Tax residency in the United States
the United States uses several tests or a formula, not one simple day count.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
The day test
Several tests or a formula
The substantial presence test: at least 31 days in the year and a weighted total of at least 183 days (all days this year, a third of the days last year, a sixth of the days the year before).
Other tests that can make you resident
Green card holders are resident. US citizens are taxed on worldwide income wherever they live.
Worth knowing
Exceptions apply for some visa types and a 'closer connection' to another country.
The '183-day rule' in tax treaties is a different test
Most tax treaties say that a visitor who works in a country for less than 183 days in a 12-month period, is paid by an employer outside it and whose pay is not charged to a local branch, is taxed only in their home country. That rule tells you where a visiting employee's pay is taxed. It does not tell you where you are a tax resident, which is decided by each country's own test, listed here.
What to remember anywhere
- You can be resident in two countries at once. Each country applies its own test, so two can claim you. Most tax treaties settle it with a tie-breaker in this order: where you have a permanent home, then where your personal and economic ties are closest (centre of vital interests), then where you habitually live, then your nationality.
- Count the days the way the country does. Some count any part of a day, some count the day you are present at midnight, some count arrival and departure days, and some count days in any 12 months rather than a calendar year. Keep a record of your travel: passport stamps, tickets and bank statements.
- A home can make you resident without the days. A permanent home that you keep available, a family that stays, or a business you run can make you resident in countries that look at ties, whatever the day count.
- Leaving is not always the end. Some countries keep taxing you for years after you leave unless you break your ties, and some tax citizens wherever they live. The United States is the best-known example.
- Ask a tax adviser before you rely on a day count. Residence decides which country taxes your worldwide income, and the consequences can be large. A day count here is a starting point, not a plan.
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More about the United States
Sources
- IRS: the substantial presence test (United States)
- OECD: tax treaties (the model convention used by most countries)
For the exact rule, use the United States’s income tax law and its tax authority, which are the authority.
Other countries
ArgentinaAustraliaAustriaBelgiumBrazilBulgariaCanadaChileChinaColombiaCroatiaCyprusCzechiaDenmarkEgyptEstoniaFinlandFranceGermanyGreeceHong KongHungaryIndiaIndonesiaIrelandIsraelItalyJapanKenyaLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgMalaysiaMaltaMexicoNetherlandsNew ZealandNigeriaNorwayPakistanPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSaudi ArabiaSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandThailandTurkeyUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomVietnam
TheLawToKnow Tools’s tax residency guide is an educational overview of general rules. It is not tax or legal advice. Report a mistake.
