state residency status

[ardi600]

i have a couple that have their home in boston. wife does not work, husband had worked in boston for years till about third or fourth month of 2011. he took a job in wisconsin where he rented an apartment and goes back to his family twice a month in boston. wife and children are still in boston. so how are the states done? resident of MA and non resident of WI? or part resident of WI? I don't think part resident is correct since his wife and family are in boston.

[ddoshan]

Sounds to me that the husband would file as a non resident of Wi. until or unless he and his family take steps to change their domicile from Mass. to Wi. But each state has their own unique rules so it might be a good idea to check their instructions or rules.

[Gary2]

Every state has different residency rules, so the best approach is to learn how to find them. I've found that the states' own instructions for non-resident returns are usually the best starting point, though some states put the explanations elsewhere on their web site. The TTB All States book has good summaries, which are often all you need, but this sounds like a case where you need more details.

Two key points here: MA allows for MFS even when the federal is MFJ, and indeed requires it when the residencies are different. However, it doesn't seem like the husband has given up MA domicile, so it's probably full year MA resident.

Second point: WI is a community property state. Check to see how that applies, and it might be different depending on whether he's classified as resident or non-resident - I don't know.

Another, more general point: A number of states have established so-called "statutory resident" rules. The effect is that they treat you as a full year resident, even if the state is not your state of domicile, so that it's now possible to have to file full-year resident returns with more than one state. Don't let your intuition (which may be absolutely correct, as far as intuition goes) get in the way of the law (which may be totally bogus, but since when is that enough to invalidate a law?).

[Burke]

i have a couple that have their home in boston. wife does not work, husband had worked in boston for years till about third or fourth month of 2011. he took a job in wisconsin where he rented an apartment and goes back to his family twice a month in boston. wife and children are still in boston. so how are the states done? resident of MA and non resident of WI? or part resident of WI? I don't think part resident is correct since his wife and family are in boston.

He may very well be a part-year resident of WI based on your information and a part-year in MA, and the wife would be a full year resident of MA. They can file separately if necessary in two different states, in most cases. He is actually living and working in WI, so that is his tax home. Need to check WI rules about PY. The fact that wife and family are in Boston has no bearing on his status.

[AJsTax]

Temporary work location?

No one yet asked if the job is reasonably expected to last for a year or more? If not, it is a temporary work location. If it is expected to be a long term job then he is probably a part year resident of WI. The OP just said third or fourth month of 2011. He should know by now if it will be a year.

[ddoshan]

From WI. Instructions:

Full-year resident – A full-year resident is an individual who is domiciled in Wisconsin for the entire taxable year.
Nonresident - A nonresident is an individual who is not domiciled in Wisconsin for any part of the taxable year.
Part-year resident - A part-year resident is an individual who is domiciled in Wisconsin for part of the taxable year.
Domicile - Your domicile is your true, fixed, and perma-nent home where you intend to remain permanently and indefinitely and to which, whenever absent, you intend to return. It is often referred to as “legal residence.” You can be physically present or residing in one state but maintain a domicile in another. You can have only one domicile at any time.
Your domicile, once established, is never

[Burke]

is never...............?

[Gary2]

No one yet asked if the job is reasonably expected to last for a year or more? If not, it is a temporary work location. If it is expected to be a long term job then he is probably a part year resident of WI. The OP just said third or fourth month of 2011. He should know by now if it will be a year.

The one year, temporary work location rules relate to whether or not expenses are considered deductible travel expenses on the federal return. They rarely relate to the rules for state residency. Many states infer residency by statute at 183 days, while domicile doesn't change just because you reach the one year mark.

[Gary2]

From WI. Instructions:

Full-year resident – A full-year resident is an individual who is domiciled in Wisconsin for the entire taxable year.
Nonresident - A nonresident is an individual who is not domiciled in Wisconsin for any part of the taxable year.
Part-year resident - A part-year resident is an individual who is domiciled in Wisconsin for part of the taxable year.
Domicile - Your domicile is your true, fixed, and perma-nent home where you intend to remain permanently and indefinitely and to which, whenever absent, you intend to return. It is often referred to as “legal residence.” You can be physically present or residing in one state but maintain a domicile in another. You can have only one domicile at any time.
Your domicile, once established, is never

Based on this, it sounds like he's a full-year MA resident and WI non-resident. There doesn't seem to be any intent to change domicile, and it appears that WI only uses domicile, not time.

[ardi600]

the job is going to last

more than one year until he finds a job back in boston. they paid all the relocation fees for him. even if he could establish that this job is for less than one year, i don't believe he can take any deduction to that since he is an employee and he chose to take this job. ofcourse he wonders if his rent is deductable in WI or the trips back to boston. however, i believe those are personal choices to see family back in boston and therefore no deduction.

[Burke]

I agree. He chooses to maintain the home in Boston, so no deduction for rent or travel.

[taxea]

Based on this, it sounds like he's a full-year MA resident and WI non-resident. There doesn't seem to be any intent to change domicile, and it appears that WI only uses domicile, not time.

Not if domicile means your true home. I was taught that your State of Residency is based on several factors including, where you are registered to vote, where your kids attend school, where you pay property tax, where your car is registered among others.

Regardless of how the state tax office looks at it, I believe the above needs to be considered.
He sounds like a non-resident to me and I think if all of the above are in the state where his family resides then he would have a good arguement for the NR or temp resident status if it comes to that. I say this for the purpose of filing the return not for the purpose of possible business expenses.

[Gary2]

Not if domicile means your true home. ...

He sounds like a non-resident to me and I think if all of the above are in the state where his family resides then he would have a good arguement for the NR or temp resident status if it comes to that.

I think we're agreeing that it's WI non-resident and MA resident, based on the information so far.

[taxea]

Gary I second that theory