How to fill out VA Form 760 (income tax), line by line

This walkthrough explains the major Form 760 fields and schedule transfers after you have confirmed this is the right Virginia return. It does not decide an individual's residency, eligibility, or tax position.

• Before you start: confirm Form 760 and gather your records

• Complete your identity, filing status, and exemptions first

• Lines 1–15: calculate VAGI and Virginia taxable income

• Lines 16–28: calculate tax, apply payments and credits, then compare

• Lines 29–36: finalize an amount owed or refund

• Finish the return: direct deposit, signatures, and filing checks

Before you start: confirm Form 760 and gather your records

Form 760 generally applies to actual or domiciliary Virginia residents for the full year. It can also apply when you were a resident for part of the year and all of your income for the entire year was from Virginia sources. If you moved into or out of Virginia, had Virginia-source income while a nonresident, or have military or SCRA circumstances, use Virginia's residency and form-selection instructions first. Form 760PY, Form 763, or Form 763-S may be the appropriate route instead.

• Your completed federal income tax return, including federal adjusted gross income.

• W-2, W-2G, 1099, and VK-1 forms that show Virginia withholding.

• Only the schedules that apply to you, such as Schedule ADJ, Schedule A, Schedule OSC, Schedule CR, or Schedule VAC, plus estimated-tax or extension-payment records.

The VAGI threshold determines whether tax is zero

Lines 1–9 produce VAGI, Virginia's income measure for the filing threshold. If Line 9 is below $11,950 for Filing Status 1 or 3, or below $23,900 for Filing Status 2, Virginia income tax is zero. You may still need to file to recover withholding or estimated payments: complete Lines 10–15, enter zero on Lines 16 and 18, then finish Lines 19–36.

• government form instructions

Complete your identity, filing status, and exemptions first

Enter your name, mailing address, Social Security number, first four letters of your last name, birth date, and the three-digit locality code for where you lived on January 1, 2026. Virginia driver's license or ID information is optional and is requested for identity verification. Mark an oval only when it applies, such as for an address change, amended return, overseas filing, or dependency on another return.

Filing status and spouse entries

Use 1 for single, 2 for joint, and 3 for married filing separately. For Filing Status 2, complete both spouses' Social Security numbers and last-name letters. For Filing Status 3, enter the spouse's Social Security number in the top spouse box, but write the spouse's name beside the filing-status code instead of in the spouse-name field. Filing status affects the VAGI threshold, standard deduction, withholding fields, and possible spouse tax adjustment.

How the two exemption sections feed Line 12

Both sections produce dollar amounts. Add those amounts—not the headcounts—on Line 12.

For Section B, age 65 or older means age 65 by January 1, 2026; blindness follows the federal income-tax standard. Do not claim age-65-or-older or blind exemptions if claiming the Credit for Low-Income Individuals on Line 23. Filing Status 3 uses federal separate-reporting rules, including allocation rules for dependents that cannot be separately accounted for.

Lines 1–15: calculate VAGI and Virginia taxable income

The first page is one calculation chain: federal adjusted gross income becomes VAGI, then VAGI is reduced by deductions and exemptions to produce Virginia taxable income. Do not compute tax until Line 15 is complete.

Lines 1–9: from federal AGI to Virginia adjusted gross income

1. Enter federal adjusted gross income—not federal taxable income—on Line 1. A Filing Status 3 filer enters only income attributable to that filer.

2. Transfer Schedule ADJ Line 3 additions to Line 2, then add Lines 1 and 2 for Line 3.

3. Enter the Line 4 age deduction, federally taxable Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement benefits on Line 5, federally reported state income-tax refund or overpayment-credit income on Line 6, and Schedule ADJ Line 7 on Line 7.

4. Add Lines 4–7 on Line 8, then subtract Line 8 from Line 3 for Line 9 VAGI.

Schedule ADJ is the source when you need to report Virginia additions, other subtractions, deductions, the low-income or Virginia earned income credit, or addition to tax, penalties, and interest. Transfer only its specified totals to Form 760; the detailed eligibility rules remain in the official Schedule ADJ instructions.

Line 4 age deduction: use the official worksheet when income-based

A taxpayer born on or before January 1, 1961 may qualify. Those born on or before January 1, 1939 may claim $12,000. Taxpayers born from January 2, 1939 through January 1, 1961 use the Age 65 and Older Deduction Worksheet. It calculates adjusted federal adjusted gross income (AFAGI), compares it with $50,000 for a single filer or $75,000 for married taxpayers, and reduces the available deduction dollar-for-dollar above that limit. Married taxpayers use combined AFAGI even when filing separately.

