Reasonable Salary
“I live in a state with no income tax but operate my S-Corp nationwide, does my geographic location dictate what the IRS considers a reasonable wage?”
An owner’s state of residence can be one factor in a reasonable salary analysis, but it is rarely the only one. For an S-Corp that operates nationwide, the IRS often looks at the services performed, the company’s revenue mix, the owner’s role, industry norms, and where the work is actually done. A no income tax state may affect state filing questions, yet federal wage expectations usually focus more on the value of the labor than on the owner’s home state. The facts around travel, remote work, and management duties often matter as well. Walking the details through with a CPA is the fastest way to know what truly applies here.
In your 60-minute session, the KGOB advisor handling it will:
- Read your exact situation and tell you, in plain English, what’s actually going on.
- Lay out your options and the trade-offs — no jargon, no judgment.
- Give you a clear next step you can act on, whether that’s with us or on your own.
This page is a prompt to start a conversation, not tax or legal advice, and states no tax-law specifics as fact. A consult session does not by itself create an ongoing engagement. We do not promise specific outcomes or savings. Kohari Gonzalez Oneyear & Brown PLLC — Charlotte, NC.
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