Lancaster, Pennsylvania Local Income Tax

1.

Lancaster Income Tax

Residents of Lancaster pay a flat city income tax of 1.10% on earned income, in addition to the Pennsylvania income tax and the Federal income tax.

There is no Lancaster income tax imposed on nonresidents who work in Lancaster, although they may have to pay the resident local income tax in their own municipality.

Lancaster Income Tax Information:

In addition to the percentage of income, a $52 surtax per year is collected.

2.

What is a local income tax?

A local income tax is a special tax on earned income collected by local governments like counties, cities, and school districts. Fourteen states including Pennsylvania allow local governments to collect an income tax.

While the federal income tax and the Pennsylvania income tax are progressive income taxes with multiple tax brackets, all local income taxes are flat-rate taxes which are the same for every taxpayer regardless of income.

Another major difference between local income taxes and federal or state taxes is that most local taxes are collected only on earned income, and not on capital gains or other non-earned income like interest and dividends.

3.

How do you pay the Lancaster income tax?

The Lancaster income tax is due on April 15th, when you file your federal and state tax returns. Because calculating your local income tax is relatively simple compared to your other tax returns, many tax preparers will file your Lancaster income tax return for free.

If you file your own taxes, the Lancaster tax collector will likely mail you a copy of the tax forms you need by April. Unfortunately, many leading e-file providers (like TurboTax and H&R Block) do not support local income taxes. Lancaster may have a proprietary e-filing system you can use alongside your state and federal e-filing provider.

4.

Other local income taxes in Pennsylvania

We have information on the local income tax rates in 12 Pennsylvania localities. Use this list to compare the Lancaster income tax with local income taxes in nearby cities. Click on any city or county for more details.