Before you start

An SSN or ITIN
Form W-4 with your employer for federal withholding
Form IT-2104 with your employer for New York State and Yonkers withholding
Form Y-203 if you work in Yonkers but live elsewhere
Records of foreign income and foreign financial accounts

Step-by-step

1
Complete the W-4 and New York's IT-2104 on day one, and answer the Yonkers question
New York has its own withholding allowance certificate separate from the federal W-4, and its allowance rules differ enough that copying your federal figures across produces the wrong withholding. The form asks specifically whether you are a New York City or a Yonkers resident. In Yonkers the answer is no to the first and yes to the second, and a payroll department unfamiliar with the area gets this wrong constantly.
Via employerWho: YouFirst week of employment
2
Understand what 16.75% is a percentage of
The Yonkers resident income tax surcharge is not 16.75% of your income. It is 16.75% of your net New York State tax. On a state bill of USD 6,000 that is roughly USD 1,000 — meaningful, but an order of magnitude less than the New York City resident tax people assume applies. Estimated-tax filers compute it on Form IT-2105 and residents report it on Form IT-201.
OnlineWho: You
3
File Form Y-203 if you work in Yonkers but live somewhere else
The Yonkers non-resident earnings tax is 0.5% on wages earned and self-employment carried on within the city, and it is filed on Form Y-203 with your New York State return. Somebody living in New Rochelle or the Bronx and commuting into a Yonkers job owes it. New York State's withholding tables for 2026 confirm the rate is unchanged.
OnlineWho: You
4
Register for the STAR credit the moment you buy
New York's School Tax Relief programme reduces the school portion of a homeowner's property tax, and in Yonkers the school levy is the larger half of the city rate. For most new owners it arrives as a credit paid by New York State rather than an automatic reduction, and it is registered with the Department of Taxation and Finance — not with the city and not by your closing attorney. Enhanced STAR for qualifying owners aged 65 and over is worth considerably more.
OnlineWho: YouAs soon as you buy
5
Read the Yonkers tax rate table before you read a listing
The city publishes its rates per USD 1,000 of assessed value alongside the equalization rate and the residential assessment ratio. For the 2026 roll the RAR is 1.41%, so assessed values bear almost no relation to market prices and the headline rate is above USD 1,000 per USD 1,000. Multiply market value by the RAR, then by the combined city and county rate, then add refuse and sewer district charges. That number, not the asking price, is what you are signing up for.
OnlineWho: You
6
Determine your US tax residency and check for a treaty
The substantial presence test counts weighted days across three years to decide whether the US taxes your worldwide income or only US-source income; your visa category does not settle it. New York's return starts from federal adjusted gross income, so a federal treaty exclusion generally flows through to the state — and therefore to the Yonkers surcharge, which is computed on the state tax.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Form W-2 from each employer, issued by 31 January
Form 1099s for freelance, interest and investment income
Form IT-201 for New York State and the Yonkers resident surcharge, or Form Y-203 for the non-resident earnings tax
Passport and travel history for the substantial presence day count
Foreign account statements for FBAR reporting

Things most newcomers don’t know

Yonkers levies its own income tax — and it is one of only two places in New York State that does.

New York City is the famous one. Yonkers is the other, and almost nothing written about moving to New York mentions it. A resident owes a surcharge of 16.75% of their net state tax, and a non-resident who merely works in the city owes 0.5% on those wages. Someone comparing a Yonkers offer against a White Plains one on 'New York State tax' is comparing the wrong thing, and someone applying New York City's 3.876% resident rate is overstating it by a wide margin in the other direction.

Source: NY Tax Department — Form IT-2105 instructions and NYS-50-T-Y (1/26)

The Yonkers tax rate is over USD 1,000 per USD 1,000 of assessed value, and that is arithmetic rather than confiscation.

The city has not conducted a citywide reassessment in decades, so assessed values have drifted to a small fraction of market value — the residential assessment ratio for the 2026 roll is 1.41%. The rate has risen to compensate. Practically: take the market price, multiply by the RAR to get the assessed value, then apply the combined city and county rate. A USD 600,000 house lands near USD 10,000 a year before refuse and sewer district charges, and a listing's 'taxes' figure is only meaningful if you know the assessment behind it.

Source: City of Yonkers Assessment Department — tax and equalization rates

New York's income tax is going DOWN for middle incomes, from tax year 2026.

The FY 2026 enacted budget added a 0.2 percentage point rate reduction phasing in across 2026 and 2027 for taxpayers with taxable income up to USD 215,400 single or USD 323,200 joint — on top of earlier reductions that had already brought those bands to 5.50% and 6.00%. Because the Yonkers surcharge is computed as a percentage of the state tax, a state rate cut cuts the city bill too. Almost every article about New York taxes is written on the assumption they only ever rise.

Source: Governor of New York — FY 2026 enacted budget middle-class tax cut

A federal tax treaty generally does carry through to the New York return, and therefore to the Yonkers surcharge.

New York's return begins from federal adjusted gross income, so income excluded by treaty at federal level normally does not reappear at state level — the opposite of California, which disregards treaties entirely. Since the Yonkers surcharge is 16.75% of the state tax, a treaty position reduces all three layers at once. Confirm your own article rather than assuming.

Source: NY Department of Taxation and Finance

Common mistakes to avoid

Applying New York City's resident income tax rate to a Yonkers salary — Yonkers does not levy it.
Assuming Yonkers is like the rest of Westchester and levies no local tax at all — it is the one Westchester city that does.
Working in Yonkers while living elsewhere and never filing Form Y-203 for the 0.5% earnings tax.
Reading a Yonkers property tax rate as though the assessment were market value.
Buying a house and never registering for the STAR credit, which is a state registration and not automatic.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.