Virginia State Tax Rulings
Free plain-English summaries of state tax letter rulings and advisory opinions issued in Virginia, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Did an overseas worker prove that he was domiciled outside Virginia for 2011?
No. The taxpayer asserted State A residence but kept a Virginia driver's license and possibly Virginia property, while providing insufficient evidence that Virginia domicile had been abandoned. The re…
Did moving to another state before an overseas assignment end the taxpayer's Virginia domicile?
No. The taxpayer knew he would relocate abroad and did not show an intent to remain permanently or indefinitely in the other state. His Virginia property, license, vehicle registrations, addresses, an…
Did living and working abroad establish that the taxpayer had abandoned Virginia domicile for 2015?
No. The taxpayer supplied no documentation showing a permanent departure, had filed the 2015 return as a Virginia resident, and retained a Virginia driver's license. The Department concluded he failed…
Did an active-duty service member remain domiciled in another state despite extensive Virginia connections?
No. The service member's Virginia home, driver's license, vehicle registrations, voting, resident returns, and statement of Virginia domicile in a divorce decree showed that he had established Virgini…
Did a civilian spouse share the service member's out-of-state domicile without ever becoming physically present there?
No. The husband established Virginia domicile through his abode, job, resident filing, vehicle, and license. After marriage he could not acquire the wife's other-state domicile without physical presen…
Did moving, working, and leasing a home in another state end Virginia domicile when the taxpayer kept major Virginia ties?
No. The taxpayer likely established a home and indefinite employment in State A, but he did not prove abandonment of Virginia domicile. Renewing a Virginia driver's license while living away, along wi…
Did living in other states end a couple's Virginia domicile when they kept a Virginia home, business interests, licenses, and registrations?
No. Even if the couple acquired domicile in State A, they did not prove that they abandoned Virginia. They kept a Virginia residence, business interests, driver's licenses, vehicle registrations, and …
Did a worker change domicile after moving from Virginia for a permanent out-of-state job, making Virginia wage withholding refundable?
Yes. The worker accepted permanent employment, obtained housing and a driver's license, registered a car, and took steps to sell Virginia property. Although his wife and some assets remained in Virgin…
Did a taxpayer who moved abroad establish that he was no longer domiciled in Virginia for 2013?
Yes. After weighing all facts, Virginia found the taxpayer was not domiciled in the Commonwealth during 2013 and abated the assessment. His foreign residence, spouse's citizenship and property abroad …
Did living and working in another state prove that a taxpayer had abandoned her Virginia domicile for 2013?
No. Out-of-state employment and withholding did not prove a permanent domicile change where she retained a Virginia address, license, and vehicle registration and gave incomplete residence and voting …
Did a Virginia domiciliary stop being a resident while working abroad when he kept his Virginia home, driver's license, vehicles, and returned to that home?
No. The taxpayer did not prove that he abandoned Virginia and established a new permanent or indefinite domicile abroad. He kept his Virginia home available, retained his driver's license and two vehi…
Did keeping a Virginia driver's license and using a Virginia tax-return address prevent a worker from changing domicile to another state?
No. The worker leased a home near his State A job, moved his belongings, had State A withholding, and did not vote or renew his license in Virginia while away. Considering all the evidence, Virginia f…
Did a couple living abroad avoid all Virginia filing duties after proving they changed domicile but continued to own Virginia rental property?
No. Virginia accepted that the couple had established domicile abroad and were not Virginia residents in 2013. But their Virginia rental properties produced Virginia-source income, so they still had t…
Did a taxpayer prove he was only a part-year Virginia resident when his return and records showed substantial Virginia ties?
No. His part-year return listed Virginia residence for the entire year while assigning all income outside Virginia, and he failed to document the claimed State A domicile. A Virginia address, driver's…
Did the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act exempt a military spouse who formed extensive Virginia ties and stayed after the service member retired?
No. The Act protected a spouse present solely because of military orders, but did not prevent the spouse from voluntarily acquiring Virginia domicile. Her Virginia voter registration, home purchase, s…
What Virginia returns did a temporarily assigned employee owe when she worked and kept housing in Virginia but moved among several states?
