Legal Definition Of Domicile

[yabadaba]

In order to qualify as a sponsor of an intending immigrant under US immigration law, the sponsor must be domiciled in the US or its territories. I've been unable to find a clear legal definition of a domicile. I've spent the better part of the past year in Thailand, but I work and pay taxes in the US. In fact I spend the majority of my time over seas but I have a US drivers license, mailing address and vote in my state of birth. How will this be interpreted on the day of my wife’s visa interview and how can I argue for having a US domicile if I'm hardly ever home?

[PeaceBlondie]

I thought I could search on the internet, but hit a dead end. In looking up under Yahoo, I found Law, US, immigration, etc., which indicates that 8 United States Code (the 8th title of federal law) is for immigration, and that the definitions start at Section 1101. Trouble is, the alphabetic list of defined terms doesn't include 'domicile.'

So, it appears that 'domicile' doesn't have a definition in the code of the law itself, so it has probably been defined by the courts. A similar phrase in the Internal Revenue Code, 'regular place of abode,' has been re-interpreted many times by the courts.

Sorry that doesn't help much. Your phrase of "home is where you hang your hat" sounds clever, but then you get into technicalities, such as whether it's a regular place that you usually hang your best hat.

[yabadaba]

Thanks PeaceBlondie

I think that the word domicile will be interpreted subjectively by the consular officer who gives the interview and that my best bet is just to provide as many documents as possible listing my US address. Hopefully since there seems to be no concrete definition of the term it has a certain amount of pliability and can be argued.

[Dragonman]

Under legal definition your legal domicile is the address from which you file taxes.Your stay in Thailand may involve a secondary domicile, but as it is temporary does not legally qualify. Being not at home often does not matter and I would not raise the subject with the Embassy.

[thohts]

I believe the rule is if you spend more than 330 consecutive days outside of the US you are not liable for US taxes on the first $80,000 per year of income.

(Consult with a tax attorney for this one, but I've read it on the IRS site somewhere, as well as on tax topics)

Domicile has more to do with "how many days" you've been in whatever country.

For each country it's different.

Here's the physical presence test from IRS.gov:

http://www.irs.gov/faqs/faq-kw138.html

13.3 Aliens and U.S. Citizens Living Abroad: Foreign Income & Foreign Income Exclusion

Do I have to meet the 330-day presence test or have a valid working resident visa to meet the requirement for foreign income exclusion?

To claim the foreign earned income exclusion, the foreign housing exclusion, or the foreign housing deduction, you must have foreign earned income, your tax home must be in a foreign country, and you must be one of the following:

* A U.S. citizen who is a bona fide resident of a foreign country or countries for an uninterrupted period that includes an entire tax year,

* A U.S. resident alien who is a citizen or national of a country with which the United States has an income tax treaty with a nondiscrimination article in effect and who is a bona fide resident of a foreign country or countries for an uninterrupted period that includes an entire tax year, or

* A U.S. citizen or a U.S. resident alien who is physically present in a foreign country or countries for at least 330 full days during any period of 12 consecutive months.