Domicile

A domicile is different than and more than merely residing somewhere. A person is domiciled in the jurisdiction where they are physically present with the intent to remain, and they remain domiciled there until they physical relocate to that new place with the intent to remain there. For instance, Scott has been living in Arizona for the past three years. Scott is sent to New York to reside there for six months for corporate training, but he intends to return to Arizona. Scott is domiciled in Arizona. He may be “physically present” in New York, but he does not intend to remain in New York; he intends to be in Arizona. In contrast, Maria is moving from San Francisco to Phoenix. Just a mile short of the state line in Nevada, her car breaks down. At that point, Maria is not domiciled in Arizona because she is not yet physically present. The moment she crosses the state line with that intent to remain, she will be domiciled in Arizona. Until that moment occurs, she remains a domiciliary of California.