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Living in California will prove one thing to anyone who gives it a try: if it can be taxed, it will be by California. Perhaps that is an exaggeration on my part … then again, perhaps it is not.
California residency depends on the purpose and duration of a stay, domicile, and the complete facts. A connection with California or a visit does not alone establish residency. Residents generally are taxed on worldwide income; nonresident and part-year treatment requires separate analysis.
Your residence, of which you might have several during the tax year, is anywhere you are living “for other than a temporary or transitory purpose.” [R&TC § 17014]
So, if you had lived in California during any one tax year for “other than a temporary or transitory purpose,” then you were officially a resident of California during that year.
You may be asking, what is a “temporary or transitory purpose?” Well, that is a question which cannot be answered in the abstract. There is a statute which states that whenever a person stays in California for more than nine months in a tax year then that person is presumed to be a resident of the State. [RT&C § 17016]
Many people incorrectly interpret this to mean that if you stay in California for less than nine months, then you will not be considered a resident by the Franchise Tax Board (FTB). Unfortunately, while that is a reasonable assumption, it is incorrect.
To assist both attorneys and taxpayers in understanding its laws, California has promulgated a Code of Regulations. The regulation drafted relevant expressly states that living in California for less than nine months does not lead to the presumption that you were not a resident of California during your stay. In other words, the statute states that you might be considered a resident no matter how long you have stayed in California but once you hit the nine-month mark, you will be presumed to be a resident and the burden will be on you to prove otherwise. So, even tax laws which appear to help you understand whether or not you are a “resident” of California for tax purposes are not really that helpful.
Apply the residency guidance in FTB Publication 1031 and the governing rules to the actual facts. The temporary-or-transitory-purpose inquiry cannot be decided from a generic description of a visit.
California’s residency rules consider domicile and whether presence or absence is temporary or transitory. Receiving state services alone is not a complete residency test; examine all the relevant circumstances.
TEST 1: The Identifiable Purpose Test
An identifiable purpose and anticipated duration are relevant evidence. Determine whether the actual stay is temporary or transitory under the governing rules; completing a task in California does not itself establish a universal residency result.
As you may note, even when a person comes to California for a particular purpose, if completing that purpose cannot be done in a “short period” then he is out of luck, he is now a resident of California. What exactly is a “short period” is, unsurprisingly, not defined. The regulation mentions “passing through” the state and, so, the implication is the stay should be very brief and the person should immediately leave the state upon completing whatever purpose brought him to California.
The Identifiable Purpose Test expressly does have an Annual Vacationing exception. Under the regulation, a person can come to California every tax year for up to six months of cumulative vacation time in the state as long as they retain an abode in the other state in which they are domiciled and “they do not engage in any activity or conduct within [California] other than that of a seasonal visitor, tourist or guest.” If they stick to these rules, they will not be a resident of California, despite their extensive up-to-six-month stay in the state. However, if you do decide to vacation in California, do not mix
business with pleasure!
In part two of this series, I will discuss the feared “Close Connection Test” that allows the State of California to cast a wide net and capture substantial taxes from former California residents.
Related guidance: Samuel Landis, Esq..
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Segal, Cohen & Landis, P.C. — Beverly Hills. Serving clients nationwide.
Samuel Landis, Esq.
LL.M. (Tax) · Selected to Super Lawyers®
Sam Landis is a Beverly Hills IRS tax attorney specializing in IRS collection defense, audit representation, and international tax compliance for foreign nationals and US expats.