See federal withholding, FICA, and the two Washington employee premiums (Paid Leave and WA Cares) for any salary and pay frequency.
Washington payroll taxes stack federal taxes with two state premiums and no income tax. Every Washington paycheck has federal Social Security (6.2%), Medicare (1.45%), federal income tax withholding, and two employee-paid Washington premiums: the Paid Family & Medical Leave (PFML) premium and the WA Cares Fund long-term-care premium at 0.58%. Washington has no state income tax and no local wage tax. Unemployment insurance is funded entirely by employers through the Employment Security Department, so nothing is withheld from employees for unemployment. The surprise for many workers is that a no-income-tax state still deducts those two premiums, and WA Cares has no wage cap.
- Washington has no state income tax. The Washington Supreme Court has long read the constitution's uniformity clause to bar a graduated income tax, so no state or city income tax is withheld from a Washington paycheck.
- Washington still deducts two employee premiums that Texas and Florida do not: the Paid Family & Medical Leave (PFML) premium and the WA Cares Fund long-term-care premium.
- For 2026 the PFML total premium is 1.13% of wages up to the Social Security cap ($184,500), and employees pay 71.43% of it, an employee rate of about 0.8072%. The employee premium stops at the Social Security cap.
- WA Cares is 0.58% of gross wages, paid entirely by the employee, with no wage cap. Because there is no ceiling, high earners keep paying 0.58% on every dollar after Social Security and PFML have capped out.
- Unemployment insurance is funded entirely by employers through the Employment Security Department (ESD). Workers pay nothing toward it, and no unemployment line appears on an employee stub.
- Washington has no municipal wage income tax. Seattle's JumpStart payroll expense tax is paid by large employers, not deducted from paychecks.
What Makes Washington Payroll Different
Federal payroll tax is the same in every state. What changes from one state to the next is the second layer: state income tax withholding, employer unemployment taxes, and any employee social-insurance contributions. Washington is unusual because it sits in two categories at once. It has no state income tax, like Texas and Florida, but it also deducts two employee-paid premiums, more like New Jersey or California.
That combination trips people up. A worker moving from Texas expects a Washington paycheck to look identical, federal and FICA only, and is surprised to find two extra lines: WA Paid Leave and WA Cares. Neither is large, but both are real, and WA Cares in particular never stops, because it has no wage cap. The federal baseline behind all of this is explained in the how payroll taxes work guide.
Employee Withholding Overview in Washington
A Washington employee sees federal taxes plus two state premium lines, and no income tax. The deductions fall into two groups: federal taxes and the two Washington premiums.
| Deduction | Who Pays | Rate (2026) | Wage Cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Security (federal) | Employee + Employer | 6.2% | $184,500 |
| Medicare (federal) | Employee + Employer | 1.45% | None |
| Additional Medicare (federal) | Employee only | 0.9% | Wages over $200K ($250K MFJ) |
| Federal income tax withholding | Employee only | Varies (W-4) | None |
| WA state income tax | — | None | No state income tax |
| WA Paid Leave (PFML) | Employee (71.43%) + Employer | 0.8072% employee | $184,500 |
| WA Cares Fund | Employee only | 0.58% | None |
The federal lines work identically to any other state. For Social Security, the 2026 wage base is $184,500, after which Social Security and the PFML premium both stop for the year. Medicare has no cap. The two state lines are the PFML employee premium and the WA Cares premium, and WA Cares has no cap at all.
Why Washington Has No State Income Tax
Washington does not tax wages, salaries, or other earned income. This is not a temporary policy: it is rooted in the state constitution. Article VII requires that property taxes be applied uniformly, and in a line of rulings dating to the 1930s the Washington Supreme Court held that personal income is a form of property. A graduated income tax would violate the uniformity requirement, so the state has never been able to adopt one.
Washington raises revenue through other channels instead, such as the retail sales tax, the business and occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts, and, since 2022, a 7% capital gains tax on large investment gains. None of those is withheld from a normal wage paycheck. The Washington Department of Revenue confirms the state collects no tax on wages, salaries, or retirement income. So the "state tax" line on a Washington pay stub is simply absent.
Washington Paid Family & Medical Leave (PFML)
Washington's Paid Family & Medical Leave program pays partial wages to workers who take leave for a serious health condition, a new child, or a family member's care. It is funded by a premium shared between employers and employees, and the employee share is deducted from each paycheck.
2026 Premium Rate and Split
For 2026 the total PFML premium is 1.13% of gross wages, up from 0.92% in 2025. The Employment Security Department recalculates the rate every October based on program usage. Employees pay 71.43% of the total premium, an employee rate of about 0.8072%, and employers pay the remaining 28.57%. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees are not required to pay the employer share, but they still collect the employee premium.
The Social Security Cap
The PFML premium is collected on gross wages up to the Social Security cap, which is $184,500 for 2026. Once cumulative wages reach that cap, the employer stops collecting PFML for the rest of the year, exactly as Social Security stops. That limits the 2026 employee PFML premium to roughly $1,489 for the year. The Washington paycheck calculator applies the cap automatically.
