Work in Georgia, Live in Tennessee: How Taxes Work

Reciprocity

Do Georgia and Tennessee Have a Tax Reciprocity Agreement?

No, and none is needed. Reciprocity agreements only matter when both states impose an income tax on wages. Tennessee does not tax wages at all, so there is nothing for either state to negotiate against.

Tennessee has no general income tax on earned income. The Hall income tax, which applied only to certain interest and dividend income, was fully repealed effective January 1, 2021, under the IMPROVE Act of 2017. Since that repeal, Tennessee has had no tax on individual income. It does still charge a $400 professional privilege tax, due June 1, to people licensed in certain professions, and that tax is paid only once a year even if you hold several licenses. No Tennessee state withholding appears on a paycheck, and there is no Tennessee individual return to file for wages.

Georgia taxes nonresidents on income earned within the state. For a Tennessee resident commuting to a Georgia job, only Georgia collects state income tax on those wages. There is no overlap and no double taxation because Tennessee takes nothing from wage earners.

Commuters along the Chattanooga to north Georgia corridor, the northwest Georgia region, and the Atlanta metro fringe all fall into this pattern. You file a single state return: the Georgia nonresident return. The arrangement is simpler than state pairs where both states tax wages, because there is no credit to calculate on either side. You can check other state pairs on the state reciprocity agreements page.

Filing Obligations

Which Tax Returns Do I File as a Tennessee Resident Working in Georgia?

File Georgia Form 500 as a nonresident and complete Schedule 3 to calculate your Georgia taxable income. Schedule 3 separates your Georgia-source income from any other income you may have. On Form 500, nonresidents and part-year residents skip lines 9 through 14 and use Schedule 3 instead. Enter all income in the federal column, then use Schedule 3 to identify the Georgia portion. If all your wages come from a Georgia employer and you work in Georgia full time, 100% of your wages are Georgia-source.

Georgia exempts nonresidents from filing when their Georgia compensation does not exceed the lesser of 5% of total income from all places or $5,000, provided their only activity for gain in Georgia is working there as an employee. For a full-time commuter earning above these thresholds, the exemption does not apply and you must file.

For 2026, the standard deduction is $15,000 for single filers and $30,000 for married filing jointly under HB 463. Georgia's flat tax rate is 4.99%. The filing deadline is April 15. A federal extension (Form 4868) filed by that date is accepted by Georgia when attached to your return. You do not file anything in Tennessee. Tennessee has no individual income tax return for wages, no nonresident form, and no filing obligation for earned income.

Tax Calculation

How Does Georgia Calculate My Tax as a Nonresident?

Georgia taxes nonresidents at the same flat rate as residents: 4.99% for 2026. The only difference is that your tax base is limited to Georgia-source income rather than all income.

On Schedule 3 you list all income in the federal column and your Georgia income in Column C. Georgia then prorates the standard deduction and the dependent deduction by the ratio of Georgia income to total income (Line 9 and Line 13 on the 2025 form) and subtracts them from your Georgia income to get Georgia taxable income. For 2026, the standard deduction is $15,000 for single filers and $30,000 for married filing jointly. If all your income is from Georgia and you have no other sources, the ratio is 100% and the proration step has no effect.

HB 463, signed by Governor Kemp on May 11, 2026, reduced the rate from 5.19% to 4.99% retroactive to January 1, 2026. The same bill raised the standard deduction from $12,000 to $15,000 for single filers and from $24,000 to $30,000 for joint filers. Because the bill was retroactive, employers who withheld at the 5.19% rate during the first months of 2026 overwithheld slightly, and the difference flows back as a refund on your Georgia return.

For 2026, the dependent deduction is $5,000 per dependent, prorated on Schedule 3 like the standard deduction.

For 2026, Georgia also lets you exclude up to $1,750 of overtime pay and up to $1,750 of tips from taxable net income, although it did not adopt the federal exemptions for them. If you do not need a federal extension, Georgia Form IT-303 requests an extension for the Georgia return. First-time filers receive a paper refund check.

Tax Credit

Is There Double Taxation or a Credit to Claim?

No double taxation occurs in this state pair. Tennessee has no personal income tax on wages, so only Georgia taxes your earnings. There is no need to claim a credit on either return.

