Active-duty pay
Partially Exempt
First $30,000 of military pay exempt for LA residents serving outside the state.
State Guide · LA
Louisiana — Military Tax Treatment
Louisiana has a station-dependent rule for active duty pay — great if you're stationed elsewhere, irrelevant if you're drilling in-state as a Guardsman. Military retirement is fully exempt regardless.
Tax treatment at a glance
Guard & Reserve drill pay
Taxed
Louisiana's $30K active duty exemption requires serving OUTSIDE Louisiana. Guard members who live and drill in Louisiana are in-state — the exemption does not apply to routine drill pay. Drill pay is taxable as regular LA income.
Military retirement pay
Fully Exempt
Military retirement pay fully exempt.
The numbers · verified for tax year 2025
Top marginal rate
3.0%
Retirement-pay exemption
Full
Federal retirement benefits including U.S. military retirement pay are fully excluded from Louisiana taxable income — no cap, no age threshold.
Standard deduction
Act 11 moved Louisiana to a flat 3% for 2025 and nearly tripled the standard deduction: $12,500 single / $25,000 married filing jointly.
VA disability compensation
Always tax-free
Federally tax-free under 38 USC § 5301. No state taxes VA disability compensation as income — Louisiana included.
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)
Follows retirement
Louisiana exempts military retirement — SBP annuities are generally exempt.
Federal rules that override state law
SCRA — Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
Active-duty servicemembers pay state income tax only to their state of legal domicile — not the state where they are stationed. If you are from Texas and stationed in Louisiana, Louisiana cannot tax your military pay. This applies during all active duty periods and during Guard/Reserve mobilizations on federal (Title 10) orders.
MSRRA — Military Spouses Residency Relief Act
Military spouses can maintain their home-state domicile even when living in a different state due to their servicemember's orders. A spouse who is a Texas resident following their servicemember to Louisiana can keep Texas as their tax domicile and avoid Louisiana state income tax on their wages.
Guard & Reserve — the SCRA gap
SCRA pay protections apply during federal (Title 10) activation orders. During routine drill weekends and state-only activations, Guard and Reserve members are state residents serving in their home state — SCRA does not protect their drill pay from state income tax. Whether Louisiana exempts that pay is the state-specific question answered above.
Filing watch-outs
- 01Active duty exemption: only for LA residents stationed OUTSIDE Louisiana — document your duty station address
- 02Guard members: routine drill pay is taxable LA income; the "outside Louisiana" requirement does not apply to in-state Guard service
Veteran-specific tax benefits
Homestead exemption for disabled vets.
Official authority
https://revenue.louisiana.gov/ ↗State tax law changes annually. Verify current rules with the Louisiana Department of Revenue before making any tax decision.
Louisiana military tax — common questions
Does Louisiana tax military retirement pay in 2026?
Louisiana fully exempts military retirement pay. Military retirement pay fully exempt.
Does Louisiana tax active-duty military pay?
Louisiana partially taxes active-duty military pay for state residents. First $30,000 of military pay exempt for LA residents serving outside the state. Under the SCRA, Louisiana can only tax the military pay of service members who are legally domiciled in Louisiana — not those merely stationed there.
Does Louisiana tax National Guard and Reserve drill pay?
Louisiana taxes Guard and Reserve drill pay. Louisiana's $30K active duty exemption requires serving OUTSIDE Louisiana. Guard members who live and drill in Louisiana are in-state — the exemption does not apply to routine drill pay. Drill pay is taxable as regular LA income.
Is VA disability compensation taxed in Louisiana?
No. VA disability compensation is federally tax-free under 38 U.S.C. § 5301, and no state — including Louisiana — taxes it as income.
If I'm stationed in Louisiana but claim another state, can Louisiana tax my military pay?
No. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), active-duty pay is taxable only by your state of legal domicile, not the state where you are stationed. If your domicile is elsewhere, Louisiana cannot tax your active-duty military pay. Military spouses get the same protection under the MSRRA.
Related tools
Other state guides