SD

Hi,

I may be moving to US for work on temprary work visa. I am a Canadian citizen. I have
heard that if you break all links to Canada then you are exempt from paying Canadian
Tax. What does it mean by breaking all links to Canada? Also, when I have to come
back to Canada, do I need to do anything special? Do I still have my citizenship and
just reapply for OHIP? ( I am in Ontario at the moment).

Would appreciate your response.

Thanks and Regards,

SD

Alexei

I have a contrary question in this regard: If a Canadian citizen works and resides
out of Canada for several years (5-10) on temporally visas (such as TN) and is
willing to pay Canadian Taxes, will he be considered a Canadian resident and be
eligible for all residents' benefits including provincial health insurance? Thanks.

thedrifter

Post your question to the tax financial forum at www.grasmick.com. One of the best
sites for Canada -US visa issues TN, H1B. Lots of good information at the web site.

bg

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citizen.
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special?
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Ontario at the
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Andrew Miller

You must reside in particular Province to be eligible for health coverage, paying
Canadian and Provincial taxes is not enough.

--

../..

Andrew Miller Immigration Consultant Vancouver, British Columbia email:
[email protected] (delete REMOVE and INVALID from the above address before
sending an email)
________________________________

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Goldfinger

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Breaking all links means you have severed your tide with Canada and it encompasses a
wide common law definition. Simply put, if you move you, your family out of Canada
and maintian now physical dwelling place afterwards, you may be considered no a
Canadian resident.

Rich Wales

[usenetquote2]> > I may be moving to US for work on temporary work visa. I am a Canadian citizen. I[/usenetquote2]
[usenetquote2]> > have heard that if you break all links to Canada then you are exempt from paying[/usenetquote2]
[usenetquote2]> > Canadian tax.[/usenetquote2]

"Goldfinger" replied:

> Breaking all links means . . . Simply put, if you move yourself and your family
> out of Canada and maintain no physical dwelling place [in Canada] afterwards,
> you may be considered not a Cana- dian resident.

The fact that you (shridesai) are only going to be in the US on a temporary basis
=MAY= make it harder than usual to convince the CCRA (Canadian tax people) that you
are in fact no longer a resident of Canada for tax purposes.

At the very least, my understanding is that you need to sell your home (or else lease
it out to someone else for a fixed term, so that it is =NOT= available to you or your
family to move back into whenever you want).

I believe you will also need to cancel all your Canadian credit cards (unless the
banks are willing to keep the accounts open even after you inform them that you are
no longer a resident of Canada -- something I don't believe Canadian banks will
normally do).

There are other things you may have to do -- and your best course of action would
probably be to discuss the subject with a professional tax planner in Canada before
you move. (Don't wait until you come to the States, because American tax pros with
any knowledge at all of Canadian tax issues are few and far between.)

If you end up being outside Canada for two years or longer, I believe it's easier to
support the notion that you did in fact abandon your Canadian residence. On the other
hand, if you move back to Canada after being abroad for less than two years, it's my
understanding that the CCRA will probably try to insist that you never really
intended to stop being a resident of Canada in the first place.

Keep in mind, too, that if you do sever your residential ties to your old Canadian
home, you might run into problems with the US INS. If you're in the US on a
temporary, non-immigrant work visa, then my understanding is that the US requires you
to have your true, permanent residence outside the US. Getting rid of all residential
ties to Canada =MIGHT= be seen by the INS as a contradiction of your promise that you
will not try to stay permanently in the US. Check with a knowledgeable US immigration
lawyer regarding this question.

> > Also, when I have to come back to Canada, do I need to do anything special?
> > Do I still have my citizenship and just reapply for OHIP?

You will, of course, still have your Canadian citizenship. Moving to a foreign
country (and ceasing to be a resident of Canada for tax purposes) will =NOT= have
=ANY= effect on your Canadian citizenship.

You'll have to reapply for provincial health insurance, and depending on the
province, you may have to wait three months for your new health coverage to take
effect. (The Canada Health Act does not force the provinces/territories to start
covering new residents until they have been residents of the province for three
months, and I believe Ontario is one of the provinces that takes advantage of
this fact.)

Rich Wales [email protected] http://www.webcom.com/richw/
*NOTE: I've lived in both Canada and the US and have dual citizenship.
*DISCLAIMER: I am not a lawyer, professional immigration consultant,
or consular officer. My comments are for discussion purposes only and
are not intended to be relied upon as legal or professional advice.

Peter

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INS recognizes dual-intents for temporary visa holders like H1B. Since the residency
is for tax purpose, I don't think INS has any problem.

Peter