Updated October 16, 2026. Quick answer: West Virginia’s documents read do not address an inherited IRA. The IT-140 booklet starts from federal adjusted gross income, caps its age 65 or disability modification at $8,000 and counts IRA distributions as income in that modification’s worked example, and gives a surviving spouse a one-time subtraction of up to $8,000; it does not describe a non-spouse beneficiary.
West Virginia at a glance
| Item | What the documents say |
|---|---|
| How the state taxes retirement-account income | Taxed as income, starting from federal adjusted gross income; the worked example for the age 65 or disability modification counts IRA distributions as income |
| Do the state’s documents address beneficiaries? | Narrowly: a surviving spouse may take a one-time subtraction of up to $8,000; non-spouse beneficiaries and inherited IRAs are not described |
| Retirement exclusion or credit | Age 65 or disabled: income not reported on lines 35 through 48, less the subtractions on lines 29 through 34, capped at $8,000, for the eligible individual’s own income; surviving spouse: a one-time subtraction of up to $8,000 for the year after the death; up to $2,000 for pensions and annuities from the WV Public Employees’ or Teachers’ Retirement Systems or federal retirement |
| Rate in the documents read | 2026 schedule (SB 392) for filers other than married individuals filing separately: 2.11% up to $10,000 and 4.58% over $60,000 |
| State inheritance or estate tax | Not mentioned in the documents read |
| Changed for 2026? | The 2026 rate cut page says SB 392, signed March 31, 2026, gives a 5% income tax cut retroactive to January 1, 2026 |
What the West Virginia documents say
Schedule M is used to “report increasing or decreasing modifications to your federal adjusted gross income”. The return therefore starts from federal adjusted gross income.
A modification of up to $8,000 is available to an individual certified as permanently and totally disabled during the year, or to “an individual who was 65 before the end of the taxable year”. The amount is the individual’s income not reported on lines 35 through 48, less the subtractions on lines 29 through 34, up to the $8,000 cap, and only the income of the spouse who meets the eligibility requirements qualifies. The booklet’s worked example for a married couple lists IRA distributions among the income that counts toward it; it does not say whether any of those IRAs were inherited.
The modification for pensions and annuities from the West Virginia Public Employees’ Retirement System, the West Virginia Teachers’ Retirement System and federal retirement is “limited to a maximum of $2,000 and entered on Schedule M”. The booklet adds that the state does not tax retirement income from state or local police, deputy sheriffs’ or firemen’s retirement systems, federal law enforcement retirement or military retirement, including survivorship annuities.
On death, the booklet lets the surviving spouse claim “a one-time subtraction from his/her income of up to $8,000” for the taxable year after the year of the death. The decedent must have been 65 or older, or certified permanently and totally disabled, before death; the survivor must not have remarried before the end of the taxable year; and if other subtractions are already under $8,000 only the difference is allowed.
The Tax Division’s rate cut page says SB 392 gives a 5% income tax cut retroactive to January 1, 2026, and prints the top bracket for filers other than married individuals filing separately as “$1,950.50 plus 4.58% of excess over $60,000”.
The federal 10-year rule and your West Virginia tax year
IRS Publication 590-B says a beneficiary may be required to take the entire account balance by the “end of the 10th year following the year of the owner’s death”, with exceptions for certain beneficiaries. Because the balance generally has to come out within that window, the timing of each withdrawal decides which tax year it lands in. See the 10-year rule and annual RMDs, lump sum versus spreading withdrawals and inherited IRA rules.
Withholding and other state taxes
Whether a state withholds from a withdrawal is a separate rule: see state withholding on retirement withdrawals. For West Virginia’s own death taxes, see West Virginia inheritance tax.
What the documents do not say
- The documents read do not address a non-spouse beneficiary’s inherited IRA; the decedent wording covers a surviving spouse’s subtraction, a deceased taxpayer’s return and beneficiaries of an estate or trust.
- They do not say whether the age 65 or disability modification or the $2,000 retirement system modification applies to an inherited IRA.
- They say nothing about a deduction or credit for estate tax or income in respect of a decedent.
Common mistakes
- Assuming West Virginia’s rule for your own retirement income also covers an account you inherited: read whether its documents address beneficiaries, and confirm the point with a West Virginia preparer.
Related: state tax on inherited IRA withdrawals, state by state, whether West Virginia taxes 401(k) and IRA withdrawals, West Virginia retirement taxes, West Virginia inheritance tax, inherited IRA rules, spouse versus non-spouse beneficiary rules, and state withholding on retirement withdrawals.
Find the right next step for your situation
About how much do you have invested? Pick the range that fits; your next step appears immediately below.
Compare vetted advisors for inherited IRA decisions
For U.S. investors with $250,000 or more in investable assets. WiserAdvisor is an independent service matching you with 2 to 3 vetted advisers. Its form asks for your ZIP code and answers to a few questions; a match is not guaranteed.
Free to request, with no obligation to hire. By submitting, you consent to calls, texts and emails from WiserAdvisor and up to three advisers. Advisers pay for introductions.
Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment for a qualifying completed form. An introduction is not a Clear Money Guide recommendation.
Opens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.
See how an advisor plans your withdrawals
Price the destination before you decide. The matching service below introduces you to advisers who pay to meet you.
Before you start, what actually happens. The form is run by Kapitalwise, our advisor-matching partner. Kapitalwise sends your details to advisers who pay for the introduction, so expect calls and texts. Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment for a qualifying submitted form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. This is free to you and there is no obligation to hire anyone.
The Kapitalwise form opens here; you stay on this page.
What happens when you press the button
It asks about nine questions: age, investable assets, location; then your name, email and phone number, and verifies the phone by text. Nothing loads and nothing reaches Kapitalwise until you press the button.
Prefer flat-fee or hourly pricing instead? Compare ranges here.
Answer againSources
- 2025 West Virginia Personal Income Tax Information and Instructions (IT-140): https://tax.wv.gov/Documents/PIT/2025/it140.PersonalIncomeTaxFormsAndInstructions.2025.pdf
- 2026 Income Tax Rate Cut: https://tax.wv.gov/Individuals/Pages/PersonalIncomeTaxReductionBill.aspx
- IRS Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p590b.pdf
Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 16, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a tax professional or the state agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.