United States · Individuals · Self-employed

State Taxes When Moving Abroad: Ending CA, NY or VA Residency

Moving abroad alone does not end state residency. New York and Virginia generally tax you as a resident while your domicile stays there, and domicile lasts until you acquire a new one. California asks whether your absence is only temporary. After residency ends, the old state can still tax income from work, property or business there, such as rent.

Di Lu, CPA
Di Lu, CPAUS and Canadian CPA

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Tax year 2026 · Last updated  · Published by Cloud Accounting under standing professional approval

Who this is for

  • US citizens and green card holders leaving California, New York or Virginia to live in another country
  • Anyone abroad who keeps a home, family, accounts or income in their former state

Not covered here

  • Moves to Canada and moves between US states
  • Federal returns from abroad and the foreign earned income exclusion tests
  • Full residency rules for states other than California, New York and Virginia

Do expats still pay state taxes after moving abroad?

You can, if your old state still treats you as a resident, or if you have income from that state. A foreign address, a foreign job or years spent abroad do not by themselves end state residency. Each state applies its own test, and three common departure states use three different ones:

A resident of each state is taxed on income from everywhere. A nonresident is taxed only on income from that state.

Your case is not simple if:

  • you keep a home in the state
  • your spouse or children stay behind
  • you plan to return after an assignment
  • you still earn rent or wages from the state
  • you already filed returns that may be wrong

Gather your move date, a travel calendar with days in the state for you and your family, lease or sale papers for both homes, your foreign visa or residence permit, your employment contract, and your driver's license, vehicle and voter records.

Why can my old state keep taxing me after I move abroad: domicile versus statutory residence?

Domicile is your one permanent home, the place you intend to return to when away. You keep it until you acquire a new one, so leaving without settling anywhere permanent leaves the old domicile in place (Publication 1031, section L). Statutory residence is a separate test based on a home kept in the state plus a count of days spent there.

  • Changing domicile takes two steps in each of these states: giving up the old home with no intent to return, and physically settling somewhere new with intent to stay permanently or indefinitely. A declaration alone does not do it (Virginia Ruling 20-110).
  • New York demands more proof for a move to another country than for a move to another state. Its instructions say going abroad for an employer's assignment, study or any other purpose does not change domicile unless you show you definitely do not intend to return (IT-203 instructions, definitions), and courts demand more proof for a move between nations than between states (2021 audit guidelines, foreign domicile).
  • The burden is on you. New York requires clear and convincing evidence; Virginia says the person claiming the change must prove it.
  • Statutory residence can apply even after domicile changes. New York treats you as a resident if you keep a permanent place of abode there for substantially all of the year and spend 184 days or more in the state. Virginia treats you as a resident if you keep a place of abode there for more than 183 days of the year (Code of Virginia section 58.1-302).

California differs: a California domiciliary who leaves for a purpose that is not temporary, such as a permanent job abroad with the family moving too, can be a nonresident from the day of the move, as in the publication's example (Publication 1031, sections H and L).

What do California, New York and Virginia each look at before they let a resident go?

All three weigh where your life actually is. Of the guidance cited here, only California's and New York's include a written exception for long absences abroad.

StateResident test after you leaveException for time abroadState's own source
CaliforniaDomiciled in California and away for a temporary or transitory purpose; your residence is where your closest connections areEmployment-related contract safe harbor of at least 546 consecutive daysPublication 1031
New YorkDomiciled in New York, or a statutory resident (permanent place of abode for substantially all of the year plus 184 days or more)The 30-day and 548-day rules for New York domiciliaries (below)IT-203 instructions; audit guidelines
VirginiaDomiciled in Virginia (until you abandon it and acquire a new domicile), or a place of abode in Virginia for more than 183 daysNone in Virginia's published guidance; work abroad on a non-permanent basis keeps the domicileVirginia Tax: residency status

New York City and Yonkers apply the New York State tests to their own resident taxes (IT-203 instructions). For any other state, check its tax agency's residency page for three things: whether domicile alone makes you a resident, whether a kept home plus a day count does, and whether any rule excuses long absences abroad.

Do I fit California's 546-day safe harbor or New York's 548-day rule?

