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-BorderYes, your TN days count toward the substantial presence test. Arrive by mid-year and you'll likely file a dual-status return.
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 common. You may need it to receive Canadian pension payments, manage a Canadian rental property.
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-BorderA Canadian who is moving to the US should take several tax steps before departure to minimize the departure tax, preserve treaty benefits.
Cross-BorderWhat happens to your Canadian taxes when you move to the US. Moving from Canada to the US is not one tax event but a sequence of them.
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-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-BorderFor most people, the periodic route wins. Convert the RRSP to a RRIF and keep each year's withdrawals inside the treaty's periodic ceiling.
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.