I've lived and worked abroad for years but kept a Virginia driver's license, voter registration, and a couple of properties. Am I still a Virginia resident for income tax?

Plain-English summary

Acting on IRS data, the Department concluded this taxpayer might have owed Virginia tax for 2019 and 2020, found no Virginia returns on file, and — after reviewing his information — assessed him as a domiciliary resident of Virginia. He appealed, saying he was a resident of a foreign country ("Country A"). The Tax Commissioner agreed and abated both assessments.

How you change domicile. Once you're a Virginia domiciliary, you stay one until you affirmatively change it, and changing it requires two things together: (1) actual abandonment of the old Virginia domicile with no intent to return, and (2) acquisition of a new domicile elsewhere through physical presence plus the intent to remain permanently or indefinitely (Cooper's Adm'r v. Commonwealth). No single factor decides it — the Department weighs the totality of ties (property, bank accounts, vehicle and voter registration, driver's license, employment, family, and more), and the burden is on the individual (23 VAC 10-110-30 B 3).

Why the move abroad won. The taxpayer had lived and worked in Country A since 2014. He obtained a Country A public-service card and number entitling him to social-welfare benefits, contributed to Country A's healthcare system and to a nonportable Country A pension, was offered the chance to work remotely from the U.S. during COVID but chose to stay because he considered Country A home, and had used his Country A address on his federal and Virginia nonresident returns since 2014. Those facts showed both abandonment of Virginia and a genuine new home abroad.

The Virginia ties that didn't change the result. He kept a Virginia driver's license (renewed 2018), stayed registered to vote in Virginia (voting absentee in 2020), and still owned two Virginia properties. The Department addressed each:

• Driver's license. A Virginia license is a strong indicator of Virginia intent, because Virginia issues licenses only to certified residents (§ 46.2-323.1). But the Department has held someone can be domiciled elsewhere and still hold a Virginia license (P.D. 00-151); here he credibly explained he kept it only as a convenience for driving while visiting family, and didn't get a Country A license because he didn't drive there.
• Voting. Federal law lets a U.S. citizen living abroad vote using the voter registration of their last domicile, and expressly provides that exercising that right does not affect domicile or residence for any tax (52 U.S.C. §§ 20309, 20310). So his 2020 absentee vote carried no weight against him.
• Property. One Virginia property was his former home, continuously rented to third parties (reported on Virginia nonresident returns); the other was a vacant vacation home he'd sell if he could find a buyer.

The result — and a warning. Weighing everything, the Department found he had changed his domicile from Virginia to Country A before the 2019 tax year, so the 2019 and 2020 assessments were abated and his nonresident returns processed. The Commissioner cautioned that continuing Virginia connections — especially a Virginia driver's license — will likely prompt future residency inquiries, and reminded him that Virginia law does not permit nonresidents to hold a Virginia driver's license (and a false residency certification can carry a penalty).

What this means for you

Virginians who move abroad (or to another state)

A genuine move can end your Virginia domicile, but you must show both that you left Virginia for good and that you built a real, permanent home in the new place. The winning facts here were the hallmarks of actually living somewhere: work, healthcare, a pension, official ID and benefits, a consistent foreign address on filings, and choosing to stay when you could have returned. Leftover Virginia paperwork won't necessarily sink you if you can explain it — but it invites scrutiny.

If you keep a Virginia driver's license after leaving

It cut against this taxpayer and only survived because he had a credible, non-tax reason and overwhelming evidence of a life abroad. The cleaner path is to surrender or transfer the license, because Virginia issues licenses only to residents and a nonresident holding one is legally awkward. Expect the Department to treat a Virginia license as evidence of Virginia intent unless you rebut it.

Overseas U.S. citizens who still vote

Federal law (52 U.S.C. §§ 20309, 20310) lets you vote from your last domicile without that vote affecting your domicile or tax residency. Don't avoid voting out of a fear that it makes you a Virginia taxpayer — it doesn't.

Tax preparers

For a client claiming they left Virginia, build the record around presence and permanence in the new place: employment, housing, healthcare and benefits, banking, and the address used on filings. Have an innocent explanation ready for every retained Virginia tie (license, registration, property), and remember the burden is on the taxpayer (23 VAC 10-110-30 B 3).

Common questions

Q: I live abroad but kept my Virginia driver's license. Am I still a Virginia resident for taxes?
A: Not necessarily. A Virginia license is a strong sign of Virginia intent, but it isn't decisive. This taxpayer kept his Virginia license (and voter registration and two properties) yet was still found to have changed his domicile abroad, because the overall record showed he genuinely lived in and intended to remain in another country.

