Tax treaty and forms - DUAL STATUS RETURN - box 35b on page 2 of 1040 -


QUESTION:

Hello:

I was hoping to get some clarification about using the tax treaty.  Here is my situation... I am a permanent resident in BC and filed my income taxes from regular employment in 2006.  I moved along with my wife to the US on H1B in March 07.  We still maintain a bank account in Canada.  So for the year 2007, I have salary income in Canada from a Canadian company for 75 days, and in US from a US company for the rest of the year.

I have already filed my taxes here in the US as a (tax) resident.  My questions are regarding the taxes to be filed in Canada:

 a) Do I file as a factual resident or a deemed resident?
 b) Which forms and schedules do I have to submit?
 c) Can I claim the income from my US job exempt as a deduction (line 256)?

Will appreciate any advice.  Thanks.


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david ingram replies:

If you filed as a tax resident, the US return will be wrong because it has to  include your world income which includes the Canadian income before you moved there.  Then you would claim a foreign tax credit on form 1116 or file exemptions on form 2555.


Your US return should either have been a DUAL Status return (line 35b on page 2 OR a joint return with your wife and reported the Canadian Income on it. the chances of your US return being correct are about 2% in my experience.

On the US return I also hope you paid attention to questions 7 and 8 on the bottom of the US schedule B - If you have any foreign accounts you have to pay attention to these questions because the minimum penalty for failure to report Canadian accounts is $10,000.

You should be filing the Canadian return as a DEPARTING Canada return including Forms T1161, 1243 and 1244 if you left any assets behind.

The following will likely help you .


David,

If one would like to proceed with utilizing your services (filing for Canadian and US taxes), what would be the next steps? Do I just call and make an appointment? Also, is the phone consultation part of the filing fee, or would that be separate. I'm asking because I will be getting married this year (in Canada), and I want to make sure everything is done to minimize any risk of additional taxes, i.e. being considered a factual resident in Canada if she still stays in Toronto for two months of the year (we're getting married in Oct. this year). Or would it be best for her to come down immediately on an H4 and if she does, will it complicate my tax filings in the US? I believe I'll just declare myself as being married and wouldn't file any income for my wife, while she files a departure return in Canada.

Also, when would I get a more specific 'quote' as to what the costs may be? 

I understand you're busy, which is why I put PAYING CUSTOMER in the subject, although I'm not a paying customer; yet.

Thanks for your help David.


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david ingram replies:

The phone consultation is not part of the filing fee.  However, if you only have a 1/2 hour consultation I do sort of blend it in. 

Being married to a wife who is in Canada for two months after marriage is NOT going to make you a taxable resident of Canada if it is clear that she is on the way to join you in the US.

A more significant quote would be when we have all of the information.

david

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Question

I'm a 27 year old Canadian currently living in the United States on an H1B. Before leaving Canada I closed all major credit cards, bank accounts (except for one which still has an outstanding balance which will be paid off this year), and brought all personal belongings with me. The only thing I've left in Canada which is giving me a tough time is ~60K  in RRSP's. I've determined as per IRS publication 519 I am a resident alien for tax purposes as per the substantial presence test. I've been considering doing the filing myself, but I'm confused as to whether or not I should be declaring my RRSP's and if so, what are the implications? Especially this year since I've lost over 10%+ of their value.

I would like to use your services, but I would like some degree of confidence that by paying over 1K (moving year) that I will be really saving that much. I can understand someone who has complex tax situations with properties, receiving retirement funds, capital gains/losses, etc. My tax situation is pretty straight forward (I think) and aside from filing forms 1040, 8891 (maybe) in the US with some Canadian tax credits and in Canada file a T1 tax return (departing), I'm having a tough time seeing the value of your services. I'm hoping you can convince me otherwise.

Any other year, I would only except to file in the US, but this one I don't want to take a chance on.

Thanks for your help!


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david ingram replies;

I went to see my dentist Ed Clark the other day and $160 dollars later was told 'no cavities'.  I was very happy.  Last time I saw him because a cap had split off the enamel - this is the truth - I ended up with a $16,000+  dental bill because he discovered a very hidden abscess and then pointed out all my ground down teeth.

Although I like the appearance of my $16,000+ teeth and appreciate the fact that the abscess was fixed, etc. I was happier hearing 'nothing wrong but floss more' than I was with the litany of stuff wrong after not being there for a few years.

I have no idea if our service would be worth it to you.

It is an interesting question.  You have mentioned the form 8891 which is a new form.  Not filling it out can result in a penalty of 35% of the value of your RRSP PLUS 5% for each year you do not report it.  Being in the US on an H1B requires the filing of form 8891 to report (and exempt) the internal earnings of your RRSP.  However, if you are in California, the 8891 does NOT exempt the internal earnings on your RRSP and the California Franchise Board taxes them requiring an adjustment on form CA or CA(NR) with the 540 or 540NR.

