Key figures
West Virginia receivables
2026, with sources
A tax on services as well as goods
West Virginia’s consumers sales and service tax is 6% and applies to services generally, defined as nonprofessional activities performed for others, unless an exemption applies. Prewritten computer software is treated as tangible personal property. Municipalities that impose a local sales and use tax add up to 1%.
The exemption that matters to software companies is for electronic data processing services and related software: processing another’s data, and providing access to computer equipment to process, examine or acquire data. Whether a SaaS product is exempt data processing or a taxable use of prewritten software depends on what it actually does, and the State Tax Department decides disputed cases.
Registering and filing
A remote seller registers once its West Virginia sales reach $100,000 or 200 transactions in the current or prior calendar year. Returns and payment are due by the 20th of the month after the sales.
Collected tax is a liability, not revenue. Because municipal sales tax applies only in municipalities that impose it, the billing system needs a service address for each West Virginia customer, not just a state.
An example: an analytics platform that ingests and processes its customers’ data and returns reports has a strong case for the data processing exemption; a design tool licensed per seat looks more like prewritten software. A company with both products bills them separately so each can be treated on its own terms.
The federal baseline
This page covers what West Virginia adds. The federal rules underneath it apply here too.
Common questions
Is SaaS taxable in West Virginia?
It depends on what the product does. West Virginia taxes prewritten software and services generally, but exempts electronic data processing services, defined as processing another’s data or providing access to computer equipment to process or examine data, and related software. A SaaS product that is essentially data processing for the customer falls in the exemption; one that is a license to use prewritten software may not.
When does a remote seller register in West Virginia?
When its West Virginia sales reach $100,000 in gross revenue or 200 separate transactions in the current or prior calendar year.
Receivables next door
- KYKentucky receivablesKentucky charges a flat 6% with no local sales tax, taxes SaaS as a prewritten computer software access service, and since August 1, 2026 requires remote sellers to register on $100,000 of gross receipts alone.
- MDMaryland receivablesSince July 2025 Maryland taxes SaaS: 3% when sold for use in a business’s systems, 6% for individual use. Remote sellers register at $100,000 or 200 transactions.
- OHOhio receivablesOhio taxes SaaS used in business at 5.75% plus local rates, and the 200-transaction test still counts toward nexus.
- PAPennsylvania receivablesPennsylvania taxes SaaS at 6%, with 7% in Allegheny County and 8% in Philadelphia, and requires remote sellers to register once sales pass $100,000.
- VAVirginia receivablesVirginia doesn’t tax SaaS or other software delivered over the Internet. Sales tax runs 5.3% to 7% by locality, and remote sellers register at $100,000 or 200 transactions.
Founder guides on this
- Sales taxSales tax nexus for startups: when you owe tax in a stateSince Wayfair, selling into a state can create a sales tax obligation. How economic nexus works, why SaaS is taxable in some states and when to register.
- StripeHow to reconcile Stripe payouts to your booksA Stripe payout is charges less fees, refunds and disputes, batched across days. How to book it gross, tie it to the bank, and keep revenue right.
- RevenueDeferred revenue for SaaS startups, explainedAn annual prepayment is cash today and revenue over a year. How deferred revenue works under ASC 606, why it’s a liability, and the schedule behind it.
More of the West Virginia guide
- AccountingAccounting and state tax in West VirginiaCorporate tax, conformity to federal rules, apportionment and what it does to your books
- PayablesPayables and contractors in West VirginiaPaying vendors and contractors: 1099 filing, use tax, contractor tests and withholding
- PayrollPayroll taxes and employer rules in West VirginiaWithholding, unemployment insurance, paid leave, minimum wage and the rules on paydays
- ComplianceCompliance and filings in West VirginiaRegistering to do business, annual reports, franchise tax and the filing calendar
- AdvisoryAdvisory: credits and decisions in West VirginiaCredits, incentives and the decisions that are cheaper to get right the first time
Sources
Checked against each agency’s own page on . Rates and thresholds change, usually on January 1.
- W. Va. Code § 11-15-3 — Consumers sales and service tax rate
- W. Va. Code § 8-13C-4 — Municipal sales and use tax
- W. Va. Code § 11-15A-6b — Remote sellers and marketplace facilitators
- W. Va. Code § 11-15B-2 — Definitions (prewritten computer software)
- W. Va. Code § 11-15-9 — Exemptions (electronic data processing services)
- West Virginia State Tax Department — Sales and Use Tax
General information for US companies, not tax, legal or accounting advice for yours. Rules and thresholds change; confirm the specifics with a CPA or the agency before you act on them.