J-1 Research Scholar · Texas
J-1 Research Scholar take-home pay in Texas (2026)
Pick a salary to see the full breakdown — federal income tax, FICA, Texas state income tax, and your annual / monthly / bi-weekly net.
Texas levies no state income tax. Combined with strong tech salary growth in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, this makes TX one of the most tax-efficient states for visa holders. Federal + FICA is essentially the entire tax burden.
| Gross salary | Take-home | Monthly | Effective rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | $52,088 | $4,341 | 13.2% | Details → |
| $80,000 | $67,688 | $5,641 | 15.4% | Details → |
| $100,000 | $83,288 | $6,941 | 16.7% | Details → |
| $120,000 | $98,602 | $8,217 | 17.8% | Details → |
| $150,000 | $121,402 | $10,117 | 19.1% | Details → |
| $180,000 | $144,202 | $12,017 | 19.9% | Details → |
| $220,000 | $173,144 | $14,429 | 21.3% | Details → |
| $280,000 | $213,231 | $17,769 | 23.8% | Details → |
| $350,000 | $258,731 | $21,561 | 26.1% | Details → |
| $500,000 | $356,231 | $29,686 | 28.8% | Details → |
How Texas state income tax works for J-1 Research Scholar holders
Texas has no state income tax. J-1 Research Scholar holders working in Texas keep 100% of their wages after federal tax and (where applicable) FICA. There's no state return to file for wage income earned here. You may still owe tax to another state if you maintained tax residency elsewhere during the year (e.g. moved mid-year), and you may still owe local occupational taxes in some Texas cities.
What's different for J-1 Research Scholar holders in Texas?
State income tax generally does not distinguish between visa categories — it only looks at where you live and where you work, not your immigration status. A few practical notes for J-1 Research Scholar holders specifically:
- Residency. Most states deem you a tax resident if you are domiciled in the state or spend more than 183 days there during the calendar year, regardless of visa type.
- FICA exemption (federal) ≠ state-tax exemption. Even though you are FICA-exempt at the federal level for 2 years, Texas still taxes your wages on its own rules.
- Standard deduction. Many states tie their standard deduction to federal rules — if you can't claim the federal standard deduction as a NRA, you may also be limited at the state level.
Source: comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/