Ohio makes it easier to qualify as non-resident for income tax purposes

Ohio has made a change to the number of “contact periods” an individual can have with Ohio before the individual will establish Ohio residency for income tax purposes.  HB 494, which was passed late December, 2014, increased these “contact periods” to 212.  This is a 30 “contact period” increase over the old law.

By statute, a “contact period” is defined as an individual being away overnight from their abode located outside of Ohio and a portion of two consecutive days are spent in Ohio.  For example, if you have an abode in both Ohio and Florida and claim Florida residency, you can now spend 212 “contact periods” in Ohio and not compromise being a non-Ohio resident for income tax purposes.  If you are away from Florida and travel to Ohio and spend a portion of two consecutive days in Ohio (a portion of Monday and Tuesday) this activity would be considered one “contact period”.  But if you were to spend two days in Ohio and they were not consecutive days (if it was a portion of Monday and Wednesday but not Tuesday) this activity would not be a “contact period” with Ohio.

The key is not how many days you spend in your resident state but how many “contact periods” are spent in Ohio.

If you have any questions please contact Mary Jo Dolson, Partner, Tax & Business Services.