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Financial planning in Virginia

A flat-fee financial advisor serving Virginia.

A 5.75% top rate that begins at $17,000, Social Security exempt, and a $12,000 age deduction that income can erase.

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2%–5.75%, with 5.75% above $17,000 of taxable incomeVirginia income tax, tax year 2026.
None since July 1Virginia estate tax.
$150–$1,650/qtrFlat quarterly memberships, no AUM fee, no annual commitment.
Minnetonka-basedA Minnesota firm serving Virginia households virtually; no Virginia office is claimed.

Direct answer

What Is Different About Financial Planning in Virginia?

Virginia's brackets run from 2% to 5.75%, and the top rate starts at $17,000 of taxable income, so nearly all of a planning household's income is taxed at 5.75%. Social Security is exempt and military retirement pay is subtractable up to $40,000 per person, but pensions, IRA withdrawals and federal FERS and TSP income are fully taxed; taxpayers 65 and older get an age deduction of up to $12,000 that shrinks a dollar for every dollar of income over $50,000 single or $75,000 married. There is no estate or inheritance tax. For a Northern Virginia household of federal employees and contractors, the plan is about which years carry TSP withdrawals and conversions, and about protecting the age deduction.

Virginia tax treatment

How Virginia taxes a planning household

Figures are for tax year 2026, each read from the source beside it. Thresholds and rates are revised regularly; confirm the current year before acting on any of them. What these rules change in a household’s plan, from the order accounts are drawn to the timing of Roth conversions, is set out in the retirement tax planning overview.

Income: 2%–5.75%, with 5.75% above $17,000 of taxable income; standard deduction $8,750 / $17,500 for 2026

Virginia taxes 2% on the first $3,000 of taxable income, 3% to $5,000, 5% to $17,000 and 5.75% on everything above, a schedule unchanged since 1990 and not indexed. The standard deduction is $8,750 for single filers and $17,500 for joint filers for 2026; the 2026 Appropriation Act raises it to $9,200 and $18,400 for 2027 and $9,300 and $18,600 for 2028 and 2029, after which current law reverts it to $3,000 and $6,000.

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Retirement income: Social Security exempt; $12,000 income-tested age deduction at 65; up to $40,000 of military retirement subtracted; pensions, IRAs, FERS and TSP taxed

Virginia exempts Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement benefits. Taxpayers born on or before January 1, 1939 deduct $12,000; those born later who have reached 65 may deduct up to $12,000, reduced $1 for every $1 of adjusted federal AGI over $50,000 (single) or $75,000 (married), so the deduction is gone at $62,000 and $87,000. Military retirement pay and Survivor Benefit Plan payments are subtractable up to $40,000 per eligible person for 2025 and later, with no age test. Pensions, 401(k) and IRA distributions, and FERS, CSRS and TSP income are taxable in full.

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Estates: None since July 1, 2007

Virginia repealed its estate tax for deaths on or after July 1, 2007 and has no inheritance tax. Only the federal exclusion applies.

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Worth doing here

Planning opportunities specific to Virginia

Things that are worth doing in Virginia that would not be worth doing, or would work differently, somewhere else.

Virginia529: $4,000 per account, no cap from age 70

Contributions to a Virginia529 account are deductible up to $4,000 per account per year, with any excess carried forward until deducted, and the per-account cap multiplies across several children or grandchildren. Account owners who are 70 or older by December 31 may deduct the entire amount contributed in the year.

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Protect the $12,000 age deduction

Because the deduction shrinks dollar for dollar above $50,000 (single) or $75,000 (married) of adjusted federal AGI, a Roth conversion, a large gain or a lump-sum TSP withdrawal in the wrong year can erase it, costing up to $690 per person at 5.75%. Spreading conversions and gains, or finishing large conversions before 65, preserves it.

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The military retirement subtraction

Military retirement income and Survivor Benefit Plan payments are subtractable up to $40,000 per eligible individual for 2025 and later, worth up to $2,300 a year at 5.75%, and a two-retiree household can subtract up to $80,000. Federal civilian pensions (FERS, CSRS) and TSP distributions do not qualify.

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Federal and state, together

How Virginia Tax Interacts With Your Federal Return

At 5.75% on almost all income plus Northern Virginia property tax, many working households exceed the federal deduction cap, and above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income the cap shrinks toward $10,000, so much of what a high-earning Virginia household pays the state is not deductible federally. In retirement the state still taxes TSP, FERS and IRA income in full, so the withdrawal plan carries more state weight here than in most states.

The federal deduction for state and local taxes is $40,400 for tax year 2026 and begins to shrink above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income, down to a floor of $10,000, and is scheduled to return to $10,000 after 2029. The federal estate tax exclusion is $15,000,000 per person for deaths in 2026. IRS, Instructions for Schedule A (2025), line 5e; IRS, tax year 2026 inflation adjustments (Rev. Proc. 2025-32).

Cities

Where we work with Virginia households

Each city page covers what is local — how households there tend to be paid, what the first meeting usually covers — and inherits this state layer.

Arlington, VA

Arlington and Northern Virginia are paid by the federal government and the military (the Pentagon sits in the county), by Amazon's second headquarters, by Boeing's and RTX's headquarters and the defense and government contractors around them, and by the professional firms that serve all of it.

Arlington planning

Richmond, VA

Richmond is paid by state government, by a group of public headquarters that includes Dominion Energy, Altria, CarMax and Markel, by Capital One's very large West Creek campus, and by VCU Health and the region's hospitals.

Richmond planning

Watch and learn

Financial Planning, Explained Clearly

Start with three videos selected for this page, then use the controls to explore every published Flames FP video guide.

Videos 1–3 of 14

Common questions

Virginia Financial Planning Questions

Does Virginia tax Social Security?

No. Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement benefits are subtracted in full.

Does Virginia tax federal pensions and the TSP?

Yes. FERS and CSRS annuities and Thrift Savings Plan distributions are ordinary taxable income in Virginia, taxed at up to 5.75%. The only reliefs are the Social Security exemption and, from 65, the income-tested age deduction of up to $12,000.

How does Virginia's age deduction work?

Taxpayers born on or before January 1, 1939 deduct a flat $12,000. Those born later who have reached 65 may deduct up to $12,000, reduced by $1 for every $1 of adjusted federal AGI above $50,000 for single filers or $75,000 for married taxpayers.

Does Flames Financial Planning have an office in Virginia?

No. Flames Financial Planning is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and serves Virginia households through a virtual planning relationship. This page describes the service area and does not claim a Virginia office.

Is Virginia tax planning part of the relationship?

Yes. State tax treatment shapes withdrawal order, Roth-conversion timing, and where investments are best held. Planning includes tax guidance and review of a completed return; Premier adds tax projections and preparation and filing through an independent tax partner.

Next step

See what a flat-fee relationship would cost a Virginia household.

A discovery meeting covers your situation, what you pay now, and whether a fixed quarterly membership is a better fit.

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