Q: Does voting absentee in Virginia from overseas make me a Virginia taxpayer?
A: No. Federal law lets a U.S. citizen abroad vote using their last-domicile registration and says that doing so does not affect domicile or residence for any federal, state, or local tax (52 U.S.C. §§ 20309, 20310).

Q: I still own property in Virginia. Does that keep me domiciled here?
A: Not by itself. Here one property was rented out (and reported on nonresident returns) and the other was a vacant vacation home the taxpayer wanted to sell. Property is one factor among many; it didn't outweigh the evidence of a permanent home abroad.

Q: What does it actually take to change my Virginia domicile?
A: Two things at once — genuinely abandoning Virginia with no intent to return, and establishing a new permanent home elsewhere through physical presence plus intent to stay. No single factor controls, and you bear the burden of proving the change (23 VAC 10-110-30 B 3).

Citations and references

Statutes and regulations:

• Va. Code § 58.1-1821 — application to the Tax Commissioner to correct an assessment
• Va. Code § 58.1-302 — domiciliary resident vs. actual (183-day) resident
• Va. Code § 46.2-323.1 — Virginia driver's licenses issued only to certified residents; obtaining or renewing one is a strong indicator of Virginia intent
• 52 U.S.C. § 20310 — a U.S. citizen living abroad may register and vote using the state of last domicile
• 52 U.S.C. § 20309 — exercising that overseas voting right does not affect domicile or residence for any tax
• 23 VAC 10-110-30 B 3 — burden on the individual to prove abandonment of, or failure to establish, Virginia domicile

Authorities the Commissioner relied on (described here, not linked): Cooper's Adm'r v. Commonwealth, 121 Va. 338 (1917) (change of domicile requires abandonment plus acquisition through presence and intent); and prior Department public documents on the driver's-license and overseas-voting factors (P.D. 00-151, 02-149, 10-203).

Source

• Landing page: Virginia Laws, Rules & Decisions
• Ruling: P.D. 25-83

Original ruling text

June 20, 2025

Re: § 58.1-1821 Application: Individual Income Tax

Dear *:

This will respond to your letter in which you seek correction of the individual income tax assessments issued to your client, * (the “Taxpayer”), for the taxable years ended December 31, 2019, and 2020.

FACTS

The Department received information from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) indicating that the Taxpayer may have been required to file a Virginia income tax return for the 2019 and 2020 taxable years. A review of the Department’s records showed that the Taxpayer had not filed a return. The Department requested additional information from the Taxpayer in order to determine if his income was taxable in Virginia. Based on his responses and the information otherwise available, the Department determined that the Taxpayer was taxable as a domiciliary resident of Virginia and issued assessments. The Taxpayer filed an application for correction, contending he was a resident of * (Country A).

DETERMINATION

Two classes of residents, a domiciliary resident and an actual resident, are set forth in Virginia Code § 58.1-302. The domiciliary residence of a person means the permanent place of residence of that person and the place to which that person intends to return even though they may be residing elsewhere. An actual resident of Virginia means a person who, for an aggregate of more than 183 days of the taxable year, maintained their place of abode within Virginia. A Virginia domiciliary resident continues to be subject to Virginia taxation even if they work in another state or country. Additionally, a person who is not a domiciliary resident of Virginia, but who stays in Virginia for an aggregate of more than 183 days, is also subject to Virginia taxation.

In order to change domicile, there must be (1) actual abandonment of the old domicile, coupled with an intent not to return to it, and (2) an acquisition of a new domicile at another place, which must be formed by personal presence and an intent to remain there permanently or indefinitely. See Cooper’s Adm’r v. Commonwealth , 121 Va. 338, 347 (1917). The burden of proof that an individual has abandoned or failed to establish domicile in Virginia rests with the individual. See Title 23 of the Virginia Administrative Code (VAC) 10-110-30 B 3.

The determination of whether a change of domicile has occurred is highly dependent on the facts and circumstances of the individual case, and no single factor is dispositive. Factors to be considered include, but are not limited to, the following:

sites of real and tangible property, location of savings and checking accounts, motor vehicle registration and licensing, motor vehicle operator’s license, voter registration, membership in clubs and civic groups, place of business, profession or employment, charitable contributions, location of schools attended by children, length of time of residence, place of birth and marriage, residence of family, reason for abandoning or acquiring domicile, and, in the case of a minor or married person, domicile of parents, husband, or wife and/or children. Id.