The WA Cares Fund Long-Term-Care Premium
WA Cares is Washington's first-in-the-nation public long-term-care insurance program. It provides a lifetime benefit that vested workers can use for care services as they age. It is funded by an employee-only payroll premium.
Rate and the No-Cap Rule
The WA Cares premium is 0.58% of gross wages, paid entirely by the employee. Its defining feature is that it has no wage cap. Social Security and the PFML premium both stop at $184,500, but WA Cares keeps applying 0.58% to every dollar earned. A worker earning $300,000 pays 0.58% on the full $300,000, about $1,740 for the year, and keeps paying it on every raise. For high earners it is the one payroll line that never phases out.
Exemptions
Some workers can apply to the Employment Security Department for a WA Cares exemption. The categories include people who live outside Washington, spouses or registered domestic partners of active-duty military members, employees on a non-immigrant work visa, and veterans with a 70% or higher service-connected disability. The earlier private long-term-care insurance opt-out closed at the end of 2022 and is no longer available. An approved exemption removes the WA Cares line from the paycheck.
Employer Payroll Obligations in Washington
Washington employers carry the federal employer taxes plus the state unemployment contribution and the employer share of PFML. The federal side, covered in the employer payroll tax obligations guide, includes the matching 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare plus Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA). On top of that, Washington adds a state unemployment tax paid entirely by the employer.
| Employer tax | Basis | Wage base (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Washington unemployment (SUI) | Experience-rated | $78,200 per employee |
| New-employer SUI rate | 115% of industry average | $78,200 per employee |
| Employee unemployment share | None | Not deducted from employees |
| PFML employer share | 28.57% of the 1.13% premium | $184,500 per employee |
| FUTA (federal, after state credit) | 0.6% | $7,000 per employee |
The Washington unemployment tax is assessed on the first $78,200 of each employee's wages for 2026 (up from $72,800 in 2025) and depends on the employer's experience rating with the Employment Security Department. New employers pay 115% of the average rate for their industry until they have enough history for a calculated rate. None of this is deducted from employee pay. The combined cost-to-hire can be modeled with the employer payroll tax calculator.
Washington Has No Local Wage Income Tax
No Washington city withholds a local wage income tax from employees. A worker in Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, or anywhere else in Washington pays no city or county income tax line.
Seattle does levy a payroll expense tax, the JumpStart tax, but it is a tax on large employers, calculated on the compensation the business pays to its highly paid employees, and it is paid by the employer. It is not deducted from individual paychecks. So even in Seattle, an employee pay stub shows federal taxes, the two Washington premiums, and no local wage tax line.
How Take-Home Pay Works in Washington
The calculation sequence runs from gross pay down to net pay. There is no state income tax line, but there are two premium lines to subtract.
- Start with gross wages for the pay period.
- Apply federal income tax withholding using the Form W-4 and IRS Publication 15-T.
- Subtract Social Security (6.2%, up to $184,500) and Medicare (1.45%) on FICA wages.
- Subtract the PFML employee premium (0.8072% for 2026, up to the $184,500 cap).
- Subtract the WA Cares premium (0.58% of all wages, no cap) unless the worker has an ESD-approved exemption.
- The remainder is net pay. There is no state or local income tax to subtract.
To see exact figures for a specific salary and pay frequency, use the Washington paycheck calculator or the general take-home pay calculator for a full pre-tax benefits stack.
Washington Supplemental Wage Withholding
Supplemental wages are payments outside regular salary: bonuses, commissions, overtime, sales awards, and back pay. Washington has no state income tax, so there is no state supplemental rate to apply.
- No Washington income tax on supplemental wages, because there is no state income tax at all.
- The PFML and WA Cares premiums still apply to supplemental wages, at the same rates as regular pay, subject to the same caps.
- Federal income tax withholding on supplemental wages is a separate calculation set by the IRS, and Social Security and Medicare still apply under their own rules.
For the federal supplemental math on a bonus, use the Bonus Tax Calculator.
Washington Reporting and Payment
Washington employers report wages and pay the combined PFML and WA Cares premiums to the Employment Security Department each quarter through the same reporting system, and pay unemployment tax to ESD on its own quarterly schedule. Because there is no state income tax, there is no state withholding return to file, which is one less filing than employers in income-tax states manage. The federal deposit schedule is covered separately in the payroll tax deadlines guide.
New employees must be reported to the Washington new hire directory shortly after the hire date.
