Maintaining costs in two places may support a travel-expense analysis, but duplicate expenses alone do not guarantee tax-free stipends or deductible travel.
Start with the work pattern
IRS Publication 463 generally locates tax home at the main place of business. If there is no regular principal place of business, additional factors determine whether a regular home qualifies. An itinerant worker may have no home from which to be away for travel-expense purposes.
Document the actual household costs
Keep evidence of the home you maintain, your financial contribution and temporary assignment lodging. Payments should reflect real obligations and actual arrangements. A nominal transfer to a relative should not be assumed to establish a qualifying home.
Check temporary versus indefinite assignments
An assignment expected to last, and that actually lasts, one year or less is generally temporary, subject to the circumstances. An assignment expected to last more than one year is generally indefinite; a change in expectation can change the treatment. Repeated assignments need factual review.
Separate reimbursement from deductibility
Employer accountable-plan requirements and the worker’s underlying eligibility both matter. A recruiter’s description of a stipend as tax-free does not settle the result. Give the preparer contracts, extensions, reimbursement policies and actual expense records.
Do not confuse domicile paperwork with tax home
A Florida license or declaration concerns other legal questions. It does not make every assignment a trip away from a federal tax home. Use the definitions guide to identify the relevant test.
Sources and next steps
Source review: September 17, 2026. Service support can help organize documents; tax and legal classifications depend on the applicable rules and your facts.