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Donald Cameron, a former Canadian Consul in Seattle and a Canadian Immigration Consultant now has sen this addition to my answer. - His reply at the end
-----Original Message-----
From: Donald Cameron [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, July 25, 2003 8:45 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Retirement From USA to Canada - Ask the income tax experts
At 11:02 PM 24/7/03, you wrote:
Hello,
My husband and I are considering a retirement move to British Columbia--we are uncertain about all the legalities involved. We do not want to immigrate--however, we would like to purchase a home there and are willing to return to the US whenever necessary to maintain our American citizenship.
Would we be allowed to move our household furnishings to Canada? What about automobiles? Are there any books you could recommend to facilitate the move?
Thanks so much for your help.
LXXXXXXXXXX
===========================
david ingram replies
I have three or four of these in a row. I thought I might lump them but they are all just enough dfferent that they should be answered separately.
You can come to Canada and open a seasonal residence. Nothing anywhere says that your seasonal residence has to be at a ski or lakeside resort. It can be in the middle of deepest darkest Vancouver or Toronto.
You may bring some of your furniture to your seasonal residence without duty. However, you are expected to maintain your regular residence in the US.
Otherwise, there is no practical method of your retiring to canada without working in Canada first.
If you have a summer home in BC and a winter home in California, you may spend six months of the year in Canada. You will not qualify for BC Medical but you can use US Medicare in Canada.
If the idea is to sell everything in the US and retire to Canada with no thought of working here, you cannot do it.
Hope this helps. If there is something else that you are not telling me like one of you is a Canadian, then my answer could be / would be different.
David Ingram of the CEN-TA Group
US / Canada / Mexico tax and working Visa Specialists
108-100 Park Royal South
West Vancouver, BC, CANADA, V7T 1A2
(604) 913-9133 - Fax 913-9123 [email protected]
www.centa.com www.david-ingram.com
David,
When I was the Consul & Immigration Program Manager of the Canadian Consulate General in Seattle this was the most common inquiry from Americans - but usually not until they had had a rude reception at the truck crossing when they pulled up with all their worldly goods in a Ryder truck! My American locally-engaged employees were even more shocked than we Canadians at the assumption on the part of many of their fellow citizens that they could move to Canada as simply as they could to Arkansas.
One of our most successful ripostes in the spirited debate that often took place during these inquiries was that U.S. immigration law did not permit Canadians to do in the U.S. what these Americans wanted to do in Canada.
As a consultant I have also handled this inquiry and it has been my experience that the enthusiasm for living in Canada among wealthy Americans usually does NOT extend to spending the money required to qualify in the Investor class. I had the same observation as a Consul.
Cheers,
Don
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