Washington, DC Tax Residence

Summary

Washington, DC has a different kind of 183-day rule. You are a DC resident for income tax if you are domiciled in the District at any time in the taxable year, or if you maintain a place of abode in the District for a total of 183 days or more during the year. The law counts the days you keep the home, not the days you are physically in DC, and time away for temporary reasons does not stop the count. A resident pays DC income tax. The DC Office of Tax and Revenue applies the rule. Countr lists this rule and does not count it yet.

Limit

183 days or more of maintaining a place of abode in DC

Period

The taxable year, for most people 1 January to 31 December

What is counted

Days you keep a home in DC, not days you are present

Last safe total

182 days with a DC home in the year

Law

D.C. Code section 47-1801.04(42)

Run by

DC Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR)

Who it applies to

• People who rent or own a home in DC for work while their permanent home is in another state.
• People on fellowships, internships or contracts in DC that last half a year or longer.
• People who own a flat in DC that they use on visits and that is available to them all year.
• Staff of members of Congress and presidential appointees, who have their own exclusions.
• Spouses and registered domestic partners of people who are excluded from the rule.

The rule

Section 47-1801.04(42) of the DC Code defines a resident as a person domiciled in the District at any time during the taxable year, and every other person who maintains a place of abode within the District for an aggregate of 183 days or more during the taxable year, whether or not the person is domiciled in the District. An aggregate means the days are added together.

Two things make this rule stricter than those of nearby states. First, the wording is 183 days or more, so the 183rd day counts against you. Second, the days are days of maintaining the place of abode. The section does not ask how many days you were physically present. It also says that an absence from the District for temporary or transitory purposes is not regarded as changing your domicile or place of abode. A lease on a DC apartment that runs for 183 days of the year meets the words, even if you travelled for much of that time.

The same section excludes some federal officials, unless they are domiciled in the District at some time in the year: any elective officer of the government of the United States, an employee on the staff of an elected official in the legislative branch who is a bona fide resident of the state of the elected official, an officer of the executive branch appointed by the President, confirmed by the Senate and serving at the pleasure of the President, and a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

The Office of Tax and Revenue repeats the rule in its filing guidance: you must file a DC return if you maintained a place of abode in DC for a total of 183 days or more during the year, even if your permanent home was outside DC. It adds that the spouse or registered domestic partner of a person who is not required to file, such as a nonresident Congressional appointee, must file if they meet the test themselves.

Why it exists

A large share of the people who live in DC come for federal work, study or a posting and keep a permanent home in a state. If only domicile counted, many people who live in the city for most of the year would pay it no income tax. A rule based on keeping a home for half the year is simple to check from a lease or a deed, and the exclusions protect elected officials and their staff, who are in Washington to represent their home states.

Counting the days

You count the days of the taxable year on which you maintained a place of abode in the District. You do not count where you slept or where your phone was.

1. List each home in DC that you owned, leased or otherwise kept for your use during the year.
2. Write down the first and last day on which each home was yours to use. Count both of those days.
3. Add the days of all such periods in the year. Do not take out trips away for temporary reasons such as holidays or work travel.
4. Compare the total with 183. At 182 days or fewer the abode test is not met. At 183 or more you are a resident, unless an exclusion applies.
5. Check separately whether you were domiciled in DC at any time in the year, because that alone makes you a resident.

Examples

A lease from March to August

Nadia is domiciled in Michigan and leases a flat in DC from 1 March to 31 August 2026 for a fellowship. March has 31 days, April 30, May 31, June 30, July 31 and August 31, a total of 184. She spends 40 of those days travelling outside DC. Absences for temporary purposes do not change her place of abode, so she maintained it for 184 days and is a DC resident for 2026.

One day decides it

Two interns domiciled in Texas take leases that end on 31 December 2026. The first lease starts on 2 July and covers 183 days. The second starts on 3 July and covers 182 days. The first intern maintained a place of abode for 183 days or more and is a resident. The second did not reach 183 days and is not a resident under this test.

A flat that is hardly used

Peter is domiciled in New York and owns a flat in DC that he keeps for his own use all year. In 2026 he sleeps there on only 30 nights. A count of days of presence would show a very low number. The DC test counts the 365 days on which he maintained the flat, so he meets the 183-day test and must file a DC return as a resident.

Exceptions

• Any elective officer of the government of the United States is excluded, unless domiciled in the District at any time in the taxable year.
• An employee on the staff of an elected official in the legislative branch is excluded if the employee is a bona fide resident of the state of that official, unless domiciled in the District.
• An officer of the executive branch appointed by the President, confirmed by the Senate and serving at the pleasure of the President is excluded, unless domiciled in the District.
• A Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is excluded, unless domiciled in the District.
• The spouse or registered domestic partner of an excluded person is not excluded and must file if they meet the test themselves, according to the Office of Tax and Revenue.
• Absence from the District for temporary or transitory purposes does not end a domicile or a place of abode in DC.

Common misconceptions

“If I am physically in DC fewer than 183 days, I am not a resident.”

The law does not count days of presence. It counts days on which you maintain a place of abode in the District. A home kept for 183 days of the year is enough, wherever you were.

“The limit is more than 183 days, as in New York.”

The DC wording is 183 days or more. The 183rd day already makes you a resident, so 182 is the last total under the line.

“Everyone who works for the federal government is exempt.”

Only the groups named in the law are excluded: elected officials, certain legislative staff, certain presidential appointees and Supreme Court Justices. Other federal employees follow the ordinary rule.

“My long work trips pause the count.”

The section says that absence for temporary or transitory purposes is not regarded as changing your place of abode. The days keep adding up while the home is yours.

Questions and answers

Why does Countr not count the DC rule?

Because the District counts days you maintain a home, and Countr counts days you are physically in a place. The two numbers can be very different, and showing a presence count could make a person feel safe when they are not.

Does a six-month lease make me a DC resident?

It depends on the exact dates. A lease covering 183 days or more in one taxable year meets the test. 1 July to 31 December is 184 days. 1 January to 30 June is 181 days in a normal year and 182 in a leap year.

I was domiciled in DC for one month and then moved away. Am I a resident?

The definition covers a person domiciled in the District at any time during the taxable year. The Office of Tax and Revenue also lists part-year residents among the people who must file a DC return.

Do members of Congress pay DC income tax?

Elective officers of the United States government are excluded from the definition of resident unless they are domiciled in the District at some time in the year.

Does a lease that crosses two calendar years add up?

The count is made for each taxable year. A lease from 1 October to 31 March covers 92 days in the first year and 90 or 91 in the second, so neither year reaches 183 from that lease alone.

Does staying with a friend in DC count as maintaining a place of abode?

The law speaks of maintaining a place of abode and gives no further definition in this section. A home that you own or lease is the clear case. For looser arrangements the Office of Tax and Revenue would look at the facts.

Sources

• Code of the District of Columbia, section 47-1801.04, definitions (42) resident and (17) employee
• DC Office of Tax and Revenue, Individual Filings FAQs, who must file a DC return

Read more: The 183-day rule: what it means and what it does not.

Other rules for United States

• Arizona Tax Residence 273 days in each calendar year
• California Tax — Visitors 181 days in each calendar year
• California Tax Residence 273 days in each calendar year
• Connecticut Tax — 30 Days or Fewer 30 days in each calendar year
• Connecticut Tax Residence 183 days in each calendar year
• Delaware Tax Residence 183 days in each calendar year
• Hawaii Tax Residence 200 days in each calendar year
• Idaho Tax Residence 270 days in each calendar year

See all trackers

This page explains the rule and how the days are counted. It is not legal or tax advice. The authority decides each case on its own facts.