{"place":"Madison, WI","kind":"city","asOf":"2026-10-07","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi","state":{"code":"WI","name":"Wisconsin","slug":"wisconsin","incomeTax":{"type":"progressive","flatRate2026":null,"lowestRate2026":3.5,"topRate2026":7.65,"topRateStartsSingle":332720,"notes":"Rates are percentages. 2026 single-filer brackets: 3.5% up to $15,110; 4.4% up to $51,950; 5.3% up to $332,720; 7.65% above that. 2025 Wis. Act 15 set new brackets for tax years after 2024 and created a retirement-plan and IRA distribution subtraction for people 67 or older: up to $24,000 ($48,000 on a joint return when both spouses qualify). Anyone who takes that subtraction can't claim the credits listed in Wis. Stat. §71.10(4) that year (Act text: https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2025/related/acts/15.pdf).","source":"https://www.revenue.wi.gov/TaxForms2026/2026-Form1-ES-Inst.pdf"},"estimatedTax":{"form":"1-ES","rule":"You must pay 2026 estimated tax if you expect to owe at least $500 after withholding and credits, and your withholding will be less than the smallest of these: 90% of your 2026 tax, 100% of your 2025 tax, or 90% of your annualized 2026 tax.","schedule":"Same dates as federal: April 15, June 15, and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. Farmers and fishers may pay once by January 15 or file and pay by March 1.","source":"https://www.revenue.wi.gov/TaxForms2026/2026-Form1-ES-Inst.pdf"},"minimumWage2026":{"standard":7.25,"tippedCash":2.33,"tipCreditAllowed":true,"notes":"Rates unchanged since July 24, 2009. Opportunity employees (under 20, first 90 days) may be paid $5.90, or $2.13 if tipped. Cities, villages, towns, and counties may not set their own minimum wage (Wis. Stat. §104.001).","source":"https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/er/laborstandards/minimumwage.htm"},"soleProprietorTaxes":[],"contractorLaws":[{"name":"Unemployment insurance contractor test (control plus 6 of 9 conditions)","summary":"For unemployment insurance, a worker for a general private employer counts as an independent contractor only if they are free from the employer's control or direction. They must also meet at least 6 of 9 conditions, such as holding themselves out as a business, having multiple contracts, carrying their own main expenses, facing profit or loss, and not depending economically on one employer.","source":"https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/worker-classification/ui/allothers/conditions/"},{"name":"Worker's compensation nine-requirement test (Wis. Stat. §102.07(8))","summary":"For worker's compensation, a worker must meet all nine requirements to count as an independent contractor. These include running a separate business, having a federal EIN (or having filed business or self-employment returns the prior year), working under specific contracts, and being paid per job, by commission, or by bid. Missing even one makes the worker an employee.","source":"https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/worker-classification/wc/ninepart/"},{"name":"Construction-industry misclassification penalties","summary":"Construction employers, including painting and drywall-finishing businesses, that knowingly and intentionally misclassify employees as independent contractors face fines. The civil penalty is $500 per misclassified employee, up to $7,500 per incident. Pressuring workers into contractor status costs $1,000 per person, up to $10,000 a year. Repeat offenders who were already penalized can face a criminal fine of $1,000 per misclassified employee, up to $25,000.","source":"https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/worker-classification/report.htm"}],"notes":"AB 269 (2025) would have made rideshare and app-based delivery drivers independent contractors and created portable benefit accounts for them. The governor vetoed it on August 8, 2025, and the Assembly's override attempt failed on May 13, 2026, so it is not law (https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2025/proposals/ab269). A 2025 bill on construction-industry misclassification, contractor registration, and tax-violation reporting (AB 462) failed to pass on March 23, 2026 (https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2025/proposals/ab462). Cities and counties can't set their own minimum wage."},"stateRetirementProgram":{"state":"Wisconsin","code":"WI","programName":null,"status":"none","employerMandate":null,"mandateMin":null,"keyDates":null,"covers1099":null,"selfEnroll":"n/a","sourceUrl":"https://cri.georgetown.edu/states","note":"No enacted state-facilitated program.","lastVerified":"2026-09-09"},"city":{"slug":"madison-wi","name":"Madison","stateCode":"WI","county":"Dane County","population":286233,"populationYear":2024,"localIncomeTax":{"applies":false},"localBusinessTaxes":[{"name":"Madison Transient Room Tax (MGO 4.21)","summary":"Madison charges a 10% room tax on lodging. Anyone renting rooms or lodging in Madison, including short-term rental hosts, must get a Transient Room Tax permit from City Treasury and file quarterly returns due Jan. 31, Apr. 30, July 31 and Oct. 31.","source":"https://www.cityofmadison.com/finance/treasury/transient-room-tax"}],"businessLicense":null,"gigLaws":[],"notes":"No city income tax. The 10% room tax rate is stated in the city's Room Tax Overview (https://www.cityofmadison.com/finance/documents/RoomTaxCommissionOverview.pdf); it rose from 9% under ORD-17-00110 (2017), and we found no later change. The city issues licenses only for specific business types (https://www.cityofmadison.com/clerk/licenses-permits), not a general business license. Short-term rentals (Tourist Rooming Houses) need a Zoning TRH Permit ($300 one-time application fee plus $100 yearly renewal), a Room Tax Permit and a Public Health Madison & Dane County license. The home must be the host's primary residence, both while renting and for the 12 months before, and rentals are capped at 30 days per licensing year (July 1-June 30) when the host is away (https://www.cityofmadison.com/dpced/building-inspection/zoning-signs/trh/regulations). We found no local gig-worker pay laws."},"guides":[{"audience":"consultants","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/consultants"},{"audience":"freelancers","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/freelancers"},{"audience":"content-creators","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/content-creators"},{"audience":"entrepreneurs","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/entrepreneurs"},{"audience":"gig-workers","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/gig-workers"},{"audience":"tipped-workers","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/tipped-workers"},{"audience":"tradespeople","url":"https://gigaverse.ai/local/madison-wi/tradespeople"}],"disclaimer":"Educational information for 2026, not tax, legal or investment advice. Sources are cited per fact."}