Reaching out to see if anyone has any first hand experience switching residency to another state, specifically South Dakota, and the aftermath of that. I have recently obtained a South Dakota drivers license (which the DMV told me proves residency) and stopped paying state tax to the state that I had previously been a resident.
I spend literally all of my time on a ship and then travel overseas during my off time. When in the USA, I visit California and a state where my parents live for like two weeks per year. That’s it. I own nothing and have no rent or property anywhere.
is there anyone here who has a situation similar to mine that has any advice on how you do your taxes? Any CPAs or lawyers you recommend?
I was in a similar situation for a few years when I was with MSC and shipboard for 300 days a year. I switched my residency to a non-income tax state (NH), though not SD. I had to show an address briefly to get the license, but after that I just used a PO Box for everything.
You likely have to file a partial-year return in the state you left to cover the year-to-date tax obligation through the date when you moved to SD. And it shows that state that you left.
Other than that there’s not much to it. SD might not even have any personal income tax filing so you shouldn’t really need a CPA or a lawyer for state tax purposes if you’ve already established residency there.
It’s evidence of residency, it doesn’t prove residency. The legal standard is usually that you have left your former residence with no intention to return. A drivers license alone may not establish that.
Correct. I was a resident of Florida which has no income tax. Previously owned a house there, had a FL driver’s license when I sold my house. I was at sea most of the time and told my employer to just mail the pay receipts to another state where my mother lived knowing she would hold my mail and forward it. That state came after me for taxes owed even though I did not live there and they had no idea the Amtrak Law applied to mariners which caused a year of arguing and the eventual involvement of an assistant US attorney before they backed off. A driver’s license is not enough to prove residency.