Georgia offers a credit for taxes paid to another state when a taxpayer actually pays income tax to another state on the same income. Because Tennessee collects nothing on wages, this credit does not apply. Your Georgia tax on the wages is the final and only state income tax.

If your employer mistakenly withheld an amount labeled as Tennessee state tax, that is an error. Tennessee has no wage tax to collect. Contact your payroll department to stop the incorrect withholding and recover any amount taken. Georgia's credit covers only income taxable to both Georgia and another state, so there is no credit to claim here.

Withholding

How Does My Georgia Employer Handle Withholding?

Your Georgia employer withholds Georgia income tax from nonresident employees working in the state when more than 5% of their total earned income, or more than $5,000 of their wages, is attributable to Georgia. Submit Georgia Form G-4, the Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, to set your filing status and allowances for withholding purposes.

For 2026, withholding tables initially used the 5.19% rate from the prior year. Employers had to keep withholding at 5.19% until HB 463 took effect and could begin withholding at 4.99% from May 11, 2026; your 2026 Georgia return reconciles the difference. Any excess withholding from the early months is reconciled as a refund when you file your Georgia return.

Federal withholding, Social Security (6.2%), and Medicare (1.45%) are handled on every U.S. paycheck regardless of state. Employers withhold the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages above $200,000 in a calendar year; whether you actually owe it depends on a threshold based on your filing status. Only the state income tax line changes based on your work state.

Review your first pay stub to confirm that Georgia appears on the state tax line. If no Georgia withholding appears, ask your employer to correct the setup using Form G-4. If your employer does not withhold Georgia tax for any reason, you may need to make quarterly estimated payments using Form 500-ES to avoid an underpayment penalty at filing time.

Georgia expects estimated payments on Form 500-ES if you expect more than $1,000 of income not subject to withholding beyond your deductions. Installments are due April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15.

Worked Example: Tennessee Resident Earning $70,000 in Georgia

Single filer, all wages from a Georgia employer, 2026 flat rate and standard deduction (HB 463, retroactive to January 1, 2026).

Remote Work

What If I Work from Home in Tennessee for a Georgia Employer?

Georgia taxes nonresidents on compensation for services performed in Georgia. Days you work from your Tennessee home are generally not Georgia-source income, which reduces the amount reported on Schedule 3.

If you split time between a Georgia office and your Tennessee home, allocate wages based on the actual days worked in each location. Keep a daily log, calendar entries, or badge records to support the allocation. On Schedule 3, the Georgia column reflects only the wages for days worked in Georgia.

Tennessee does not impose any state tax on wages earned remotely within its borders. The only question for a remote worker in this state pair is how much income Georgia can claim. If you work entirely from Tennessee and never enter Georgia, you may have no Georgia-source income at all. In that case, confirm with your employer that Georgia withholding is adjusted or stopped, and verify whether your total Georgia compensation falls below the 5%/$5,000 exemption threshold for nonresident filing.

Mid-Year Move

What If I Moved Between Tennessee and Georgia During the Year?

If you moved from Tennessee to Georgia during the tax year, file Georgia Form 500 as a part-year resident and complete Schedule 3. Report the wages earned during your Georgia-resident period as resident income. Any Georgia-source wages earned while you still lived in Tennessee are reported as nonresident income on the same return.

If you moved from Georgia to Tennessee during the year, file Form 500 as a part-year resident covering the months of Georgia residency. Wages earned after the move in Tennessee for a Tennessee employer are not Georgia income.

Document the move date with utility records, a lease or closing statement, or your new driver's license issue date. Part-year residents must prorate the standard deduction and the dependent deduction by the ratio of Georgia income to total income on Schedule 3 (Line 9 and Line 13 of the 2025 form), not by the share of the year they lived in Georgia.

Local Taxes

Are There Any Other Taxes on My Paycheck?

Your state income tax obligation in this scenario is the Georgia nonresident tax calculated on Form 500 with Schedule 3. The state tax line on your paycheck reflects Georgia withholding.

Other payroll deductions are federal. Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to the annual wage base, Medicare is 1.45%, and the Additional Medicare Tax adds 0.9% on wages above $200,000 in a calendar year. These are handled through your W-4 and are the same in every state.

If an unfamiliar code appears on your pay stub, ask your employer's payroll department. For a guide to common payroll deduction codes, see our pay stub abbreviations guide.