You do not mention form TDF 90-22.1.  I was told by a representative from Treasury on June 20, 2007,  that their intention is to levy a minimum $10,000 fine for failure to file this form.  I had a 105 year old client pay a $10,000 fine for failure to file it and over 1,000 clients of a Vancouver financial consultant 'Jerome Schneider' were fined because he told them not to file the forms.  Jerome Schneider was sent to jail himself and fined $100,000 for telling them not to file the forms.  That was a plea bargain where he agreed to testify against all his clients and a couple of lawyers and accountants he had worked with.  Without the plea bargain, his penalties were astronomical because there were over 1,000 charges possible. 

If you want more info on Schneider, you can read the story at 
http://www.quatloos.com/schneider_witmeyer_guilty.htm Just remember that this first year, your US 1040 either needs to include your Canadian income (before you moved to the US)  and a '2350 and 2555' (to exempt the Canadian Income) or an 1116 (to claim a foreign tax credit)  OR be filed as a Dual Status preparer - see line 35b top of page 2 of the 1040 and mark the top of Page One of the return as a DUAL STATUS RETURN.  In this situation, you also have to file a 1040NR with DUAL STATUS STATEMENT on the top of Page one of the 1040NR.  This 1040NR would be reporting any US source money you received BEFORE moving to the USA.

one more thing for you or anyone else reading this.  If you have 'ANY' foreign accounts (Canadian, French, Spanish, Japanese, Australian or any other of the 265 or so countries in the world) you MUST fill in US schedule B and answer the two questions at the bottom.  Your RRSP is a foreign trust and form 8891 replaces form 3520 for an RRSP.

Good Luck
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QUESTION: Hi David,

I am Canadian citizen, worked in Canada for the first 5 months of 2006. then moved to US and worked then for the rest of 2006. I have income from Canada employer, canadian bank and US employer. I filed tax return on my US income to IRS already. I haven't done canadian tax return yet. I had thought I only need to file canadian tax return on my canadian income. But it seems both CRA and IRS requested to report my world income to both. I am confused. What should I do to file the tax return to both? 

More specially, I received NR4 slip from CIBC bank. I could not find where to enter this form when I used Ufile.ca. 
How can I enter US W2 form into any Canadian tax form?
How can I enter T4 slip into US tax return form? 

thanks a lot!
_______________________________________________________________
david ingram replies:

An NR4 does not go on the Canadian return.  It goes on Schedules B and 1116 of the US return

The T4 does not go on the US return unless you are filing as a year round resident as in 2 below.

I am too busy to come up with a new answer but this older one will give you an idea.


QUESTION: Hi David,

I really need your help in filling U.S tax and I am getting mixed messages which forms to file. 
I am a Canadian Citizen in U.S on TN visa for more than a year. 
I have RRSP in canada over 10,000 put in fixed bond and saving account in a bank. 
What do I need to file here and what forms do I need to fill. 
Do I still have to file tax in Canada for canadian earning? Please help.
____________________________________________________
david ingram replies;

You need to file a departing Canada tax return and file T1161 if you left more things than your RRSP behind.  The Canadian return will only include Canadian earnings although if you had a Home Buyers Plan, it is all due and taxable on the departing Canada return unless you have paid it back.

For the US, you have two choices:

1.   File a 1040NR dual status statement and a Dual Status 1040 Income Tax return with no standard deduction

or

2.   File a full 1040 which includes your Canadian income and gives you a full standard deduction and the right to file a joint return if married.  This is usually the best if you left Canada early in the year as you did.

If you can't figure it out, file an extension  form 4868 (find it at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f4868.pdf )

and then send the information to us at the address in blue below to complete for you.
_____________________________


On Mar 14, 2008, David Ingram wrote:

It is very unlikely that blind or unexpected email to me will be answered.  I receive anywhere from 100 to 700  unsolicited emails a day and usually answer anywhere from 2 to 20 if they are not from existing clients.  Existing clients are advised to put their 'name and PAYING CUSTOMER' in the subject line and get answered first.  I also refuse to be a slave to email and do not look at it every day and have never ever looked at it when I am out of town. 
e bankruptcy expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax  service and help
However, I regularly search for the words"PAYING CUSTOMER" and always answer them first if they did not get spammed out. For the last two weeks, I have just found out that my own email notes to myself have been spammed out and as an example, as I wrote this on Dec 25, 2007 since June 16th, my 'spammed out' box has 47,941 unread messages, my deleted box has 16645 I have actually looked at and deleted and I have actually answered 1234 email questions for clients and strangers without sending a bill.  I have also put aside 847 messages that I am maybe going to try and answer because they look interesting. -e bankruptcy expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax service and  help
Therefore, if an email is not answered in 24 to 48 hours, it is likely lost in space.  You can try and resend it but if important AND YOU TRULY WANT OR NEED AN ANSWER from 'me', you will have to phone to make an appointment.  Gillian Bryan generally accepts appointment requests for me between 10:30 AM and 4:00 PM Monday to Friday VANCOUVER (Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles) time at (604) 980-0321.  david ingram expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax  service and help.
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Disclaimer:  This question has been answered without detailed information or consultation and is to be regarded only as general comment.   Nothing in this message is or should be construed as advice in any particular circumstances. No contract exists between the reader and the author and any and all non-contractual duties are expressly denied. All readers should obtain formal advice from a competent and appropriately qualified legal practitioner or tax specialist for expert help, assistance, preparation, or consultation  in connection with personal or business affairs such as at www.centa.com. If you forward this message, this disclaimer must be included." e bankruptcy expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax  service and help.
David Ingram gives expert income tax service & immigration help to non-resident Americans & Canadians from New York to California to Mexico  family, estate, income trust trusts Cross border, dual citizen - out of country investments are all handled with competence & authority.
 