Lines 10–15: choose deductions, then reach taxable income

Use one deduction path, then add exemptions and applicable Schedule ADJ deductions.

Do not complete both Lines 10 and 11. If you can be claimed as someone else's dependent, Line 11 is limited to the smaller of earned income or the usual standard-deduction amount. Enter the exemption total on Line 12 and Schedule ADJ Line 9 deductions on Line 13. Add Lines 10–13 for Line 14, then subtract Line 14 from Line 9 for Line 15 Virginia taxable income.

Lines 16–28: calculate tax, apply payments and credits, then compare

Line 16 calculates tax on Line 15 taxable income. Lines 19–26 separately total payments and credits. Keep those totals separate before deciding whether the return has tax owed or an overpayment.

Lines 16–18: tax and the Spouse Tax Adjustment

Use the Virginia tax table, Tax Rate Schedule, or official calculator for Line 16 and round to whole dollars. The rate schedule taxes income through $3,000 at 2%; the next $2,000 at 3%; the next $12,000 at 5%; and income above $17,000 at 5.75%. Do not use the tax table or schedule when VAGI is below the filing threshold; Lines 16 and 18 are zero instead.

Line 17 is not a general joint-filing credit. Filing Status 2 couples may use the Spouse Tax Adjustment Worksheet only when both spouses have taxable income and combined Line 15 exceeds $3,000. Enter the spouse's VAGI and the worksheet adjustment, which cannot exceed $259. Line 18 is Line 16 minus Line 17.

Lines 19a–26: document payments and schedule-based credits

Line 26 is the total of all entries below.

For Line 24, include Schedule OSC and a copy of each other-state return for which the credit is claimed; withholding forms alone are not acceptable support. Arizona, California, Oregon, the District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia have special rules or exceptions, so follow Schedule OSC instructions rather than assuming the credit applies.

Lines 27–28: one comparison creates either tax owed or overpayment

Use only one of these lines. If Line 26 is smaller than Line 18, subtract Line 26 from Line 18 and enter the result on Line 27. If Line 18 is smaller, subtract Line 18 from Line 26 and enter the result on Line 28. This result is preliminary because Lines 29–34 can still change the final payment or refund.

Lines 29–36: finalize an amount owed or refund

Line 28 is not automatically your refund, and Line 27 is not always your final amount due. Complete Lines 29–33 first, because they can allocate an overpayment or add amounts due. Then total them on Line 34.

Lines 29–34: choices and additions after the comparison

Line 29 applies a chosen overpayment amount to next year's estimated tax. Lines 30 and 31 transfer Commonwealth Savers and other voluntary contributions from Schedule VAC. Line 32 transfers Schedule ADJ Line 21 for addition to tax, penalty, and interest. If you completed Form 760C or 760F, include it and mark the oval even if no addition appears on Schedule ADJ. Add Lines 29–33 for Line 34.

Line 33 consumer's use tax: when to use the worksheet

Consumer's use tax may apply when taxable tangible property was shipped or brought into Virginia without sales tax being charged. If none is owed, mark Line 33's no-tax oval. Otherwise, the instructions allow the estimation table for qualifying estimated taxable purchases below $1,000; use the Sales and Use Tax Worksheet for purchases of $1,000 or more. The worksheet separates general merchandise from food and personal hygiene products before the total goes on Line 33.

Line 35 applies when tax is owed on Line 27, or when Line 34 exceeds the Line 28 overpayment. Line 36 applies only when Line 28 exceeds Line 34. Payments must be made electronically if an estimated-tax installment exceeds $1,500, a return or extension payment exceeds $1,500, or estimated total tax liability exceeds $6,000.

Finish the return: direct deposit, signatures, and filing checks

If Line 36 shows a refund, direct deposit is optional; leaving the bank section blank results in a check. For direct deposit, choose checking or savings and use a qualifying domestic account. The routing number must be nine digits and should come from a check, not a deposit slip. The account number can contain up to 17 digits, with no punctuation or check number.

• Sign and date the return. Both spouses must sign a joint return.

• Enter a Virginia ID Theft PIN only if Virginia assigned you an active 2026 PIN; do not use an expired PIN or an IRS PIN.

• For a paper return, include the original Form 760, applicable schedules, withholding documents, and required supporting forms. Do not use staples.

• A paid preparer completes the applicable preparer, filing-election, and PTIN fields.

• more government form instructions

Sources and how this page was made

This guide explains the official sources listed below in plain language. Displayed amounts, limits, percentages, and timing rules come from that material.

• Official form: 2025 Virginia Resident Form 760 Individual Income Tax Return

• Official form instructions: 2025 Form 760 Resident Individual Income Tax Instructions