She had to file a 2012 nonresident return for Virginia-source work and a 2013 resident return because the evidence indicated Virginia domicile. If she could prove she moved and changed domicile to Sta…
Did the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act preserve a military couple's claimed Florida domicile after they moved to Virginia under the wife's orders, bought a home, registered and voted in Virginia, and obtained Virginia licenses?
No. Military orders alone do not change domicile, but the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act also does not prevent a servicemember or spouse from acquiring a new domicile. The couple failed to show that …
Did working and renting a home in another state establish a new domicile when the taxpayer kept a Virginia home for family, Virginia vehicles, and a Virginia driver's license?
No. The taxpayer's State A job, rental, and resident returns showed ties there, but he retained a Virginia home for his former wife and children, three Virginia-registered vehicles, and renewed his Vi…
Did foreign work assignments and purchasing property in another state establish a new domicile when the taxpayer returned to Virginia within six months?
No. The taxpayer's overseas work was temporary, his Virginia driver's-license record contradicted his claim that it had lapsed, Virginia tax continued to be withheld, and the property he bought in Sta…
Did a former service member who lived abroad prove that he had abandoned Virginia domicile for 2012?
No. The taxpayer did not establish a permanent domicile in another state or country and retained Virginia ties, including a driver's license for much of the period and use of a Virginia family address…
Did living abroad and filing a prior part-year return prove that this taxpayer was no longer domiciled in Virginia in 2013?
Not on the evidence provided. Living abroad and filing a prior part-year return did not by themselves prove abandonment of Virginia domicile, especially with a Virginia address and driver's license st…
Did temporary work in two other states end this taxpayer's Virginia domicile for 2012 income-tax purposes?
No. The taxpayer did not show a permanent home or intent to remain in either other state, while continuing to use a Virginia family address and driver's license. Virginia treated him as a domiciliary …
Did moving to New Jersey for work establish a new domicile when the taxpayer kept Virginia licenses and described the move as temporary?
No. The taxpayer's New Jersey home, job, and resident return favored a move, but she kept Virginia driver's, vehicle, and voter registrations and described New Jersey as temporary while pursuing New Y…
Did a married couple abandon Virginia domicile by living and working in a U.S. territory for several years?
No. Although the couple leased a home and the husband worked in the territory, they retained their Virginia house, obtained Virginia driver's licenses and vehicle registration before returning, and th…
Did a husband's move to another state make the couple eligible to file a joint Virginia nonresident return for 2012?
No. The husband worked and lived in another state, but kept his Virginia home, license, vehicle registrations, and voter registration and returned in 2013. Virginia found no domicile change, treated h…
Did the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act keep this active-duty member's basic pay outside Virginia income tax?
No. Military orders alone do not change domicile, but a servicemember can voluntarily establish a new one. The taxpayer provided no proof of continued ties to the claimed home state and instead owned …
Did a room lease and work aboard a vessel prove that this taxpayer abandoned Virginia domicile for 2012?
Not on the evidence provided. The taxpayer had a month-to-month room lease elsewhere and worked aboard a vessel most of each month, but renewed his Virginia driver's license in 2011 and ignored two re…
Did an asserted post-divorce move outside Virginia overturn this taxpayer's estimated 2012 resident income-tax assessment?
No. Virginia unemployment records covered all four quarters of 2012, the taxpayer retained Virginia DMV ties, and she supplied no evidence of living elsewhere that year. Because she did not complete t…
Did long-term work, housing, licensing, and marriage abroad establish that this taxpayer had left Virginia domicile by 2012?
Yes. Nearly two decades of employment abroad, leased homes, a foreign driver's license and vehicle registration, and marriage to a citizen of that country outweighed the taxpayer's retained Virginia l…
Did frequent moves and uncertain startup employment prove that this taxpayer established permanent domicile outside Virginia in 2012?
No. The taxpayer described his startup job and residence in another state as uncertain, moved frequently, used a Virginia address on his federal return, retained and renewed a Virginia license, and ke…
Could a taxpayer overturn a Virginia residency assessment without providing the domicile records the Department requested?
Not on the existing record. The assessment was presumed correct, and the taxpayer had not supplied the requested domicile evidence. Virginia allowed one final 45-day opportunity to provide documentati…
When did a couple become Virginia residents for taxing a 2012 IRA distribution?
