Updated October 16, 2026. Quick answer: Kansas lists the retirement benefits it exempts, and the listed plans are public ones: Schedule S line A14 covers “Retirement benefits specifically exempt from Kansas Income Tax”, the documents read do not list IRAs there, and they do not mention inherited IRAs.
Kansas at a glance
| Item | What the documents say |
|---|---|
| How the state taxes retirement-account income | Taxed as income; only listed retirement plans are subtracted |
| Do the state’s documents address beneficiaries? | Not addressed: the documents read do not mention inherited accounts |
| Retirement exclusion or credit | None listed for IRAs; benefits from named plans such as federal civil service and military, Railroad Retirement, KPERS and Kansas Teachers’ Retirement are exempt |
| Rate in the documents read | Married individuals filing jointly: 5.2% on the first $46,000, then $2,392 plus 5.58% of the excess over $46,000. All other individuals: 5.2% on the first $23,000, then $1,196 plus 5.58% of the excess over $23,000 (K.S.A. 79-32,110) |
| State inheritance or estate tax | Not mentioned in the documents read |
| Changed for 2026? | The documents read do not address a 2026 change |
What the Kansas documents say
The 2025 booklet tells filers to “report on this line benefits exempt from Kansas income tax”. The plans it lists include “Federal Civil Service Retirement or Disability Fund payments” and KPERS, the state public employees plan.
K.S.A. 79-32,117 has a transition rule: a subtraction that prevents taxing again an amount Kansas already taxed under its earlier law to the taxpayer or to a decedent “by reason of whose death the taxpayer acquired the right to receive” it. That rule is about income taxed under the law before the current act, not a rule for IRA beneficiaries.
K.S.A. 79-32,110 prints the rates for married individuals filing joint returns as “Not over $46,000 5.2% of Kansas taxable income” and “$2,392 plus 5.58% of excess over $46,000”; for all other individuals it prints “Not over $23,000 5.2% of Kansas taxable income” and “$1,196 plus 5.58% of excess over $23,000”.
The federal 10-year rule and your Kansas 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 Kansas’s own death taxes, see Kansas inheritance tax.
What the documents do not say
- The documents read do not mention inherited accounts or beneficiaries of retirement accounts.
- They do not say whether a beneficiary who inherits a listed public plan can subtract its payments.
- They say nothing about a deduction or credit for estate tax or income in respect of a decedent.
Common mistakes
- Assuming Kansas’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 Kansas preparer.
Related: state tax on inherited IRA withdrawals, state by state, whether Kansas taxes 401(k) and IRA withdrawals, Kansas retirement taxes, Kansas inheritance tax, inherited IRA rules, spouse versus non-spouse beneficiary rules, and state withholding on retirement withdrawals.
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Answer againSources
- Kansas Individual Income Tax Booklet (Package XK), Tax Year 2025: https://ksrevenue.gov/pdf/xk.pdf
- K.S.A. 79-32,117 Kansas adjusted gross income of an individual; addition and subtraction modifications: https://www.ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch79/079_032_0117.html
- K.S.A. 79-32,110 Tax imposed; classes of taxpayers; schedules of tax rates: https://www.ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch79/079_032_0110.html
- 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.