These rules let some people who keep their old domicile still be treated as nonresidents. Each has conditions that must all hold, and failing one returns you to the ordinary tests.

A California domiciliary who is outside California under an employment-related contract for an uninterrupted period of at least 546 consecutive days is a nonresident during the absence, unless intangible income (interest, dividends and gains on stocks, bonds and similar property) exceeds $200,000 in any year the contract is in effect, or the main purpose of the absence is avoiding income tax (Publication 1031, section E).

  • Return visits totaling no more than 45 days in any tax year covered by the contract are treated as temporary.
  • Separate contracts do not combine; a stay back in California between contracts breaks the uninterrupted period.
  • A spouse who goes along for at least that long is also a nonresident. A spouse and children who stay in California did not defeat the safe harbor in the publication's example, but because California is a community property state, half of the absent spouse's wages were still taxed to California as the resident spouse's share (Example 3).
  • Keeping a California bank account, driver's license and voter registration did not defeat the safe harbor in the publication's own example.

Without an employment-related contract (retiring, following a partner, working with no contract), or with one that falls short, California applies its facts-and-circumstances test. In that case, if your spouse and children stay in your California home and you plan to return, the publication's example treats you as a resident throughout the absence.

New York Group A and Group B

A New York domiciliary is not a resident if all three conditions in either group hold (IT-203 instructions, resident definitions). Group A is tested over a whole tax year. Group B is tested over any 548-day period you choose; if it starts the day you leave, the move year is a part-year return and later years are nonresident returns.

Group A (30-day rule):

  • No permanent place of abode in New York at any time in the year
  • A permanent place of abode outside New York for the entire year
  • 30 days or less in New York during the year

Group B (548-day rule):

  • Present in a foreign country for at least 450 days during any period of 548 consecutive days
  • You, your spouse (unless legally separated) and your minor children in New York for 90 days or less during that period
  • In the year the period starts and the year it ends, your New York days during the nonresident part of each year stay within that part's share of 90 days (days in that part ÷ 548 × 90)

Any part of a day counts as a day, and the burden is on you to prove each condition. New York's auditors are told the third condition, the short periods at either end, is where taxpayers are often vulnerable (2021 audit guidelines, tax relief for a domiciliary). The 548-day rule does not change your domicile: New York can treat you as a resident again in any year the conditions stop holding.

Which ties carry weight: home, driver's license, voter registration, address, accounts, storage, family?

A home you keep, your family, where you spend your time, where you work, and where your treasured belongings are carry the most weight. Easy-to-change ties, such as a license or voter registration, help or hurt only at the margin in New York, but Virginia treats them as strong evidence.

TieCaliforniaNew YorkVirginia
Home kept in the stateLocation of your principal residence is a factor; a marital home in California is significant for domicileA primary factor; any permanent place of abode in New York also rules out Group AA home kept and available for visits weighed heavily against the taxpayer in Ruling 20-110
Spouse and childrenTheir location is a factorClose family ties are a primary factorResidence of your spouse, children and parents is a statutory factor
Belongings in storageBelongings stored in California pending a planned return supported continued residence in an exampleItems of sentimental value are a primary factorWhere your real and tangible property sits is a factor
Driver's license and vehicleBoth are factors"Other" factors, easily changed and weighed below the primary onesA Virginia license requires certifying Virginia residence; renewing one is a strong sign of intent to keep the domicile
Voter registrationA factorAn "other" factor; auditors look at which elections you voted in, including local onesVoting in Virginia elections is very strong evidence of Virginia domicile
Mailing address and statementsWhere financial transactions start is a factorWhere statements and bills are mainly received is an "other" factorMail received at a Virginia home counted against the taxpayer
Bank or brokerage accountLocation of banks is a factorThe mere location of a bank account is a non-factorNot named in the cited guidance

Sources: Publication 1031, sections G, H and L; New York audit guidelines (2021), primary, other and non-factors; Virginia Ruling 20-110.

For a move abroad, New York also asks whether you hold permanent residence in the new country or only a renewable work visa, whether you keep returning to a New York home, and whether your foreign job is temporary or can be ended by your employer. Changing the easy ties while the primary ones stay in the state does not change domicile.

