Military Spouses Residency Relief Act Published July 13, 2010 By 20th Fighter Wing JA SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- Military members have long benefited from federal law that allows them to maintain their state of legal residency despite having military orders elsewhere. Congress has recently passed the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (MSRRA), which offers the military spouse similar protections in certain situations. It is designed to help military spouses retain residency in a former state of residence; however, there are limitations. The MSRRA allows a spouse to maintain residency in a state for taxation and voting purposes, but only under certain conditions: the spouse must have an already established residency in that state; it must be the same state of residency as the servicemember spouse; the spouse must move to a new state solely to be with the servicemember spouse; and the servicemember spouse must be moving to a new state under military orders. In order to have an established residency in a state, the spouse must have been living in that state. If spouses have since moved and established residency in a new state, they could not reach back to a previous state of residence. Proof of residency is necessary, because it is possible that the state being denied income taxes will contest the spouse's residency. There are a number of things the MSRRA does not allow spouses to do. A spouse may not choose any state of residency; they must satisfy each of the above criteria. A spouse may not "re-adopt" an old residency if they have since been the resident of another state, unless they move back and re-establish residency. Also, a spouse does not inherit the servicemember's state of residency; they must have lived there and established residency. Each state has different rules on how to assert MSRRA for your state taxes; some states have not yet established rules. South Carolina has issued guidance. In order to request taxes that were withheld by South Carolina, the spouse must fill out a South Carolina Individual Income Tax Return (Form SC 1040), including a Schedule NR. The spouse's income should be treated according to the form's directions for a nonresident serviceman's military compensation. In order to stop South Carolina from withholding taxes, the spouse should file a federal Form W-4 for South Carolina purposes only by writing at the top of the form "Nonresident Military Spouse for State Purposes Only." That form should be provided to the spouse's employer and a copy should be kept for the spouse's records. The MSRRA is very fact-specific and somewhat complicated; spouses should come into the legal office during walk-in legal assistance hours (Monday 9 a.m.-10 a.m., Wednesday 1 p.m.-2 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m.-10 a.m.) if they have questions about how the act applies to their situation.