Washington Payroll Quick Facts (2026)
| State income tax | None |
| Local wage tax | None (Seattle JumpStart is employer-paid) |
| PFML total premium | 1.13% of wages to $184,500 |
| PFML employee share | 71.43% (about 0.8072%) |
| WA Cares premium | 0.58%, employee-paid, no cap |
| WA Cares exemptions | Out-of-state, military spouse, visa, disabled veteran |
| Employee unemployment | None (employer-funded) |
| Employer unemployment base | $78,200 per employee (ESD) |
| Social Security wage base | $184,500 (2026) |
| Agencies | ESD (Paid Leave, unemployment); DSHS (WA Cares); DOR |
At LMN Tax Inc, the Washington conversation almost always starts with the same misunderstanding: a client relocating from Texas or Nevada assumes "no income tax" means "no state deductions," then sees WA Paid Leave and WA Cares on the first stub and thinks payroll made an error. It did not. Washington genuinely has no income tax, but it layers two employee premiums on top of federal and FICA, and both are legitimate. We set that expectation before the first payroll so there is no panicked email. The line that surprises higher earners is WA Cares, because unlike everything else on the stub it has no wage cap. Social Security and Paid Leave both stop at the Social Security limit, so an executive is used to watching those deductions vanish mid-year. WA Cares never vanishes; it takes 0.58% of every dollar, so a $300,000 earner pays about $1,740 and keeps paying on bonuses and raises. The third recurring topic is the WA Cares exemption. Clients hear "you can opt out" from an old colleague, but the private-insurance opt-out closed at the end of 2022 and is gone. What remains is narrow: out-of-state workers, military spouses, certain visa holders, and disabled veterans. We point clients to the ESD application rather than let them assume it applies, because an unfiled exemption is not an exemption.
Real-World Example: A Washington Biweekly Paycheck
Priya earns $65,000 per year and works in Seattle. She is paid biweekly (26 pay periods), files Single on her W-4, contributes to WA Cares, and has no pre-tax contributions. The federal figure below follows the 2025 Publication 15-T method; the Washington premium lines use the 2026 rates.
Gross pay per period: $65,000 / 26 = $2,500.00
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross wages | $2,500.00 |
| Federal income tax withholding | −$227.46 |
| Social Security (6.2%) | −$155.00 |
| Medicare (1.45%) | −$36.25 |
| WA Paid Leave (PFML, 0.8072%) | −$20.18 |
| WA Cares Fund (0.58%) | −$14.50 |
| Net pay | $2,046.61 |
There is no state or local income tax line. The PFML premium of $20.18 is 0.8072% of $65,000 = $524.65 for the year, divided by 26; because $65,000 is below the $184,500 cap, the full amount applies. WA Cares of $14.50 is 0.58% of $65,000 = $377.00 for the year, divided by 26. Priya's employer separately pays its 28.57% share of the PFML premium and the Washington unemployment contribution to ESD. Run your own numbers with the Washington paycheck calculator.
When Washington Payroll Logic Does Not Apply
- WA Cares exemption holders: A worker with an ESD-approved exemption has no WA Cares premium withheld, so the 0.58% line is absent.
- High earners and the caps: Once wages pass $184,500, Social Security and PFML stop, but WA Cares keeps applying 0.58%. Late-year paychecks for high earners look different from early-year ones.
- Pre-tax deductions: Traditional 401(k) deferrals and Section 125 medical premiums reduce the wages subject to federal income tax withholding, but the Washington premiums generally still ride on gross wages.
- Self-employed and 1099 workers: Independent contractors are not subject to Washington payroll withholding and are not automatically covered by PFML or WA Cares, though they can elect coverage. They handle federal tax through estimated payments, as in the self-employment tax guide.
- Out-of-state remote workers: A worker who lives and works outside Washington for a Washington employer is generally not subject to the Washington premiums, which follow where the work is localized.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are a Washington employee, use the Washington paycheck calculator to see federal withholding, FICA, and the two Washington premiums for your salary and pay frequency, then confirm the lines on your stub. If you think you qualify for a WA Cares exemption, apply through the Employment Security Department rather than assuming it applies automatically.
If you are a Washington employer, confirm your Employment Security Department accounts for Paid Leave, WA Cares, and unemployment, check your annual unemployment rate notice, make sure payroll is collecting the current PFML employee share and the 0.58% WA Cares premium, then model your full cost-to-hire with the employer payroll tax calculator and review the employer payroll tax obligations guide.
- Washington Paid Family & Medical Leave: 2026 Updates (total premium 1.13%, employee share 71.43%, Social Security cap $184,500)
- Washington Employment Security Department: PFML premium rate increases to 1.13% in 2026 (news release, Oct 29 2025)
- Washington Paid Leave: 2025 Premium Rates Employer Mailer (2025 total premium 0.92%, employee share 71.52%, Social Security cap $176,100)
- WA Cares Fund: 0.58% employee premium with no wage cap; ESD exemption categories
- Washington Employment Security Department: Taxable wage base ($72,800 for 2025, $78,200 for 2026; employer-funded)
- Washington Department of Revenue: Income tax (confirms Washington has no personal income tax)
- IRS Publication 15 (Employer's Tax Guide)
- IRS Topic 751: Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates