Personal income tax
Kansas collects income taxes from its residents utilizing three tax brackets.
For single taxpayers, they are:
- 3.5 percent on the first $15,000 of taxable income.
- 6.25 percent on taxable income between $15,001 and $30,000.
- 6.45 percent on taxable income of $30,001 and above.
For married persons filing joint returns, the rates remain the same but the income brackets are doubled.
Kansas tax returns are due April 15, or the next business day if that date falls on a weekend or holiday.
State tax forms can be downloaded at the Kansas Department of Revenue website.
Sales taxes
The state sales tax in Kansas rose to 6.3 percent effective July 1, 2010.
Various cities and counties in Kansas have an additional local sales tax. A list of local retailer sales tax rates is available on the state's website.
A Kansas resident who lived in the state for the full tax year and had an income of $36,700 or less in 2012 may be eligible for a food sales tax refund.
Personal and real property taxes
Homes, commercial real property and certain other property categories are appraised at "market value" as of the first day of January each year. Market value is the amount of money a well-informed buyer would pay and a well-informed seller would accept for property in an open and competitive market without any outside influence. Property is assessed by county appraisers and collected at the county level.
Agricultural land, certain motor vehicles, and commercial and industrial machinery and equipment are appraised using a value-assessed method, not market value. Check with the Division of Property Valuation for current value and tax rates by property classification.
All individuals, companies and corporations who, on Jan. 1, own or have subject to their control any tangible personal property must file each year a personal property assessment form listing the property with the county appraiser by March 15. Any taxable personal property not listed by the March deadline will have a penalty applied to the assessed value of the property.
All or at least half of the tax is due by Dec. 20, with the second half due by June 20 of the following year. If you have a mortgage loan on your property, you will receive a statement with tax information on it. Your tax bill will be sent to the mortgage company or bank, and the tax will be paid out of your escrow account.
A rebate on a portion of property taxes paid on a Kansas resident's principal residence is available through the homestead refund. If you meet the requirements, claim the refund by filing Form K-40H.
Inheritance and estate taxes
The Kansas inheritance (succession) tax has been repealed. Due to the retroactive nature of the repeal, any succession tax that has been paid will be refunded.
Kansas no longer imposes a stand-alone (not connected to federal law) estate tax.
Other Kansas tax facts
Kansas' intangibles tax is a local tax levied on gross earnings received from intangible property such as savings accounts, stocks, bonds, accounts receivable and mortgages. An intangibles tax return must be filed if the tax due is $5 or more. No payment is made with the form. Rather, the local tax official will compute your tax and send you a bill.
Kansas requires individuals classified as drug dealers to pay the state's drug tax. Anyone who manufactures, produces, ships, transports or imports into Kansas or possesses more than 28 grams of marijuana (processed or marijuana plants), one gram of controlled substance or 10 or more dosage units of a controlled substance is classified as a drug dealer.