Does voting by absentee ballot from abroad keep me a resident for state tax?

Voting from abroad in federal elections under the federal overseas voting law does not, by itself, affect your residence or domicile for any federal, state or local tax (52 U.S.C. 20309). Virginia applies this in Ruling 20-110.

That protection covers voting for federal offices under that law. Voting in state or local elections is different: Virginia treats it as very strong evidence of Virginia domicile, and New York auditors review primaries, school board and budget votes. Before requesting a ballot, check which races it covers.

Can a mailbox or a relative's address in a state with no income tax become my domicile before I leave?

Under the cited rules of these three states, a mail drop or a relative's address you never live at does not by itself create a domicile. A new domicile requires physically moving to and living in the new place with intent to stay.

  • California requires abandoning the old domicile, physically moving to and residing in the new place, and actions showing intent to remain (Publication 1031, section L). In its example, a person who declared Nevada residency but kept spending most of the year in a retained California home stayed a California resident.
  • New York does not count easily controlled ties, such as a license or voter registration, as primary factors, and the change must be clear and convincing (IT-203 instructions).
  • Virginia requires personal presence in the new place and says a simple declaration is not enough (Ruling 20-110).

If you genuinely settle in another state first, that is a state-to-state move; see remote work and state income tax.

Does my old state allow the foreign earned income exclusion or a credit for foreign tax?

It depends on the state, and this decides how much a state still collects from someone who stays a resident while working abroad.

StateForeign earned income exclusionCredit for tax paid to another country
CaliforniaNot allowed; the excluded amount is added back on Schedule CA (540), or Schedule CA (540NR) for a part-year resident, line 8dNot allowed
New YorkAllowed: the same section 911 exclusion as on the federal return, with a copy of federal Form 2555Not available: the resident credit covers tax paid to another state, its local governments, the District of Columbia or a Canadian province
VirginiaAllowed: the same section 911 exclusion as on the federal returnNot allowed, except on foreign-source pension income

Sources: Publication 1031, section K; IT-203 instructions, foreign earned income; IT-112-R instructions; IT-225 instructions; Virginia Tax: residency status. Whether you qualify for the exclusion federally is covered in foreign earned income exclusion tests.

What can the old state still tax once I am a nonresident?

Income tied to the state: work done there, property there and business carried on there. Investment income generally follows your residence, not the account's address.

Income after residency endsCaliforniaNew YorkVirginia
Wages for days worked in the stateTaxableTaxableTaxable
Wages for work done abroadNot California-source; wages are sourced where the work is doneNot New York-source, except that normal workdays at home count as New York days if your assigned or primary office is in New York, unless the employer's necessity requires the work outsideNot Virginia-source; Virginia sources wages to labor performed in Virginia
Rent from property in the stateTaxableTaxableTaxable
Gain on selling property in the stateTaxable, even if sold after you leaveTaxableTaxable
Interest, dividends, stock gainsNot taxable unless used in a California businessNot taxable unless used in a New York businessInterest on a personal Virginia bank account is not Virginia-source
Pension or IRA paymentsQualified plan and IRA distributions not taxedCertain pensions protected by federal law not taxedPension or annuity payments from a Virginia payer are not Virginia-source
Business or partnership income from the stateTaxableTaxableTaxable

Sources: Publication 1031, section I; IT-203 instructions; Virginia Tax: residency status. New York also requires income earned while you were a resident but received after you leave (accrued income) to go on the move-year return (IT-203 instructions, special accruals), and taxes a nonresident on pay tied to work previously done in New York, including covenant-not-to-compete and termination payments; see deferred pay after a move. If a US employer keeps withholding state tax, see working abroad for a US employer.

The payer often has a duty too. In California, a property manager withholds 7% of your rent once payments pass $1,500 in a year unless you certify an exemption on Form 590, and is liable if it fails to withhold; escrow withholds 3 1/3% of a sale price above $100,000 unless you certify an exemption on Form 593 (FTB Publication 1017; Form 593 instructions). In New York, a nonresident seller pays estimated tax on the gain with Form IT-2663 before the deed is recorded, unless the sale is exempt, such as a home that qualifies in total as a principal residence (IT-2663 instructions). In Virginia, a nonresident who rents out or sells Virginia real property registers on Form R-5, and a property manager must collect it from any nonresident owner receiving $600 or more a year (Virginia Tax: nonresident property owners).

