000 modification against this income. |
| Federal government pensions (FERS/CSRS) | Federal government pensions are generally taxable, except for the specifically named federal law enforcement retirement exemption. Other federal pensions may use the $8,000 senior or disability modification if the recipient is 65 or older or certified permanently disabled. |
| Military retirement pay | Military retirement pay from the regular Armed Forces, Reserves, National Guard, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps is fully exempt from West Virginia income tax, claimed as a decreasing modification on Schedule M of Form IT-140, for tax years beginning on and after January 1, 2019, confirmed this session by direct fetch of the readable TSD-443 PDF text. |
| IRA and 401(k)/403(b) distributions | IRA and 401(k) distributions are taxable as ordinary income. A filer 65 or older or certified permanently disabled can apply the $8,000 modification under W. Va. Code sec. 11-21-12(c)(9) against this income. |
| General retirement-income exclusion | The $8,000 decreasing modification under W. Va. Code sec. 11-21-12(c)(9), available to filers 65 or older or certified permanently disabled, functions as West Virginia’s general retirement-income exclusion. A qualifying taxpayer receives the higher of this flat $8,000 modification or the sum of their itemized decreasing modifications, such as the Social Security modification and certain named pension exemptions. |
Coordinate this with your overall retirement plan
An adviser can help weigh how much of a pension or IRA withdrawal to take this year, whether a Roth conversion makes sense before or after a move, and how state tax interacts with the rest of your plan, but that does not replace the numbers in your own return.
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Social Security
West Virginia completed a multi-year phase-out of its Social Security tax and, starting with tax year 2026, fully exempts all Social Security benefits from state income tax regardless of income level. Social Security has its own rules in every state; see the full breakdown in how West Virginia taxes retirement income generally.
Statute and sources
Governing citation: W. Va. Code sec. 11-21-12(c)(8) (Social Security modification); sec. 11-21-12(c)(9) ($8,000 senior/disability modification).
- West Virginia State Tax Division, Senior Citizen Social Security Modification
- West Virginia State Tax Division, TSD-443, Personal Income Tax of Military Servicemembers
Read September 5, 2026.
Related: how West Virginia taxes retirement income generally · does West Virginia tax Roth conversions? · Roth conversion taxes, all 51 jurisdictions.
General information drawn from each state’s own published statutes and revenue-department guidance, not legal, tax or financial advice. Figures and exemption amounts are current as of the date in the quick answer, are set by state law, and can change by future legislation; any pending bill named on this page is not yet law. This page cannot see your own return, which governs. We are not a law firm, a tax adviser, or a fiduciary, and this is not personalized advice.