Residency in MA or DC

[abysskiss]

I am a graduate student at an institution in Massachusetts but I was born and raised in DC and my family still lives there. I have continued to use DC as my permanent address, my car is registered in DC and my driver's license is from DC. I have a W-2 from my institution in Massachusetts but I also have a 1099-NEC and 1099-DIVs, all of which bear my DC address. I am not sure whether I spent 183 days in MA last year, I'd have to count (it's very close either way, but I did not spend the rest of the time in DC, I was all over the map. I did, however, have a year-long lease for which I was paying rent. Am I correct in understanding that I should claim full-time residency in DC (my intended domicile) and non-resident status in MA (and not claim the rental deduction)?

Secondly, In filling out my state return, I was able to apportion my W-2 income to MA and not the other income, but in filling out a DC return, I was unable to do that. Is there some way that I should be telling DC I didn't make that W-2 income in DC, or does it not matter for the purposes of DC's return? I'm not so concerned about paying extra taxes--with my current DC resident/MA nonresident set-up, I'm estimated to receive a refund from both DC and MA and I just don't want one of them to get mad at me. 

[GeorgeM777]

Yes, based on the facts you included in your post, it appears you remain a legal resident of DC and your status for Massachusetts would be non-resident.  However, you should probably determine whether you spent more than 183 days in MA because your lease term was one year.   MA provides the following with regard to time spent in MA and while also maintaining a permanent place of abode in MA:

Legal residence is not in Massachusetts for entire year but you maintain a permanent place of abode in Massachusetts and spend more than 183 days of the taxable year in total in Massachusetts.

If the above applies to your situation, then you would be considered a MA resident; however, you need to determine whether your apartment is defined by MA as a permanent place of abode.  MA defines a permanent place of abode as follows:

A "permanent place of abode" is a dwelling place that someone, not necessarily the owner, continually maintains. This includes a place owned or leased by a spouse.

But a permanent place of abode does not include the following:

A dwelling place that is maintained only during a temporary stay in Massachusetts for accomplishing a particular documented purpose. A temporary stay is defined as a predetermined period of time not to exceed 1 year.

Legal Residency Status in MA

Thus, if you did not spend more than 183 days in MA, and you did not have a permanent place of abode in MA, then you are, for tax purposes, a non-resident of MA.

Include all of your income from whatever source on your DC return, including your MA income.  DC allows credit on income and fiduciary tax returns for taxes paid to other states on incomes taxed by the District.  Therefore, prepare your MA tax return first (it appears you have already done this) in order to determine what tax you must pay to MA, if any.  Then, when you complete your DC return, there will be a screen where you can enter the taxes, if any, paid to MA.  

Remember to include in your Personal Info section of TurboTax that you earned income in another state, i.e., MA.  

@abysskiss 

[abysskiss]

Hi @GeorgeM777 , thanks very much for this. I have counted and I believe in 2022 I spent exactly 183 days in MA, though I would of course double-check this before actually filing. If I have spent 183 days or more in MA, does that automatically qualify me as a permanent resident regardless of my intent to stay? The situation is perhaps also complicated by the fact that I held the same lease in 2021 (so cannot claim to be there for only 1 year), but resided in MA for only about 150 days of that year. 

Part of my confusion stems from my understanding of DC's residency regulations, which seem to me to say that I count as a full-time resident of DC if I wish to claim DC as my domicile. ("An individual is a resident of the District if the individual is domiciled within the District at any time during the taxable year. "DC Official Code, 2001 Ed. §47-1801.04(17).). If I claim residency in MA, would it be a problem for me to list my DC address on my federal tax return (i.e., might that trigger DC to wonder why I did not file a state return with them)?

[ErnieS0]

Students remain a resident of their home state unless they take steps to establish permanent residency in another state. Attending college is considered a temporary absence. You would not count days as a student.

Massachusetts says “your legal residence is usually where you maintain your most important family, social, economic, political, and religious ties, and it depends on all the facts and circumstances per case, including good faith.”

In your case, that appears to be DC.

Learn about legal and residency status in Massachusetts

File a resident DC return and non-resident Massachusetts return. Only your MA W-2 income will be taxed by MA. You can claim a credit for any MA tax paid on your DC  return.