Which state return do I file for the year I leave, and when is it due if I live abroad?

If your residency ended on the day you left, the move year is a part-year return: resident for the months before, nonresident after. If it did not end, you file a full-year resident return (California Form 540, New York Form IT-201, Virginia Form 760) on income from everywhere. In later years a nonresident return is needed only if you have income from the state and meet its filing test, or to claim back withheld tax.

StatePart-year returnUsual due dateIf you live outside the United States
CaliforniaForm 540NRApril 15Residing or traveling outside the USA on that date: file and pay by June 15, with interest from the usual date; file by December 15 for the automatic extension
New YorkForm IT-203 (add Form IT-360.1 if you leave New York City or Yonkers)April 15A US citizen or resident living outside the US and Puerto Rico, with a main place of business or post of duty there: file and pay by June 15
VirginiaForm 760PY; Form 763 alone is an option if you lived in Virginia 183 days or less; if neither fits and you had Virginia-source income such as rent after the move, file bothMay 1Residing or traveling outside the US or Puerto Rico on the usual date: file by July 1, with a statement that you were abroad; tax is still due by the usual date

Sources: Publication 1031, sections B and C; FTB 3519 instructions; IT-203 instructions, when to file; Virginia Tax: residency status; Virginia Tax: when to file. Virginia also gives an automatic extension to file to November 1 for most filers, but tax is due on time.

Waiting to meet a day test? New York allows an extension beyond six months if you are outside the United States and Puerto Rico or intend to claim the 548-day rule (code E5, with a copy of your letter to the IRS), or hold an approved federal Form 2350; if you file before qualifying, report the foreign income and amend on Form IT-203-X later. Virginia, on a letter sent before the first day of the seventh month after the tax year, extends filing to 30 days after the date you expect to qualify for the federal exclusion (IT-203 instructions, code E5; Virginia Tax: when to file). California publishes no such extension.

If one spouse stays a resident and the other leaves: New York requires separate returns (IT-201 and IT-203), and a joint IT-201 taxes both as full-year residents; Virginia bars a joint return for a resident and a nonresident but allows one on Form 760PY for a full-year and a part-year resident; California requires a joint Form 540NR after a joint federal return, unless the departing spouse was a nonresident all year with no California-source income (IT-203 instructions, separate returns; Virginia Tax: residency status; Publication 1031, sections C and D). The federal return from abroad is covered in filing while living abroad.

I kept filing as a resident after I left, or never filed for the move year: how do I correct it?

If the status you filed differs from your correct status, the state's amended return changes it, and a refund claim must be made within the state's window. If no return was filed for the move year, the missing return goes on the form for the correct status.

StateHow to correct a filed returnRefund window
CaliforniaCorrected Form 540 or 540NR with Schedule X (FTB: correct a return)four years from the original due date (four years from the filing date if the return was filed in the extension period) or one year from the overpayment, whichever is later
New YorkForm IT-203-X for a part-year or nonresident return, as if filing for the first time (NY: amend a return)three years from filing or two years from payment, whichever is later
VirginiaThe correct return (760, 760PY or 763) marked "Amended Return" (Virginia Tax: amending)three years from the due date of the original return, including valid filing extensions

Changing from resident to nonresident on an amended return is a residency claim the state can examine, and the records listed at the top of this page are what it would ask for. In Virginia, if no return was filed, the state may assess tax within six years from the date the return was due (Code of Virginia section 58.1-1812). Missed years and a disputed residency claim both need a review of every year together, not one return at a time.

Example

These examples are illustrative; all figures are in US dollars.

Jen leaves San Francisco for a two-year contract in Spain

Jen signs a two-year employment contract in Madrid starting July 1, rents out her condo for US$3,000 a month, and keeps her California brokerage account and its California address. Her dividends are about US$5,000 a year.

