Stock options, RSUs, and ESPPs that span a move, remote work for a foreign employer, tax equalization, severance, short-term assignments, and cross-border payroll and benefits.
14 guides, each written by a CPA licensed in the US and Canada.
Business travelers crossing the Canada-US border for meetings, projects, or short assignments trigger tax obligations based on the 183-day rule.
Cross-BorderAn employer with workers in both countries must handle two payroll systems, two sets of withholding rules, and the totalization agreement.
Cross-BorderEmployees who work in both Canada and the US, or who move between the two countries while holding unvested stock options or RSUs.
Cross-BorderNonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plans let employees postpone US income tax on compensation until it is paid out, often years later.
Cross-BorderCPP disability and US SSDI are taxed under the treaty like social security. The Disability Tax Credit (DTC) is Canada-only.
Cross-BorderHow Canadian EI benefits are taxed when you live in the US, how US unemployment benefits are taxed in Canada, and what the treaty says.
Cross-BorderCanada ignores the ISO distinction, so all stock options are taxed alike. A stock option exercised after a cross-border move is taxed by both countries.
Cross-BorderCanada taxes your remote pay first, because you're resident here. What you owe, what your US employer owes Canada, and the forms both sides need.
Cross-BorderWhen RSUs vest after a cross-border transfer, both US and Canadian payroll systems may withhold independently, often taking 60% to 70% of the vest.
Cross-BorderNot necessarily. Each country runs its own inclusion rule and taxes its share of the vesting period. and the credit is capped.
Cross-BorderRemote work does not change the fundamental tax rule for employment income: it is taxed where the services are performed.
Cross-BorderSeverance pay creates a cross-border tax problem because the payment arrives after the employment ends, often when the employee has already moved.
Cross-BorderAn employee who relocates between Canada and the US while holding unvested stock options faces one of the more complex cross-border tax problems.
Cross-BorderWhen a company moves an employee from Canada to the US (or the other way), the employee's tax situation changes, and not always for the better.