Pennsylvania finally will start collecting corporate income taxes from companies that don’t have offices, employees or property in the state.

It is one of the last states to impose such a tax. The change will start in the 2020 tax year.

Until now, corporations without offices, employees or property in Pennsylvania did not have to file a Pennsylvania tax return.

Starting next year, they will have to pay the state’s net corporate income tax if they record more than $500,000 in sales in Pennsylvania.

The new rule is expected to apply to services sold, since federal law prohibits state corporate income taxes on “tangible personal property,” such as office equipment, furniture or clothing.

Obviously, the new revenue will help offset a loss of tax revenue as the projected retirement-age population balloons and the working-age population shrinks.

Pennsylvania’s corporate net income tax at a flat rate of 9.99 percent is one of the highest in the country.

Overall, the state has had a very good year for tax collections, earning nearly $1 billion more than anticipated in the fiscal year that ended June 30.

Pennsylvania cites a groundbreaking U.S. Supreme Court decision last year as the legal basis to expand how it applies the tax.

Most states had viewed prior Supreme Court decisions as limited to sales taxes and continued to apply their corporate income taxes to companies without a physical presence in the state, said Jared Walczak, director of state tax policy for the Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation.

However, last year’s decision lifts a constraint that Pennsylvania courts had imposed on how it applied its corporate income tax, Walczak said.

Other states are using the Supreme Court’s decision to expand how they apply their taxes. Hawaii passed legislation in July setting a $100,000 threshold, while Texas is considering adopting a $500,000 threshold for its state franchise tax. Philadelphia adopted a $100,000 threshold for its business tax and San Francisco adopted a $500,000 threshold for several city taxes.

The state’s Department of Revenue said it does not know how much money in new tax collections to expect.

But any boost in tax revenue, especially from out-of-state companies doing business in Pennsylvania, will be a boost to the state treasury.