  • Year 1: She files Form 540NR. All income through June 30 is California income; after that, only the condo rent (US$18,000) is.
  • Year 2: Her absence passes 546 consecutive days and her three-week visit is within the 45-day limit, so, if the move is not mainly to avoid tax, the safe harbor covers her from the day she left. She files Form 540NR for the US$36,000 of rent. Her US$5,000 of dividends is far under the intangible-income limit.
  • If the contract ends early, before 546 days, the safe harbor fails. With a kept condo and a planned return she may be a resident for the whole absence, and her Year 1 return would need correcting.

Omar moves from Brooklyn to Dubai

Omar leaves on January 1 on a renewable work visa, keeps no New York home, and spends 60 days a year visiting family in New York.

  • Domicile: with a renewable visa and regular visits home, proving a change of domicile to Dubai is hard under New York's rules.
  • Group A: fails, because 60 days is more than 30.
  • Group B: over 548 days, his 60 days a year come to about 90 days, at or just over the cap that also counts his spouse's and children's days. The third condition is tighter: if the period starts January 1, his first year allows about 59 New York days (365 ÷ 548 × 90), so 60 days that year already fails. Failing any condition means he may be taxed as a New York State and City resident for that year.

Kate leaves Virginia for Germany

Kate moves to Berlin on a permanent job, keeps her Virginia driver's license, rents out her Virginia house, and votes absentee in federal elections. She earns the equivalent of US$100,000 and pays German tax.

  • Her federal ballot is protected by the federal overseas voting law.
  • Her license and house are evidence Virginia will weigh. Until she shows she has abandoned Virginia and settled in Germany, she may be treated as a Virginia domiciliary taxed on all her income.
  • If she stays a resident, Virginia lets her use the federal foreign earned income exclusion but gives no credit for German tax. Her rent is Virginia-source either way.

Cross-border tax

Still tied to your old state from abroad?

Reach out if you kept a home, family, rent or wages in the state you left, or filed the move year as a resident and now question it. The call sets out which years and state returns your move affects and what we can prepare or amend, not a ruling on your residency.

  • Your move date and a travel log of days in the state for you and your family.
  • State returns filed since the move, and lease, sale or rental papers for any home there.

