Over the years we have often written about the meaning of a “permanent place of abode” in the context of the definition of resident for purposes of the New York State and City personal income tax. This year had already seen one significant taxpayer victory in Obus v. New York State Tax Appeals Tribunal, 206 A.D.3d 1511 (3d Dept. 2022), wherein the Appellate Division ruled that a vacation home in upstate New York was not a permanent place of abode for a New Jersey domiciliary who commuted regularly to his job in New York City. More recently, the Tax Appeals Tribunal ruled in favor of a taxpayer in Matter of Joseph Pilaro and Joe Gorrie, DTA No. 829204 (Aug. 18, 2022), concerning a petitioner who leased an apartment for part of a year, and later owned (but did not occupy) another apartment, in Manhattan.

In general, New York state imposes tax on the worldwide income of its residents. See N.Y. Tax Law §611(a) and 612(a). For these purposes, an individual is considered to be a resident of New York if that individual is either (a) a domiciliary of the state (essentially, a facts and circumstances analysis), or (b) if that individual is a so-called “statutory resident.” See N.Y. Tax Law §605(b)(1). A statutory resident is an individual who, with respect to a particular tax year, (x) spends more than 183 days in the state, and (y) who “maintains a permanent place of abode” in the state. See N.Y. Tax Law §605(b)(1)(B).