Make Florida home, on paper
- File a Declaration of Domicile with the clerk of the circuit court in your Florida county (Florida Statutes section 222.17).
- Get a Florida driver license and register your vehicles in Florida.
- Register to vote in Florida, and cancel your old registration.
- Apply for the homestead exemption if you own your Florida home.
- Update your address with banks, brokers, insurers, Social Security and the IRS (Form 8822).
Make Florida home, in fact
Paperwork alone rarely settles it. States also look at where you actually live: your main home, where your family is, where your doctors, clubs, places of worship and treasured possessions are, and where you spend your time.
Watch your days in your old state
If you keep a home in your old state, its statutory residency test may still apply. In New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and many others that means more than 183 days plus a home there. Check your old state's rule.
Keep the record from day one
Start a day log the day you move, and keep it every year you still have ties to the old state. The tracker shows your days in each state and how many you have left.