Maryland Tax Residence: the rule, how days are counted, examples

Summary

Maryland treats you as a resident for income tax, even if your domicile is in another state, when you maintain a place of abode in Maryland for more than six months of the taxable year and are physically present in the state for 183 days or more. The line here is one day lower than in most states: the 183rd day itself makes you a resident, so 182 is the last safe number. Any part of a day counts as a day. A resident is taxed on income from all sources. The Comptroller of Maryland applies the test.

Limit: 183 days or more in Maryland (182 is the last day under the line)
Period: The taxable year, for most people 1 January to 31 December
A day counts when: You are in Maryland for any part of the day
Second condition: A place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the year
Law: Tax-General section 10-101(k), COMAR 03.04.02.01B
Run by: Comptroller of Maryland

Who it applies to

People domiciled in Virginia, Pennsylvania or Delaware who lease an apartment in Maryland for work.
People who work for long periods in the Washington area and rent in Maryland while calling another state home.
People who moved their domicile to Florida and kept a house in Maryland that they return to for much of the year.
People from other countries on an assignment in Maryland of more than six months.

The rule

Section 10-101(k) of the Tax-General Article of the Maryland Code defines a resident. A person is a resident if they are domiciled in Maryland on the last day of the taxable year, or if they maintained a place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the taxable year, whether domiciled in the state or not. The words of the statute speak only of the abode.

The Comptroller's regulation, COMAR 03.04.02.01B, adds the day count. It says a resident includes a person who maintains a place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the taxable year and spends, in the aggregate, 183 days or more within the state during the taxable year. In the aggregate means that the days of all stays are added. Note the wording 183 days or more. In most neighbouring states the wording is more than 183 days.

Administrative Release No. 37 of the Comptroller, on domicile and residency, explains how a day is counted. A day means any part of a day, but a continuous period of 24 hours or less cannot be more than one day. So a stay from 8 in the evening to 9 the next morning is one day, not two.

The same release says that the words about maintaining a place of abode are not meant to cover every person who owns property in Maryland. If a home is used as a vacation home, or as a place to stay when visiting family and friends, the person cannot be treated as a resident unless they are physically present in the state for 183 days or more. The Comptroller reviews the whole situation, and for domicile it gives most weight to where a person lives and where they are registered to vote.

Why it exists

Maryland surrounds Washington on three sides and has many people who work in the area for some years while keeping a permanent home in another state. Maryland taxes residents on all income. The abode and presence test lets the state treat a person as a resident when they keep a home in Maryland for most of the year and are actually there for half of it, without having to prove where they intend to live in the end.

Counting the days

You count the days of the taxable year on which you were physically present in Maryland for any part of the day. A continuous stay of 24 hours or less counts as one day at most.

Check whether you maintained a place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the taxable year.
Mark each day on which you were physically present in Maryland for any part of the day.
Where one continuous stay of 24 hours or less touches two calendar days, count it as one day.
Add the days of all stays in the year together.
Compare the total with 183. At 182 or fewer you are under the line. At 183 or more, with the abode, you are a resident.

How Countr counts it. Countr counts every calendar day on which your phone was in Maryland at any time, from 1 January to 31 December, against a limit of 182 days, because in Maryland the 183rd day already makes you a resident. Countr is stricter than the Comptroller in one way: a short overnight stay that touches two calendar days is counted as two days, while Maryland counts a continuous period of 24 hours or less as one. It also counts days when you only passed through. Countr cannot see whether you kept a place of abode for more than six months, so add this tracker only if you did.

Track Maryland Tax Residence on your phone.

Countr finds your past trips in your photos and keeps counting from there.

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Examples

Day 183 is already too many

Aisha is domiciled in Virginia and leases an apartment in Bethesda for all of 2026. She stays in Maryland every day from 1 January to 2 July and then moves back to Virginia for the rest of the year. January to June has 181 days in 2026, and 2 July is day 183. Her abode covers more than 6 months and she was present for 183 days, so she is a Maryland resident. In a state with a rule of more than 183 days she would not have crossed the line.

A lease of five months

Dev is domiciled in Ohio and takes a flat in Baltimore from 1 February to 30 June 2026 for a project. He is in Maryland on 150 days. His abode lasted 5 months, which is not more than 6, and he was present on fewer than 183 days. He is a nonresident and Maryland taxes only his Maryland income.

A family house kept for visits

Joan is domiciled in Florida and still owns the family house in Annapolis, which she keeps all year. In 2026 she returns to see her children and stays 95 days in total. Administrative Release No. 37 says a home used to return to Maryland to visit family and friends does not make a person a resident unless they are physically present for 183 days or more. With 95 days she is a nonresident.

Exceptions

A continuous period of 24 hours or less cannot count as more than one day, even when it touches two calendar days.
A home used as a vacation home or for visits to family and friends does not make its owner a resident unless the owner is physically present for 183 days or more.
A place of abode kept for 6 months or less of the taxable year does not meet the abode condition.
Military members whose permanent residence was in another state when they entered the service stay residents of that state under the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, as Administrative Release No. 37 explains.
A person who moves to Maryland intending to be domiciled there, or who is domiciled there and moves away for good, is a resident for the part of the year they reside in the state, under section 10-101(k)(2).

Common misconceptions

“Maryland's rule is more than 183 days, like New York's.”: Maryland's regulation says 183 days or more. The 183rd day counts against you, so the last safe total is 182.
“Owning a house in Maryland makes me a resident.”: The Comptroller says the abode wording is not meant to cover every person who owns property in the state. Physical presence for 183 days or more is also needed.
“A late arrival and an early departure the next morning are two days.”: Maryland says a continuous period of 24 hours or less cannot be more than one day.
“A six-month lease is enough to meet the abode condition.”: The abode must be maintained for more than 6 months of the taxable year. Six months exactly is not more than six.

Questions and answers

How many days can I spend in Maryland without becoming a resident?

If you keep a place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the year, 182 days. On the 183rd day of physical presence you meet the test, because the regulation says 183 days or more.

Does a part of a day in Maryland count?

Yes. The Comptroller defines a day as any part of a day. The only limit is that one continuous period of 24 hours or less cannot count as more than one day.

Does the statute itself mention 183 days?

No. Section 10-101(k) of the Tax-General Article speaks of a place of abode for more than 6 months. The 183 days of presence come from the Comptroller's regulation, COMAR 03.04.02.01B, and from Administrative Release No. 37.

I am domiciled in Maryland but away all year. Am I a resident?

A person domiciled in Maryland on the last day of the taxable year is a resident under the statute, wherever they spent the year. The day count on this page is for people domiciled elsewhere.

Does commuting into Maryland for work count toward the 183 days?

Each day you are physically present counts as a day. But days alone do not make you a resident. You must also have maintained a place of abode in Maryland for more than 6 months of the year.

Does my abode have to be the same home all year?

The statute and the regulation speak of maintaining a place of abode in the state for more than 6 months of the taxable year and do not say it must be one single dwelling. The Comptroller looks at the facts of each case.

Sources

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

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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.