Florida Domicile Laws
Completing Your Change of Domicile
Is it time to complete your Florida Domicile?
When you moved to Florida you were probably told to file for Homestead, get a Florida Driver’s license, change your voters registration and, perhaps, file a Declaration of Domicile. That may be sufficient as far as Florida is concerned, but your former state may have a different opinion.
WHY IT MATTERS:
FACTS THAT OTHER STATES WILL LOOK AT:
FACTS THAT OTHER STATE WILL LOOK AT:
Is it time to complete your Florida Domicile?
When you moved to Florida you were probably told to file for Homestead, get a Florida Driver’s license, change your voters registration and, perhaps, file a Declaration of Domicile. That may be sufficient as far as Florida is concerned, but your former state may have a different opinion.
WHY IT MATTERS:
- Estate Taxation – States are desperate for revenue and will look for any remaining connections to you to tax your income and estate
- Entitlement to Florida Homestead Exemption
- Domicile controls where your estate needs to be probated
- Domicile controls whether probate proceedings need to be opened in multiple states
- Domicile controls what State law applies to interpretation of your will and trusts
- Medicare eligibility – varies from state-to-state
FACTS THAT OTHER STATES WILL LOOK AT:
- Driver’s licenses, car registrations, insurance
- Location of Bank and Brokerage Accounts
- Voter’s Registration Address
- Locations of Charities, Physicians
- Homestead (Husband and wife must have the same – Husband cannot have one here, and Wife have one in, e.g. New York – No “Star” Exemption – even if you actually live in different states)
- Address on Tax Returns
- Where Declaration of Domicile filed?
- Location of Houses of Worship membership, support
- Where is most of your time spent?
- What does your passport show as your address?
- Where is your larger home (if you have more than one)?
- What address is shown on a decedent’s death certificate?
- Where are you employed?
- Just as other states look at the residence of individuals, they will try to pull a trust into their taxing jurisdiction.
FACTS THAT OTHER STATE WILL LOOK AT:
- Where the trust says the Settlor is domiciled
- What State the trust specifies as “governing law” and/or “situs”
- Where the trust assets are located
- Where the Trustee is located
- Where the trust is administered from
- Where the beneficiaries are located.
- If you have any other questions about declaring a domicile, or any other estate planning issues, contact one of our West Palm Beach estate planning lawyers today.