Phone consultations are $450 for 15 minutes to 50 minutes (professional hour). Please note that GST is added if product remains in Canada or is to be returned to Canada or a phone consultation is in Canada. ($472.50 with GST if in Canada) expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax  service and help.
This is not intended to be definitive but in general I am quoting $900 to $3,000 for a dual country tax return.
$900 would be one T4 slip one W2 slip one or two interest slips and you lived in one country only (but were filing both countries) - no self employment or rentals or capital gains - you did not move into or out of the country in this year.
 
$1,200 would be the same with one rental
 
$1,300 would be the same with one business no rental
 
$1,300 would be the minimum with a move in or out of the country. These are complicated because of the back and forth foreign tax credits. - The IRS says a foreign tax credit takes 1 hour and 53 minutes.
 
$1,600 would be the minimum with a rental or two in the country you do not live in or a rental and a business and foreign tax credits  no move in or out

$1,700 would be for two people with income from two countries

$3,000 would be all of the above and you moved in and out of the country.
 
This is just a guideline for US / Canadian returns
 
We will still prepare Canadian only (lives in Canada, no US connection period) with two or three slips and no capital gains, etc. for $200.00 up.
 
With a Rental for $400, two or three rentals for $550 to $700 (i.e. $150 per rental) First year Rental - plus $250.
 
A Business for $400 - Rental and business likely $550 to $700
 
And an American only (lives in the US with no Canadian income or filing period) with about the same things in the same range with a little bit more if there is a state return.
 
Moving in or out of the country or part year earnings in the US will ALWAYS be $900 and up.
 
TDF 90-22.1 forms are $50 for the first and $25.00 each after that when part of a tax return.
 
8891 forms are generally $50.00 to $100.00 each.
 
18 RRSPs would be $900.00 - (maybe amalgamate a couple)
 
Capital gains *sales)  are likely $50.00 for the first and $20.00 each after that.

Catch - up returns for the US where we use the Canadian return as a guide for seven years at a time will be from $150 to $600.00 per year depending upon numbers of bank accounts, RRSP's, existence of rental houses, self employment, etc. Note that these returns tend to be informational rather than taxable.  In fact, if there are children involved, we usually get refunds of $1,000 per child per year for 3 years.  We have done several catch-ups where the client has received as much as $6,000 back for an $1,800 bill and one recently with 6 children is resulting in over $12,000 refund. 

This is a guideline not etched in stone.  If you do your own TDF-90 forms, it is to your advantage. However, if we put them in the first year, the computer carries them forward beautifully.
 
This from "ask an income trusts tax service and immigration expert" from www.centa.com or www.jurock.com or www.featureweb.com. David Ingram deals on a daily basis with expatriate tax returns with multi jurisdictional cross and trans border expatriate problems  for the United States, Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, United Kingdom, Kuwait, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, China, New Zealand, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Russia, Georgia, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Scotland, Ireland, Hawaii, Florida, Montana, Morocco, Israel, Iraq, Iran, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Mali, Bangkok, Greenland, Iceland, Cuba, Bahamas, Bermuda, Barbados, St Vincent, Grenada,, Virgin Islands, US, UK, GB, and any of the 43 states with state tax returns, etc. Rockwall, Dallas, San Antonio Houston, Denmark, Finland, Sweden Norway Bulgaria Croatia Income Tax and Immigration Tips, Income Tax  Immigration Wizard Antarctica Rwanda Guru  Consultant Specialist Section 216(4) 216(1) NR6 NR-6 NR 6 Non-Resident Real Estate tax specialist expert preparer expatriate anti money laundering money seasoning FINTRAC E677 E667 105 106 TDF-90 Reporting $10,000 cross border transactions Grand Cayman Aruba Zimbabwe South Africa Namibia help USA US Income Tax Convention. Advice on bankruptcy  e bankruptcy expert  US Canada Canadian American  Mexican Income Tax service and help .

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