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Cross-border tax

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Figures on this page

FigureValueSource
New York statutory-residence day threshold
Physical presence during the entire tax year, including pre-move days; a permanent abode must also be maintained for substantially all the year. Part of a day generally counts.
184New York DTF: IT-203 instructions, Resident definitions
Checked
California employment-contract safe harbor: minimum uninterrupted absence
A California domiciliary outside California under an employment-related contract for at least this uninterrupted period is a nonresident, unless intangible income exceeds the safe-harbor limit or the main purpose is tax avoidance. Days under separate contracts do not combine.
546 consecutive daysCalifornia FTB: Publication 1031, section E, Safe Harbor
Checked
California employment-absence safe harbor intangible-income limit
The employment-contract absence safe harbor is unavailable if intangible income (income from stocks, bonds, notes or other intangible property) exceeds this amount in any taxable year during which the contract is in effect.
$200,000California FTB: Publication 1031, section E, Safe Harbor
Checked
New York 548-day rule: minimum days in a foreign country
Days present in a foreign country or countries during the 548-day period; a part of a day counts as a day.
450 daysNew York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, Resident definitions, Group B
Checked
New York 548-day rule: length of the test period
Group B exception for New York domiciliaries: any period of this length may be chosen.
548 consecutive daysNew York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, Resident definitions, Group B
Checked
New York 548-day rule: maximum days in New York for the taxpayer, spouse and minor children
You, your spouse (unless legally separated) and minor children must spend this many days or fewer in New York State during the 548-day period; a part of a day counts as a day. A prorated share of 90 days also applies to the nonresident portion of the years in which the period begins and ends.
90 daysNew York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, Resident definitions, Group B
Checked
California nonresident withholding rate on qualifying rent payments
California property manager withholding on qualifying payments to a nonresident property owner; exceptions and a payment threshold apply
7%California FTB: Publication 1017, Resident and Nonresident Withholding Guidelines
Checked
California rental payment threshold for nonresident withholding
Calendar-year payments to a nonresident owner; withholding begins after the total exceeds this amount
$1,500California FTB: Publication 1017, rent or lease payments
Checked
California real estate withholding rate (sales price method)
Withheld by the real estate escrow person from the seller's sales price on Form 593 unless an exemption applies or the seller elects the alternative calculation based on gain; a grantor trust's grantor is the seller; not required when the sales price is $100,000 or less
3 1/3%
Tax year 2025
California FTB: Instructions for Form 593
Checked
California real estate withholding: sales price at or below which no withholding is required
Real estate withholding is not required when the sales price is this amount or less; other exemptions are certified on Form 593.
$100,000
Tax year 2026
California FTB: Instructions for Form 593
Checked
Virginia: annual real property receipts at which a broker or property manager must obtain a nonresident owner's registration
Brokers, including realtors and property management firms, must obtain Form R-5 from each nonresident who receives this amount or more annually from Virginia real property; real estate reporting persons must obtain it from each nonresident seller.
$600Virginia Tax: Registration of Nonresident Property Owners
Checked
California individual return and payment due date
Last day to file and pay California tax without penalty and interest. A weekend or holiday moves it to the next business day.
April 15California FTB: 2025 Form 540NR booklet, Important Dates
Checked
California due date to file and pay when outside the United States
For a taxpayer residing or traveling outside the USA on the usual due date. Interest accrues from the usual due date until payment.
June 15California FTB: Instructions for Form FTB 3519, Taxpayers Residing or Traveling Outside the USA
Checked
California automatic extension when outside the United States: last day to file
A six-month extension is allowed without a request if the return is filed by this date; pay the tax by the outside-the-USA due date to avoid late-payment penalties.
December 15California FTB: Instructions for Form FTB 3519, Taxpayers Residing or Traveling Outside the USA
Checked
New York individual return and payment due date
Date to file Form IT-203 and pay any tax without interest or penalty. A weekend or holiday moves it to the next business day.
April 15New York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, When to file/Important dates
Checked
New York due date to file and pay when living outside the United States
For a US citizen or resident noncitizen who lives outside the US and Puerto Rico and whose main place of business or post of duty is outside the US and Puerto Rico, or who is in military service outside them. The time to pay is similarly extended.
June 15New York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, When to file/Important dates
Checked
Virginia individual income tax return due date
Usual filing deadline for most individual filers.
May 1Virginia Tax: When to file
Checked
Virginia due date when residing or traveling outside the United States on the usual due date
Overseas rule: applies if you are living or traveling outside the United States or Puerto Rico on May 1; enclose a statement explaining you were out of the country. Only filing is extended for non-military filers: tax is still due May 1.
July 1Virginia Tax: When to file, Individuals Living Abroad or Traveling Outside the United States
Checked
Virginia automatic six-month extension: last day to file
Automatic for most filers with no application; tax is still due by the usual due date.
November 1Virginia Tax: When to file
Checked
California refund claim by amended return
Normal statute of limitations for a California refund claim.
Four years from the original due date (four years from the filing date if the return was filed in the extension period) or one year from the overpayment, whichever is laterCalifornia FTB: 2025 Form 540NR booklet, California Statute of Limitations
Checked
New York refund claim by amended return
Deadline to file an amended return to claim credit for or a refund of an overpayment.
Three years from filing or two years from payment, whichever is laterNew York DTF: Instructions for Form IT-203, Amending your return
Checked
Virginia refund claim by amended return, general window
Longer windows apply after a federal change, another state's change, or a prior amended return or assessment.
Three years from the due date of the original return, including valid filing extensionsVirginia Tax: Amending your return
Checked
Virginia assessment period when no return was filed
Ordinary period is three years after filing; a false or fraudulent return can be assessed at any time.
Six years from the date the return was dueCode of Virginia: section 58.1-1812
Checked

Primary sources

About this guide

Published by Cloud Accounting under standing professional approval. This version has no separately recorded personal review. It explains general rules for the tax year shown. It is not advice for your situation.

Changes

  • : First published.
Di Lu, CPA
Di Lu, CPAUS and Canadian CPA

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