New York to Florida: income, property, estate

§ II · Income Tax (Stacked)

New York stacks state and city income tax

New York State has a 9-bracket personal income tax. Single filers pay 4 percent on income up to $8,500 and rates climb to 10.9 percent on income above $25 million (Tax Law 601). The bracket structure passed in 2021 stretched the top three brackets to soak high earners; the 9.65 percent bracket starts at $1,077,550, the 10.30 percent bracket at $5 million, and the 10.90 percent bracket at $25 million. Most working professionals in New York City face a combined marginal rate of 6.85 to 9.65 percent at the state level depending on income.

On top of the state tax, New York City levies its own personal income tax under NYC Administrative Code 11-1701. NYC's brackets run from 3.078 percent on income up to $12,000 (single) to 3.876 percent on income above $50,000. Yonkers also imposes a personal income tax surcharge equal to 16.75 percent of the state tax due. A NYC resident at the top combined bracket therefore pays roughly 14.78 percent on the marginal dollar of income (NY 10.9 percent + NYC 3.876 percent). At more typical professional income levels of $200,000 to $400,000 the combined effective rate runs 9 to 11 percent.

Florida runs all of this to zero. Florida's Constitution (Article VII, Section 5) prohibits a personal income tax. Florida cities (Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville) cannot impose city-level income taxes. There is no income tax line on the Florida side of the federal return. For a NYC household earning $300,000, the combined NY State plus NYC income tax is roughly $35,400 per year; in Florida it is zero. That single line item compounds. Over a 20-year working career remaining, the cumulative saving exceeds $700,000 not counting investment growth.

Estimates use 2025 single-filer brackets. NYC tax assumes NYC residency. Add Yonkers surcharge (16.75% of NY state tax) for Yonkers residents.

§ IV · Estate Tax

Estate tax: New York's cliff rule vs Florida's zero

New York imposes its own state estate tax in addition to the federal estate tax. The New York exemption for 2025 is $7.16 million per individual (Tax Law 952). The estate tax rate is graduated, reaching 16 percent on portions of the taxable estate above $10.1 million. Critically, New York applies a 'cliff' rule: if the taxable estate exceeds the exemption amount by more than 5 percent, the entire estate above zero is taxed, not just the amount above the exemption. An estate of $7.5 million pays NY estate tax on the full $7.5 million, not just the $340,000 above the exemption.

Florida has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. The Florida Constitution (Article VII, Section 5) prohibits both. The federal estate tax exemption is $13.99 million per individual / $27.98 million per married couple in 2025, but it is scheduled to sunset to roughly $7 million / $14 million in 2026 unless Congress acts. The Florida-versus-New York delta is therefore most significant for estates in the $7 million to $20 million range, where the New York state estate tax kicks in but the federal exemption may still cover the estate.

For a $15 million estate, a New York resident's NY state estate tax bill is approximately $1.6 million. A Florida resident's NY state estate tax bill is zero (provided the move was complete and clean). For estates in the $7M to $15M range, the New York-to-Florida move can save $500,000 to $2 million in state estate tax alone. This is the single largest factor in why high-net-worth NY families relocate to Florida late in life. Estate planners describe this as the single highest-leverage tax move available to a New York family.

§ VI · Convenience-of-Employer

The convenience-of-employer rule trap

New York's convenience-of-the-employer rule (Tax Law 132.18(a) plus 20 NYCRR 132.18) treats remote workdays for a New York employer as if they happened in New York for tax purposes, unless the employer can establish a 'bona fide employer office' in the employee's home state or unless the remote work is required by employer necessity rather than employee convenience. A Florida resident working remotely for a New York employer typically owes New York income tax on those workdays under this rule, even if the employee never sets foot in New York during the year.

The 'bona fide employer office' requirements are narrow: the home office must be a separate workspace at the employee's home, not just a room used for personal purposes; the employer must require the employee to work from that location for genuine business reasons (not employee preference); the employer must reimburse for the home office expenses; and the office must function as a regular branch of the business. Most informal remote arrangements do not meet this test. The employee must qualify under the 'secondary factors' or 'other factors' test if the bona fide office test fails, which is a fact-intensive inquiry.

For someone moving from NYC to Miami while keeping a NY employer, the convenience-of-employer rule can claw back the entire NY income tax saving. The Florida resident pays NY tax on every workday performed remotely. The only fixes are: switch employers to a non-NY firm, negotiate a formal employer office in Florida that you are required to report to, or shift to independent contractor status. See the dedicated convenience-of-employer-rule guide for full detail.

§ VIII · Queries

Frequently asked