In international taxation, a physical presence test is a rule used to determine tax residence of a natural or legal person.
[3] The United States uses a physical presence test both when determining the eligibility of US citizens and permanent residents for favorable tax treatment for not being physically present in the US and conversely when determining when people who are not citizens or permanent residents are subject to US taxation.
One of the ways for US taxpayers to qualify for the foreign earned income exclusion is by passing the physical presence test.
Four rules determine a 12-month period for the purposes of the physical presence test:[5] A person who is present in the United States, rather than abroad, may still meet the physical presence test under the war and civil unrest exception.
The Internal Revenue Service publishes a list of countries that qualify under the war/civil unrest exception and the respective dates during which the waiver applies.