First-year US taxes for Canadians on TN, H-1B, L-1, E-2, and student visas: residency start dates, dual-status returns and elections, a spouse who stays behind, and the Canadian accounts and clients you keep.
32 guides, each written by a CPA licensed in the US and Canada.
IRC 6013(g) lets you file jointly with a non-resident Canadian spouse for MFJ brackets and the standard deduction. Covers treaty provisions, foreign tax.
Cross-BorderIf you are moving to the US and your Canadian employer wants to keep you, the simplest approach from your employer's perspective is to keep you.
Cross-BorderIf you decided to wind up your Canadian corporation after moving to the US, here are the mechanics: the final T2, the deemed dividend.
Cross-BorderThe tax bill is only half the departure story. The unfiled T1161 and the unhandled US side of that gain are where people.
Cross-BorderNo, and the relief reaches back further than most write-ups say. But it left Form 8938 and the FBAR standing, and that carve-out is in the operative text.
Cross-BorderDual-status is the default in your arrival year. Three separate elections can change that, and two of them generally need a spouse.
Cross-BorderMost E-2 movers become US tax residents the year they land and file a final Canadian return with a departure date. Covers treaty provisions, foreign tax.
Cross-BorderF-1 students are exempt individuals for five calendar years, so their days don't count toward the substantial presence test. OPT doesn't reset the clock.
Cross-BorderForm NR6 moves that 25% onto what's left after expenses, but only once CRA approves the form in writing. taken before you see it.
Cross-BorderMoving to the US does not cancel your GST/HST registration automatically. Moving to the US does not automatically cancel your GST/HST registration.
Cross-BorderThe US tax filing for Canadians on H-1B or L-1 visas. Dual-status returns, full-year election, treaty tiebreaker, and the first-year transition mechanics.
Cross-BorderA practical guide to converting T4, T4A, T3, T5, and T5008 slips into 1040 line items: where each type goes, which exchange rate to use.
Cross-BorderThe US, if the move made you a US tax resident, and the reach is then wider than you'd expect: a resident is liable on income from sources inside.
Cross-BorderA spouse who stays in Canada is usually a significant residential tie, which can push your Canadian departure date past your own flight.
Cross-BorderBoth tax it. Canada's gain runs from an acquisition date a complete rental conversion moves unless you elect out. Covers treaty provisions, foreign tax.
Cross-BorderCanadians on a J-1 visa or IEC working holiday in the US face a unique tax position: the exempt individual rules, the substantial presence test.
Cross-BorderKeeping a Canadian bank account after moving to the US is allowed, but it can mean FBAR and Form 8938 filings, US tax on the interest, and FATCA reporting by your bank.
Cross-BorderAn LLC formed while you're still a Canadian resident usually lands in a mismatch Canada doesn't fix, and an S corporation is closed to a nonresident alien.
Cross-BorderLeaving Canada triggers a deemed disposition of most assets at fair market value, creating an immediate capital gains tax bill.
Cross-BorderMoving from Canada to the US triggers Canada's departure tax, a final Canadian return and new US filings. What to do before you leave, in the move year and after.
Cross-BorderThe biggest cross-border tax mistakes are made before the move, not after. Collapsing a TFSA a month too late creates a foreign trust problem.
Cross-BorderFor most US residents, RRIF payments at Canada's 15% treaty rate cost less than an RRSP lump sum at 25%, but the gap is smaller once the US tax and foreign tax credit are counted.
Cross-BorderWhen you sell a Canadian business relative to your move to the US determines the LCGE, the departure tax, and whether both countries tax the gain.
Cross-BorderUsually wind it up before you go. Usually, wind it up before you go, and the reason sits on the US side. Once you're a US person.
Cross-BorderMost Canadians on TN status become US tax residents under the 183-day test. See the first-year return, FICA, leaving Canada, FBAR and what changes in later years.
Cross-BorderMost TN workers are already US tax residents, so a green card changes little on the next return. It changes how residency ends, the treaty position and the exit-tax clock.
Cross-BorderThe W-4 doesn't ask about your Canadian situation, but your Canadian situation changes what the right W-4 looks like. Here is how to set it up.
Cross-BorderYou can keep the RESP, but contributions and the CESG stop when your child leaves Canada. The CCB ends too, and the IRS side turns on Rev. Proc. 2020-17.
Cross-BorderCanada doesn't deem your LIRA sold when you leave, and in most places you can unlock it as a non-resident, usually about two years after you go.
Cross-BorderThe Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) is one of Canada's most generous tax-sheltered accounts. For a qualifying beneficiary.
Cross-BorderCanada's departure tax skips both: RRSPs and TFSAs are excluded from the deemed sale that hits most other property. Covers key rules, filing requirements,.
Cross-BorderYour first US tax return as a Canadian immigrant is the most complex return you will file, because it sits at the intersection of Canada's departure.