Income Tax for Full Timers

[johnam1]

About to go full time and this little problem has popped up.
We have a post office box, but no real address in the current "state of residence". Since we are on the road and out of our residence state all but a week or two each year, what address should we use for the IRS?
Thanks for the help, John & Sharon

[GoPackGo]

Which is why I use St Brendan's Isle as my mail forwarding service. I have a real street address with an 'apartment number'. And I also filed the necessary domicile paperwork with Florida.

I do know Escapees, etc is the same.

[BarbaraOK]

cpaulsen wrote:

beemerphile1 wrote:
I don't think you can put a PO box on a driver's license so your official IRS address would be whatever is on your driver's license.

Mine has a P.O.Box address on my DL. here in Oregon and right below it....it says "continuous traveler"

Oregon is different & to get that DL you have to haved lived in Oregon for at least 6 months with a street address before you can apply for the continuous traveler designation.

Barb

[brookside]

I see some confusion here between a box at a mail forwarding service and a PO Box at the post office. There is a difference. And, you can't just have a mailbox somewhere and have that considered your state of residence because you will need a street address somewhere. It would be great if you just open a PO box in a state without income tax and work with the IRS from there but it doesn't work that way.

When we went to get a post office box at the post office, they required a physical address.

[cpaulsen]

beemerphile1 wrote:
I don't think you can put a PO box on a driver's license so your official IRS address would be whatever is on your driver's license.

Mine has a P.O.Box address on my DL. here in Oregon and right below it....it says "continuous traveler"

[BarbaraOK]

There is a difference between a Post Office box (PO) & a PMB. The PMB has a business street address associated with it.

Barb

[Clay_L]

beemerphile1 wrote:
I don't think you can put a PO box on a driver's license so your official IRS address would be whatever is on your driver's license.

That depends on the state, some do allow it.
My SD drivers license showed my address as: 3700 South Westport Ave, PMB XXXX.
The PMB stands for "private mail box" and the address is that of the mail forwarding service I used.

In many cases I used the number sign "#" instead of PMB. The post office allows that and if someone thought it stood for suite or apartment - oh well.

The IRS and other government entities such as Medicare and Social Security also used the mail forwarding address as my home address.

[beemerphile1]

I don't think you can put a PO box on a driver's license so your official IRS address would be whatever is on your driver's license.

[MTPockets1]

We've used MyRVMail.com Florida mail forwarding service as our full time address for three years. Driver license, Insurance, Banks, Investments, IRS, etc., all were Changed and no problems ever.. It's our only address and works fine for us.

[GoPackGo]

You say 'about to go full time'. Does that mean you just sold a house ? Or are now in an apartment ? Is your PO box in the same city, state ?

What do you mean by 'current state of residence ? Is it the same as one of the above ?

What address is on your Driver's license right now ? Your vehicle registration ? Is it the same as one of the above ?

I fulltime and am 'domiciled' in Florida. That address is on everything - driver's license, IRS, Banking, vehicle registration, etc.

I recommend that you talk with the Escapees folks in Texas, or my mail service - St Brendan's Isle, in Green Cove Springs. Ask questions.

I have no direct experience with just having a PO box for an address, but there has been much discussion of that here. I know some folks say it does not work very well, but others say the opposite.

[BarbaraOK]

rctour wrote:
OP, although you and many others want to act as Gipsies there is no such classification in the U.S. tax code, you have to be a resident somewhere, if you have taxable income. You have a PO Box, use that as your state or get a different PO Box. Keep in mind if you had your initial PO Box where your home used to be and it's a taxable state you might have to file as a part year resident, if you had and earnings.

I could go on with a bunch of other potential issues, but you get the idea.

US Post Office PO Boxes can not be used as legal addresses under the Patriot Act. You can use a business or residential address. Some states (like Tx) recognize the address from a mail forwarder (a business) as a legal address for residents. Plus insurance companies require an address where the vehicle is 'garaged', which would be your legal residence - that can't be a PO box, but could be a box at a UPS Store.

Barb

[BarbaraOK]

Rollnhome wrote:
We used UPS mailbox address for years. No problems. Plus they forward.

That is different from a US Post Office PO Box.

[Rollnhome]

I used the UPS mailbox. Never a problem with bank or IRS. There are other mail services. Escapees, South Dakota has some, GS offers it but I have not heard any comments on their service.

[2oldman]

johnam1 wrote:
what address should we use for the IRS?

I doubt it makes a hoot of difference. Amount of mail I get from the IRS: zero.

[rctour]

OP, although you and many others want to act as Gipsies there is no such classification in the U.S. tax code, you have to be a resident somewhere, if you have taxable income. You have a PO Box, use that as your state or get a different PO Box. Keep in mind if you had your initial PO Box where your home used to be and it's a taxable state you might have to file as a part year resident, if you had and earnings.

I could go on with a bunch of other potential issues, but you get the idea.