They became Virginia domiciliaries when they closed on their Virginia home in September 2012. Because the IRA distribution came in November, it was attributable to their Virginia-resident period and h…
Did taking a visiting-professor job in another state end a taxpayer's Virginia domicile?
No. The taxpayer showed employment in another state but did not prove a permanent home or other domicile ties there, while retaining a Virginia license, vehicle registrations, and mailing address. Vir…
Did the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act exempt a military spouse's income when the couple did not prove a shared out-of-state domicile?
Not on the record provided. The couple did not prove that both spouses shared the claimed out-of-state domicile or avoided Virginia domicile. Virginia gave them 30 days to provide complete records or …
Did military-spouse status exempt a taxpayer who had established Virginia domicile before the federal protection changed?
No. The taxpayer's pre-2009 resident returns, Virginia home and employment, and 2009 Virginia driver's license supported Virginia domicile. She supplied no documentation proving a shared out-of-state …
Was gain from an out-of-state property sale excluded when the taxpayers had already bought a Virginia home and reported moving before the sale?
No. The taxpayers did not prove that their Virginia domicile began after the September 24, 2012 sale. Their August home purchase, time spent in Virginia, vehicle record stating a September 17 move, la…
Did living and working in another state for 2012 end Virginia domicile when the taxpayer kept a Virginia license and voter registration?
No. The taxpayer lived and worked elsewhere and registered a vehicle there, but kept her Virginia driver's license and voter registration and returned in 2013. Virginia found no permanent abandonment …
Did a former Virginia resident owe 2014 Virginia tax on out-of-state wages and an early retirement withdrawal from a Virginia business?
No. She had established a home and employment in another state and was neither a Virginia domiciliary nor actual resident. Her out-of-state wages and retirement withdrawal were not Virginia-source inc…
Was a retiree with no claimed permanent home still a Virginia domiciliary resident for 2012?
Yes. Although he spent about 120 days in Virginia and moved among several states, he used a Virginia family address for mail and his federal return and held a Virginia driver's license. With no eviden…
Did a lease and claimed out-of-state driver's license prove that a taxpayer had abandoned Virginia domicile for 2014?
No. The taxpayer showed some ties to another state, but Virginia records still showed a vehicle and driver's license here, and his federal return used a Virginia address. Because he bore the burden of…
Did a temporary State Department assignment abroad make a Virginia couple nonresidents and allow them to exclude the husband's overseas income?
No. The couple kept their permanent Virginia home, voter registrations, vehicles, licenses, and intent to return, so the temporary overseas posting did not end domicile. Virginia taxed the husband's f…
Could a taxpayer obtain full Virginia refunds for 2009-2013 by claiming foreign domicile after filing 2009 late and retaining strong Virginia ties?
No. The 2009 full-refund claim was filed after the three-year deadline, and the two-year assessment-payment exception did not apply because the domicile claim went beyond the IRS-income adjustment ass…
Did an overseas assignment establish foreign domicile when the taxpayer kept a Virginia license, voting and vehicle ties, and intended to return?
No. Although the taxpayer leased a home, licensed vehicles, and obtained a driver's license abroad, he retained Virginia voter and vehicle ties, renewed his Virginia license, claimed he filed Virginia…
Did a military home of record in another state prevent Virginia from treating a service member as domiciled in Virginia for 2012?
No. The service member's home of record did not outweigh his long-term Virginia home, driver's license, vehicle registrations, resident returns, family residence, and decision to remain after retireme…
Did the 2009 military-spouse law automatically end a spouse's existing Virginia domicile without personal presence in the service member's state?
No. The military-spouse amendment was not retroactive and did not let the taxpayer simply elect her spouse's domicile. Because she had established Virginia domicile and did not acquire personal presen…
Did a three-year foreign job and another state's license, voting, and vehicle records prove that a Virginia domiciliary changed domicile?
No. The taxpayer's three-year foreign assignment was for a definite term, and she showed no permanent intent to remain abroad. Although she obtained another state's license, voter registration, and ve…
Did a military spouse keep her former-state domicile after moving to Virginia, renting out that home, and obtaining a Virginia driver's license?
