Clear Money Guide
What this state guide covers
A quick view of the questions, practical details and source notes below.
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Updated July 26, 2026. Quick answer (2026): If you are weighing a move out of Hawaii in retirement, two things change when you leave Hawaii: a top income-tax rate of 11.0% on withdrawals, and a tax at death. Four taxes change when you move — income tax on withdrawals, state estate tax, state inheritance tax, and what probate costs your heirs. This page prices all four for Hawaii, then links a worked comparison for each destination.
What Hawaii actually charges a retiree
| Tax | Hawaii position, 2026 |
|---|---|
| State income tax | graduated to 11% (12 brackets, 1.4%-11%) |
| Social Security | not taxed (fully exempt) |
| Pension / 401(k) / IRA | Employer-funded (non-contributory) pension income fully exempt regardless of amount. |
| Estate tax | yes – exemption $5,490,000 (fixed since 2018, not indexed); rates 10%-20% (top 20% on taxable amount over $10M above the exemption); Hawaii-level portability between spouses allowed |
| Inheritance tax | none |
| Probate fee model | reasonable-fee |
| Probate filing fee | $100 probate filing fee (informal or formal), paid once per decedent’s estate — HRS §607-5 circuit court fee schedule |
| Small-estate limit | $100,000 — collection by affidavit under HRS §560:3-1201 (motor vehicles registered to decedent transferable regardless of value); clerk-assisted small-estate administration also available for estates ≤$100,000. 30-day wait. |
Both halves matter
Hawaii taxes retirement withdrawals and levies a tax at death. A comparison that prices only the first will understate what a move is worth, sometimes by an order of magnitude, because the death-tax threshold is a one-off on the whole estate rather than a percentage of one year’s income.
Where Hawaii retirees go, and what each move is worth
Destinations below are drawn from documented retiree migration. Each links a worked, statute-cited comparison of all four taxes for that specific pair.
- Hawaii to Nevada — stop paying income tax on withdrawals and leave a death tax behind
- Hawaii to Texas — stop paying income tax on withdrawals and leave a death tax behind
More Hawaii corridors
Hawaii pairs an 11% top marginal rate with an estate tax, the highest combination of the two in the country. These corridors price all four taxes that change on the move, each figure statute-cited for 2026:
Getting the sequence right
Leaving Hawaii cleanly is a sequencing problem as much as a tax one: domicile tests, what happens to property you keep behind, and the order of conversions and sales. See finding an advisor for a cross-state move for what to look for and the five questions to ask first.
Leaving is a sequence, not a single decision
The destination is only part of it: residency, accounts and property each have to be dealt with in some order, and an adviser can walk through that order with you before anything is signed or sold.
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 is paid when you submit the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. This is free to you and there is no obligation to hire anyone.
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Will Hawaii still tax me after I move away?
Before the saving is real, the move has to survive an audit. The state you are leaving is the one that examines it, and the “six months and a day” rule is not the test — what actually changes your domicile, and why 183 days can trap you rather than free you.
Not on your retirement withdrawals, once you genuinely change domicile — but that is a harder test than a change of address, and what you leave behind stays in reach.
- Domicile is a test, not an address. Hawaii can audit a departing resident. Days present, licence, registrations, where your advisers are and where you keep what you value all count.
- Property left behind stays reachable. Keeping a home in Hawaii can keep part of your estate inside Hawaii rules.
- Sequence any Roth conversion. It is taxed where you are domiciled in the year you convert — see how all 51 jurisdictions tax Roth conversions.
Full Hawaii detail: Hawaii retirement taxes. All corridors: retirement tax relocation hub.
Getting the order right
Move timing, conversion sequencing and estate exposure interact, and the order changes the total. Know what advice should cost before you buy it — see our advisor cost guide.
Cite or share this guide
Suggested citation: Clear Money Guide, “Leaving Hawaii in Retirement: the 2026 Tax Position,” statute-cited; clearmoneyguide.com/leaving-hawaii-retirement-taxes/. Free to cite with attribution. Download the full dataset as CSV, or contact contact@clearmoneyguide.com for custom cuts.
Primary sources
- HRS § 235-7(a)
- Hawaii DOTAX TIR 96-5
- Haw. Rev. Stat. sec. 236E-6
- Haw. Rev. Stat. sec. 236E-8
- Haw. Rev. Stat. §560:3-719
- Haw. Rev. Stat. §560:3-1201
- Haw. Rev. Stat. §607-5