How Long Do You Have to Live in Maryland to Be a Resident?

The requirements for being considered a Maryland resident vary significantly depending on the purpose, such as filing state income taxes, qualifying for in-state college tuition, or obtaining a driver’s license. Residency is fundamentally about where a person considers their permanent home, a concept that involves more than just a physical address. The state evaluates different factors and time periods based on the specific rights or obligations in question.

Establishing Domicile in Maryland

The foundational concept for Maryland residency is “domicile,” which is legally defined as the place you have your true, fixed, and permanent home. Establishing domicile in Maryland requires your physical presence in the state and a clear intention to make Maryland your permanent home. This intention must be proven through your actions, and once established, your Maryland domicile continues until you take clear steps to establish a new one elsewhere.

State agencies look for objective evidence that you intend for Maryland to be your permanent base. No single action is definitive, but a combination of them builds a strong case for your intent. Actions that demonstrate this intent include:

• Obtaining a Maryland driver’s license.
• Registering your vehicles in the state.
• Registering to vote.
• Listing a Maryland address on legal and financial documents, such as bank accounts and federal income tax returns.
• Purchasing or leasing a primary home in Maryland.
• Moving personal belongings to your Maryland home and severing ties with your former state, such as selling property there.

Maryland Residency for Tax Purposes

For state income tax purposes, Maryland law defines a resident in two ways, and meeting either definition makes you subject to Maryland income tax on all of your income. The first test is based on your domicile. If your domicile is in Maryland on the last day of the tax year, you are considered a resident for that entire year, regardless of how many days you were physically in the state. This means that even if you work or travel outside Maryland for an extended period, you remain a tax resident if your permanent home is here.

The second way to be classified as a resident is through the “statutory residence” test. This rule applies even if your domicile is in another state. You are considered a statutory resident if you maintain a place of abode in Maryland for more than six months of the tax year and you are physically present in the state for 183 days or more during that year. A “day” is counted as any part of a day spent in the state, and the 183-day count is cumulative.

Individuals who move into or out of the state during the tax year are considered “part-year residents” and must file a return based on the period they lived in Maryland. A “nonresident” is someone who is not domiciled in Maryland and does not meet the 183-day statutory test but earns income from Maryland sources. Nonresidents are required to file a Maryland tax return but are only taxed on the income earned from those specific Maryland sources.

Maryland Residency for In-State Tuition

The criteria for qualifying for in-state tuition at public colleges and universities are more stringent than tax residency rules. The University System of Maryland (USM) policy requires that a student, or the parent who provides their financial support, has resided in Maryland for at least 12 consecutive months immediately before the last day of registration for the semester. This 12-month period must be accompanied by evidence of intent to make Maryland a permanent home.

A student must demonstrate that their primary reason for living in Maryland during this 12-month period was not simply to attend college. The university presumes that students who were living out-of-state at the time of their application are in Maryland for educational purposes. The burden is on the student to rebut this presumption by providing clear evidence of their intent to stay in Maryland indefinitely.

To prove both the 12-month residency and the intent, universities require substantial documentation. All of these documents must have been maintained for at least the 12 consecutive months prior to the registration period to meet the in-state tuition guidelines.

Residency for Other State Privileges

New residents must obtain a Maryland driver’s license from the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) within 60 days of moving to the state. This process involves surrendering your out-of-state license, passing a vision test, and providing proof of identity and Maryland residency. You are also required to register your vehicles in Maryland within the same 60-day window.

Registering to vote is another privilege of residency. To be eligible, you must be a U.S. citizen and a resident of Maryland. There is no set amount of time you must live in the state before you can register to vote, as long as you are a resident by the registration deadline. Registration is considered permanent as long as you continue to live in Maryland and keep your address updated with the Board of Elections.