No. Virginia found that the spouse did not maintain enough ties to her former state: its home became rental property, vehicles were registered only to the service member, and she obtained and kept a V…
Did moving abroad for a temporary job end a taxpayer's Virginia domicile when he kept major Virginia ties and planned another state later?
No. The taxpayer's foreign job was temporary, he did not intend to remain abroad, and he kept Virginia homes, family, voter registration, vehicles, and a driver's license. He also could not establish …
Did Foreign Service assignments and an intent to retire in another state end a couple's established Virginia domicile for 2010?
No. The couple established Virginia domicile before the overseas assignments, which were temporary. An intention to retire in another state and withholding there did not establish domicile without ren…
Did Virginia driver's licenses and federal-only absentee voting keep a couple domiciled in Virginia after they established a permanent home abroad?
No. The couple proved that they sold their Virginia home, established a permanent home and tax residency abroad, owned no Virginia property, and voted only in federal elections under the overseas-vote…
Did an overseas job transfer end a couple's Virginia domicile when they kept a Virginia home, vehicles, licenses, and obtained a Virginia divorce?
No. The couple had established Virginia domicile in 2010 and retained a Virginia home, vehicles, licenses, and the wife's presence while the husband worked abroad. A Virginia divorce order also recite…
Did moving to another state for full-time work end a taxpayer's Virginia domicile when his family and major ties remained in Virginia?
No. Virginia held that the taxpayer had not abandoned his Virginia domicile. Although he worked, leased a home, registered a vehicle, and held a license in another state, his family and home remained …
Was a taxpayer who moved out for permanent work and returned to Virginia in May 2011 a full-year or part-year resident?
Part-year resident. Virginia found that the taxpayer had abandoned Virginia domicile before 2011 and did not become a Virginia resident again until he returned in May. His submitted part-year return w…
Did a couple establish another-state domicile in 2011 even though they returned to Virginia that November and one retained a Virginia license?
Yes. The husband changed domicile in February 2011 and the wife in March after the couple sold their Virginia home, bought a home in another state, moved vehicles, registered to vote, and obtained lic…
Was a military spouse exempt from Virginia income tax when she claimed another domicile but had a home, job, voter registration, and license in Virginia?
No. Virginia found the spouse was a Virginia domiciliary because she showed no continuing connections to the claimed state and established a home, employment, voter registration, and a driver's licens…
Did a taxpayer remain a Virginia domiciliary in 2011 despite owning a Virginia home and maintaining family and business connections there?
No. Although the taxpayer still owned a Virginia home and had family, business, and vehicle connections there, his long-running State A home, license, vehicle registration, voter registration, nonresi…
Did a military spouse prove that she retained another state's domicile and qualified for relief from Virginia income tax for 2011?
No. The taxpayer did not prove that she retained the same out-of-state domicile as her military spouse. Living and working in Virginia, registering her vehicle there, and obtaining a Virginia driver's…
Did a retiree who kept homes in two states become domiciled in Virginia after renewing a Virginia driver's license and maintaining vehicles there?
Yes. After weighing all evidence, Virginia found the taxpayer changed domicile to Virginia in 2007. Renewing a Virginia driver's license, relinquishing the other state's license, allowing most registr…
Was a husband who owned a Virginia home, license, vehicles, and voter registration still a nonresident when his permanent ties remained elsewhere?
Yes, he remained a nonresident for 2009. Although he owned a Virginia home and held a Virginia driver's license, voter registration, and vehicles, he spent fewer than 183 days in Virginia and had not …
Did a merchant mariner abandon Virginia domicile by taking an indefinite out-of-state job and using motels or a training center between voyages?
No. Although the mariner had indefinite employment and a post-office box in another state, he never established a permanent abode there and retained major Virginia ties: his wife, voter registration, …
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These are official tax letter rulings and advisory opinions issued by Virginia's revenue authority in response to questions from specific taxpayers about how the tax law applies to their facts. A ruling is binding on the department only for the taxpayer who requested it and cannot be relied on by anyone else, but it is strong evidence of how the state reads the law. Every ruling above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original source.