The Taxpayer took actions consistent with establishing domicile in Country A. He has lived and worked in Country A since 2014. He also obtained a Country A personal public service card and number, which entitled him to social welfare benefits and other public services in Country A. In addition, he contributed to the Country A healthcare system and to a nonportable Country A pension plan. Further, he was offered the opportunity to work remotely from the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic but chose to remain in Country A because he considered it to be his home. Since 2014, the Taxpayer has used his Country A address on his federal and Virginia nonresident income tax returns.

The Taxpayer also maintained some connections with Virginia. He maintained a Virginia driver’s license which he renewed in 2018. The Taxpayer remained registered to vote in Virginia and voted by absentee ballot in 2020. The Taxpayer also continued to own two residential properties in Virginia and had various tax reporting documents sent to a Virginia address.

Virginia Code § 46.2-323.1 states, “No driver’s license . . . shall be issued to any person who is not a Virginia resident.” In fact, this section states that every person applying for a driver’s license must execute and furnish to the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) a statement that certifies that the applicant is a Virginia resident. The Department has found that an individual may successfully establish a domicile outside Virginia even if they retain a Virginia driver’s license. See Public Document (P.D.) 00-151 (8/18/2000). However, obtaining or renewing a Virginia driver’s license is considered to be a strong indicator of intent to retain domiciliary residency in Virginia. See P.D. 02-149 (12/9/2002).

The Taxpayer explains that he did not obtain a Country A driver’s license because he did not drive in Country A. He further explains that he maintained his Virginia driver’s license as a convenience so that he could drive while visiting family in Virginia. The Taxpayer also states that he had tax reporting documents sent to the address of a family member in Virginia because he had issues receiving mail in Country A. In addition, the Taxpayer explains that one of his Virginia properties, his former residence, has been continuously rented to third parties and the rental activity has been reported on Virginia nonresident income tax returns. The second property, a vacation home purchased in 2006, has been vacant since 2014 and the Taxpayer indicates that he would sell it if he could find a buyer.

With regard to the Taxpayer’s Virginia voting registration, the Department has observed that federal law generally allows United States citizens living abroad to vote in federal elections using a voter’s registration from the state of the individual’s last domicile. See 52 U.S.C. § 20310 (formerly 42 U.S.C. § 1973ff-6). See also P.D. 10-203 (9/1/2010). In addition, the exercise of such federal voting rights by an overseas citizen shall not affect the domicile or residence of such citizen for purposes of any federal, state, or local tax. See 52 U.S.C. § 20309. As such, even though the Taxpayer voted in a federal election while he resided in Country A, that fact would have no bearing on this determination. The Taxpayer stated that he voted in 2020 in order to participate in the presidential election, and that he only voted in the 2020 Virginia electoral races because the ballot specifically provided that it would not be counted if all blanks were not completed.

The Department acknowledges that a determination of a change in domicile is evidenced by a process in which no single factor is dispositive. After carefully considering the information provided, the Department finds that the totality of the factors considered shows that the Taxpayer successfully changed his domicile from Virginia to Country A prior to the 2019 taxable year. Accordingly, the assessments issued for the taxable years ended December 31, 2019, and 2020, will be abated and the Virginia nonresident returns submitted by the Taxpayer will be processed.

While the Department concedes that the Taxpayer was not a domiciliary resident of Virginia during the 2019 and 2020 taxable years, he should be aware that continuing connections with Virginia, such as retaining a Virginia driver’s license or other indicators of a permanent residence in Virginia will likely result in future contacts by the Department with respect to the situs of the Taxpayer’s domicile. As in any determination, a change in the facts and circumstances could result in a change in the Department’s determination in subsequent taxable years. In addition, the Taxpayer should be aware that Virginia law does not permit nonresidents to obtain Virginia driver’s licenses, and persons providing a false statement to an agency of the Commonwealth may be subject to penalty under Virginia law.

The Code of Virginia sections and regulation cited are available online at law.lis.virginia.gov. The public documents cited are available at tax.virginia.gov in the Laws, Rules, & Decisions section of the Department’s website. If you have any questions regarding this determination, you may contact * in the Office of Tax Policy and Legal Affairs, Tax Adjudication and Resolution Division, at or **@tax.virginia.gov.

Sincerely,

James J. Alex

Tax Commissioner

Commonwealth of Virginia

AR/5053.X

Related Documents

00-151

02-149

10-203