New York — 183-Day Statutory Residency

Summary

Day limit

More than 183 days

Window

Calendar year

Second condition

Permanent place of abode in NY

Test type

Both must be true (AND)

Basis

NY Tax Law § 605(b)(1)(B); 20 NYCRR § 105.20

You are a New York State resident for a tax year — even if domiciled elsewhere — if you spend more than 183 days (that is, 184 or more) in the state and maintain a permanent place of abode in New York for substantially all of that year. Both conditions must be true; if either one is missing, statutory residency does not attach.

Who it applies to

This matters most if you are:

• Someone domiciled elsewhere who keeps an apartment or home in New York and visits often for work.
• A commuter or frequent traveler — for example, living in New Jersey or Connecticut but spending many workdays in New York City.
• A remote worker or executive who splits time between New York and another state or country.

It applies to individuals regardless of nationality or where they consider home to be — the test is about days present and whether you maintain a qualifying dwelling, not about citizenship or intent.

The rule — and why it exists

Statutory residency under NY Tax Law §605(b)(1) applies only when both of these are met in the same calendar year:

• Day count. You are present in New York for more than 183 days — so day 184 is the day that tips you over. Staying at or under 183 keeps you below the line.
• Permanent place of abode. You maintain a dwelling of a permanent nature in New York, suitable for year-round use, owned or rented — including one owned or leased by your spouse — for substantially all of the year, and, after Matter of Gaied (2014), you have a residential interest in it. A hotel stay, a barracks, or a camp or cottage suitable and used only for vacations does not count.

Even when both are met, the statute excludes anyone in active service in the armed forces of the United States.

Why it exists: New York uses days present plus a permanent home as a proxy for who is really living in and drawing on the state, independent of where a person claims their legal domicile. The two-prong design stops someone from keeping a full-time base in New York while avoiding resident tax simply by declaring domicile elsewhere — but it also protects people who visit heavily without ever maintaining a home there.

Counting the days

New York counts presence generously. Track your calendar-year total like this:

1. 1Count any day on which you are physically present in New York for any part of the day.
2. 2A partial day — even a few minutes — generally counts as a full New York day.
3. 3Add up every such day across the January-to-December calendar year.
4. 4Once the running total exceeds 183 (i.e. reaches 184) and you maintain a permanent abode, the statutory residency test is met for that year.

Two exceptions exist: presence solely to board a plane, ship, train or bus to a destination outside New York, or while traveling through the state, may be disregarded; and days confined to a New York medical institution are not counted under Audit Division policy (outpatient visits are). Because a partial day counts as a whole day, travel days in and out of the state add up quickly, so commuters can cross the line faster than they expect.

Examples

Example 1 — resident under both prongs

You are domiciled in Florida but rent a Manhattan apartment year-round and work in the city, spending 200 days in New York during the calendar year. You exceed 183 days and maintain a permanent abode, so you are a New York statutory resident for that year.

Example 2 — many days but no abode

You spend 210 days in New York across the year but stay only in hotels and never maintain a dwelling suitable for year-round living. With no permanent place of abode, the day count alone does not make you a statutory resident.

Example 3 — an abode but under the day limit

You keep a furnished New York apartment all year but are present for only 150 days. Because you did not exceed 183 days, you are not a statutory resident — even though the permanent-abode prong is satisfied.

Exceptions & edge cases

• Travel and medical days. Presence solely to catch transport out of New York, or while passing through, may be disregarded, and days confined to a medical institution are not counted. Shopping or dining trips across the border are ordinary New York days.
• New York City residency. The City applies its own equivalent statutory residency test, so city income tax can attach separately from state tax based on days and an abode within the five boroughs.
• The 10-month rule. The regulation requires the abode for substantially all of the taxable year. For tax years from 2022 the Audit Guidelines treat that as generally more than 10 months (previously 11), applied in the year you acquire or dispose of the residence — so renting a New York apartment from March generally will not make that year a statutory-residence year. Renting out a home you keep for a few months each summer does not break it.
• Vacation homes. Suitability for year-round use turns on the building, not on how you use it: a winterized second home you control can be a permanent place of abode even if you only use it for vacations.
• Audit and proof. If you keep a New York abode and claim to be a nonresident, you must keep records showing you did not spend more than 183 days in the state, and the Department applies a clear and convincing evidence standard.

Common misconceptions

• "I'm not domiciled in New York, so I can't be taxed as a resident." False — statutory residency is independent of domicile and can make you a resident anyway.
• "Exactly 183 days is safe." The threshold is more than 183, so 184 days (with an abode) is what crosses the line — but 183 or fewer stays under it.
• "A partial day doesn't count." Any part of a day in New York generally counts as a full day.
• "Lots of days automatically makes me a resident." Without a permanent place of abode, the day count alone does not trigger statutory residency.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• New York State Senate — NY Tax Law §605
• NY Dept. of Taxation and Finance — Income tax definitions (resident)
• NY Codes, Rules and Regulations — 20 NYCRR § 105.20, Resident individual
• NY Dept. of Taxation and Finance — Nonresident Audit Guidelines (December 2021)
• NY Court of Appeals — Matter of Gaied v New York State Tax Appeals Tribunal, 22 NY3d 592 (2014)