People who work remotely, split the year between two homes or travel for months at a time keep running into the same question: how many days can I spend in a state before it treats me as a resident? Several states answer it with a day count, and a mistake is expensive because a resident is taxed on all income, not only what was earned there.
An invented remote employee spends January to March in Florida, April to the end of August in New York, a fortnight in New Jersey, mid-September to October in New York again and finishes the year in Florida. They keep a home in New York.
| State | Days | Against the commonly published test |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 198 | Over the 183-day limit by 15, with an abode in the state |
| Florida | 151 | No wage income tax |
| New Jersey | 16 | No abode there, so the day test does not apply |
The counter also shows that by 30 September they had 167 New York days and would have crossed the line on 17 October had they stayed every day from then on. Cutting the second New York stay short by 15 days is what keeps them under, and that is the kind of decision the room-left column is for. Whether the stay can be shortened, and whether the home counts as an abode, are questions for a tax professional, not for a calculator.
In the statutory tests that publish a number, the trigger is more than 183 days, so 183 days is still under the line and 184 crosses it. In a non-leap year that is just over half of 365 days. The counter treats the limit the same way and shows how many days of room are left.
No. The statutory tests that use 183 days usually also need a permanent place of abode in the state, and states that decide residency by domicile can treat you as a resident with far fewer days. A day count is one input, which is why the counter only marks a statutory state over the limit when you say you keep a home there.
Commonly cited examples are New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Virginia, Maryland and Utah (183 days or more), Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Vermont, Missouri, Iowa, Maine, West Virginia and Delaware, and the District of Columbia (183 days or more) at more than 183 days with an abode, Georgia at 183 days or more with no abode needed (over the trailing 365 days), New Mexico at 185 days or more with no abode needed, Louisiana at more than six months with no abode needed (taken as 183 days), Nebraska at more than six months with an abode (taken as 183 days), Oregon at more than 200, Ohio at more than 212 contact periods (approximated by nights) and Idaho at more than 270. California is domicile based with a presumption linked to time spent in the state. States without a wage income tax, such as Florida, Texas and Nevada, have no wage-tax residency question at all, though other tests can apply. Check the state's current guidance before relying on this list.