My_question_is: Applicable to both US and Canada
Subject: SIN card
Expert: taxman at centa.com
Date: Wednesday January 10, 2007
Time: 01:44 PM -0500
QUESTION:
Hello: my question is I came to Canada at age 13 and never had a US SSI
card.Iam a US citizen and I have never chaged that,but I just what to know
if there is any real reason for me to get one at this time? I am almost at
the age to retire so I do not know if there is any reason for me to get one.
=============================================
david ingram replies:
Well, you put me between a rock and a hard place.
There is no doubt (since you admit to being a US citizen) that you should
have been filing US tax returns all these years and therefore, should have
had a number.
However, if you just ignored it, you would be part of another 400,000 plus
Americans living in Canada who are not filing their US returns and have not
been caught.
I guess my statement would be that you should have filed and if you ever
took out a US passport you really SHOULD file your past due returns for the
current year plus six.
If you have never done anything American, you have likely slipped under and
over the radar. However, any time you cross the US border, an alert US
person might haul you in to the system in which case penalties could be
severe.
For instance, one I am dealing with right now who spent a lot of time in
Birch Bay, has just been handed a US tax bill for over $100,000 for the tax
free sale of her Canadian farm in 2002.
ie. Canada allows a $500,000 tax free profit on the sale of a working
Canadian farm and the US does not recognize this as tax free.
The tax bill was the result of a minor altercation at the border where the
Homeland Security officer was not going to allow the Canadian in so she
pulled rank and made the point that she was also a US citizen. Since it is
illegal for a US citizen to enter the US using another country's passport,
the shit hit the fan as they say.
Another client "ML" was hit with a $218,000 US tax bill when he lost his
passport in Paris and had to get another passport. At that time, the fact
that he had not being filing US returns came to light and they went back ten
years which was not bad because the IRS can go back to 1967 if they want.
So, if you ever intend to visit the US again, get your number and get the
last six years of returns in. If you never intend to go to the US, there is
no reason to think that you will be caught as it were although remember
that anyone who does not like you and knows you are an American and suspects
that you have not being filing your US returns can turn you in and actually
collect a reward of from about 1% to up to over 20% depending upon the
information and amounts collected. So, another suggestion would be to not
mention the situation to anybody in the future.
See form 211 at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f211.pdf
Save yourself a lot of sleepless nights and bring the returns up to date.
We would be happy to help.
-----------------------------------------
David Ingram's US / Canada Services
US / Canada / Mexico tax, Immigration and working Visa Specialists
US / Canada Real Estate Specialists
My Home office is at:
4466 Prospect Road
North Vancouver, BC, CANADA, V7N 3L7
Cell (604) 657-8451 -
(604) 980-0321 Fax (604) 980-0325
Calls welcomed from 10 AM to 9 PM 7 days a week Vancouver (LA) time -
(please do not fax or phone outside of those hours as this is a home office)
email to taxman at centa.com <mailto:taxman at centa.com>
www.centa.com <http://www.centa.com/> www.david-ingram.com
<http://www.david-ingram.com/>
Disclaimer: This question has been answered without detailed information or
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