Migration

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Taxpayers changed addresses to out-of-state locations

Address updates are a combination of information received from taxpayers directly and information from the United States Postal Service (USPS) National Change of Address program. Some New York State resident taxpayers change their addresses to out-of-state locations each year. The tables and charts below track the cumulative number of out-of-state transitions observed throughout the years.

In 2020 and 2021, there were noticeable increases in address changes with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Address changes in the subsequent years remained high but have trended back towards pre-pandemic levels.

The number of tax returns fluctuates year to year creating variation in the number of address changes; proportions adjust for the different number of tax returns each year. Pre-pandemic, approximately 2% of addresses updated to out of the state each year. The rate accelerated to 3% in 2020 and 2021. It declined in 2022 and 2023 and is down to 2% in 2024.

Millionaires changed addresses

Tax filings combined with the change of address information discussed above allow a focus on high-income taxpayers. Tax returns with a New York State adjusted gross income (AGI) of one million dollars or more are of particular interest due to the progressivity of the tax system. The pattern for millionaires resembles that of all tax returns. Address changes to other states peaked in 2020 and slowly declined each subsequent year.

The rate of out-of-state address changes is higher for millionaires than other taxpayers. Their rate peaked above 6% in 2020 and was 2.5% in 2024. While still relatively high, it is approaching the rate for earlier years, as well as that for taxpayers overall.

Almost 1,700 millionaires changed their address to another state over the course of 2024. This is an improvement relative to the peak above 3,300 in 2020. The number is small relative to the total number of millionaires and yet smaller relative to total number of taxpayers. However, the resulting loss of tax dollars can be significant due to the concentration of tax liability.

Address changes out of New York State of millionaires are approaching pre-COVID-19 rates. The number of the wealthiest millionaires (those with incomes greater than $25 million) moving out of the state had the largest percentage increase and the largest recovery.

IRS state-to-state migration tally of tax returns

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tracks migration using personal income tax returns matched across adjacent years. New York has a long history of population outflow and inflow. The following section reflects the 2022–2023 IRS data. While the level of outflow remains historically high, the net improved relative to the 2021–2022 data.

The 2022–2023 net outflow of 74,482 returns is concentrated in people between the ages of 26 and 44 as in prior years. However, the number is smaller than last year, and there is evidence of younger people with higher incomes coming into New York. 

The outflow of primary taxpayers in the 2022–2023 data is noticeably less than in the prior periods. 

New Yorkers head towards warmer, neighboring, and less expensive states

The following map uses the 2022–2023 IRS data to highlight the states to which New Yorkers go and the areas from which New Yorkers come.

Even the states with the largest net outflow on the map also have people moving into New York. The chart uses the 2022–2023 IRS data.