Hi Marie, Thank you for your message. Yes, we can assist you with this matter. Based on the facts you provided, you are a non-resident of Canada living in the Philippines and your Canadian income is limited to a CPP Survivor’s Pension. For non-residents, CPP and other Canadian pension payme...

Hi, Thank you for your question. Based on the facts provided, the Small Business Deduction should apply only for the period during which the corporation was a CCPC. Since the corporation became a non-CCPC effective July 1, 2025, the corporation is generally deemed to have a taxation year-en...

Hello Anonymous, This is a very good question, because a Canadian corporation owned by U.S. residents can trigger U.S. controlled foreign corporation (“CFC”) reporting, including Form 5471, Subpart F, and GILTI considerations. In general, passive investment income earned by a CFC, such as int...

Hi Julie, Thank you for contacting me. Based on what you described, I can assist you with determining your Canadian non-resident status and the related Canadian tax filing requirements. Since you are a Canadian citizen, a U.S. green card holder, and currently living in the U.S. with limited Ca...

Hi Ashok, Thank you for your message. Assuming you are referring to your RRSP account, options trading may be permitted, but it depends on the type of option strategy and whether your financial institution allows it inside a registered account. Generally, CRA permits certain qualified inves...

Hi Luke, Thank you for contacting us. As a U.S. citizen who worked in Canada for approximately 5–6 weeks and had Canadian tax withheld from your pay, you may be able to recover some or all of the withholding by filing a Canadian non-resident personal tax return. In most cases, the Canadian ...

Hi Puzzle, Yes, your 2026 Canadian tax return would generally be filed as a departure return, showing your date of departure from Canada. On this return, you would report your worldwide income earned up to the date you became a non-resident of Canada. After your departure date, you are general...

Hi Omar, Thank you for your question. Whether you became a non-resident of Canada in July 2016 depends on the facts, especially whether you severed your major residential ties with Canada when you left. The CRA looks at items such as whether you kept a home in Canada, spouse/dependants in Cana...

Hi, Thank you for your question. In general, Canadian segregated funds held inside an RESP can be treated as PFICs for U.S. tax purposes where the underlying investment is a foreign pooled investment vehicle, similar to Canadian mutual funds or ETFs. Therefore, a U.S. person may have Form 8621...

Hi Max, Thank you for your question. Canadian tax residency is based on your residential ties to Canada, not simply your permanent resident status. Based on the facts you provided, your brief visits in 2024 and early/mid-2025 may not, by themselves, have made you a Canadian tax resident, since...

Hi Dennis, Yes, generally you should report the T4RSP slip and then claim the offsetting deduction using Form T746, assuming the withdrawal relates to an RRSP over-contribution that was withdrawn in 2025. The usual reporting is as follows: 1.Report the T4RSP income The $4,000 shown in...

Hi Dalsa, Thank you for your question. In a joint investment account, the income is generally reported by the beneficial owner(s) of the funds, not necessarily based only on whose name appears first on the account. You should report your share of the investment income based on your actual owne...

Hi Peace, Yes, a non-resident of Canada may generally continue to hold an existing RRSP. Opening a new RRSP as a non-resident is not prohibited under the Income Tax Act, provided you have available RRSP contribution room. However, in practice, many Canadian financial institutions restrict non-res...

Hi, Thank you for your message. Based on what you described, it sounds like you may have become a non-resident of Canada when you moved to Japan in 2018. If so, you generally should not have continued filing Canadian tax returns as a resident for later years unless you still had sufficient res...

Hi Jeff, Thank you for your question. In general, if you are a non-resident of Canada, your U.S. income is not normally taxed in Canada just because it is shown on a Canadian non-resident return. The confusion usually comes from Schedule A, Statement of World Income. CRA requires some non-r...

Thank you for your question. Based on the facts provided, this is likely something that should be corrected proactively. Since you missed reporting foreign income for the past 3 to 4 years, and your total foreign property appears to have exceeded CAD $100,000 in 2023 and 2024, there may be two se...

Hi Peace, Generally, I would be cautious about deducting Form 5471 preparation fees in the Canadian corporation. The main issue is that Form 5471 is typically a U.S. information return filing requirement imposed on the U.S. shareholders, not on the Canadian corporation itself. The IRS states t...

Hi Peace, This can be a useful planning idea, but it needs to be handled carefully. From the Canadian tax side, a direct transfer from an FHSA to your own RRSP or RRIF can generally be done without immediate Canadian tax. It also generally does not use RRSP room, provided the transfer is done ...

Hi Sergey, In general, an RRSP can hold certain option strategies, but there are important limits. A covered call is generally viewed as more acceptable inside an RRSP where the plan already owns the underlying securities. CRA has indicated that writing a covered call, by itself, does not auto...

Hi Todd, Thank you for your message. Based on the facts you provided, it may still be possible to file your 2025 Canadian return as a factual resident of Canada, since you appear to have maintained a number of ongoing residential ties with Canada, including your mailing address, driver’s licen...