Can I enter the US to activate my CR1 and return to work in Canada while I apply for jobs in the US?

[ALittleBritish 91]

4 minutes ago, mnlvj8891 said:

How is it possible to keep track of how many times you leave the US to Canada. I live and work 10 minutes away from the US in Canada and often times I go to the US and back to Canada once a week. sometimes four times a week. This would be impossible to keep track of. 

I use Google Calendar and just track it every time I've gone down to the US & how many days. I had to do that for Canadian PR. Annoying, but not impossible. 

[mnlvj8891 1]

What is EI? I am a Canadian citizen myself and work here in Canada. My plan after I immigrate is commuting to Canada every day for work (40 minute drive, no problem).

[pushbrk 12,911]

29 minutes ago, mnlvj8891 said:

How is it possible to keep track of how many times you leave the US to Canada. I live and work 10 minutes away from the US in Canada and often times I go to the US and back to Canada once a week. sometimes four times a week. This would be impossible to keep track of. 

You keep track of overnight trips.  It's certainly possible.  Try logging it on a "calendar", or a "spreadsheet".  Check out the N400.  You ARE required to answer that section.

[debbiedoo 2,339]

1 hour ago, mnlvj8891 said:

What is EI? I am a Canadian citizen myself and work here in Canada. My plan after I immigrate is commuting to Canada every day for work (40 minute drive, no problem).

it's the Canadian Unemployment Insurance (called Employment Insurance)

1 hour ago, mnlvj8891 said:

How is it possible to keep track of how many times you leave the US to Canada. I live and work 10 minutes away from the US in Canada and often times I go to the US and back to Canada once a week. sometimes four times a week. This would be impossible to keep track of. 

Keeping diary or google calendar is impossible? 

 

looking the records up online (because they are freely available) is impossible?

 

interesting.

 

I don't know how Paul and I have managed to keep track of all of his visits over the past 2 and a half years. 

Edited August 10, 2018 by debbiedoo

[NikLR 13,227]

5 hours ago, pushbrk said:

In the eyes of the US.  Canada has different standards for residency requirements associated with Canadian Citizens.

I am quoting from a Canadian citizen perspective 

[Diane and Chris 651]

There is no dual citizenship for Canadians?  Thanks!  

Edited August 10, 2018 by Diane and Chris
already answered

[mushroomspore 3,044]

44 minutes ago, Diane and Chris said:

There is no dual citizenship for Canadians?  Thanks!  

There is. Canada does not require us to renounce our Canadian citizenship in the event that we gain other citizenship. However, the American citizenship oath has a part that says something like, "I renounce all other foreign nationalities" etc. However, this isn't the same as officially renouncing your native citizenship though.  I think part of the American oath is for the American government to say, "We recognize ONLY your American citizenship; we do not recognize any other citizenships you may hold." For example, when my parents became Canadian citizens in the 80's, they had to formally renounce their native citizenship in Asia by going to the federal building in the capital and filling out paperwork, surrendering their Asian passports and doing another oath to state they were renouncing their Asian citizenship. Canada does not require such a procedure. I had high school teachers, university professors and have known other people who were both American and Canadian citizens and still are to this day.

Edited August 10, 2018 by mushroomspore

[torontoim 19]

So preparing to go to the US P.O.E. this week and had a couple more questions...

 

I understand that as soon as my Visa is stamped I become a US Permanent Resident. I understand that would void my healthcare insurance in Canada and I should get travel insurance or get added on to my US citizen wife's health insurance asap if I go back to wrap up employment in Canada afterwards while doing the job search in the US. 

 

For taxation purposes, how does the CRA look at income earned during that time? I called a tax accountant and he seemed to say that my date of departure for the CRA doesn't have to be when I get my US visa stamped but rather when I physically leave Canada to move to the US. Just wanted to confirm this was the case for Canadian citzens in this situation who have gone through this before. 

 

For example: I cross the border this Saturday, get my CR1 visa stamped and become a US permanent resident, stay with my wife for several days and then return to Canada to wrap up my employment and apply for jobs in the US with a SSN activated. I then leave my residence in Canada in say a month to 2 months with all my belongings and paperwork to import my vehicle. Would I be able to put that later date as my date of departure for CRA purposes in order to have that income earned in Canada taxed as a Canadian resident? Or would the date of departure have to be this Saturday? The reason I ask is because I did a lot of schooling in the United States and get a lot of my tax money back in the form of a foreign tuition reimbursement credit every time I file my tax return. 

 

Many thanks! I want to know what all the implications are for crossing this early. I actually have until January to make the move, but I miss my wife and haven't seen a lot of her family in over a year while this process has been going on. I just want to make sure I'm not being foolish by crossing this quickly before I have employment lined up in the U.S.

Edited August 21, 2018 by torontoim

[Ontarkie 14,236]

~~Moved to the Canada forum, from IR1/CR1 - As the OP's questions are best discussed with others that have done similar.~~

[Ontarkie 14,236]

You need to get your employer to start taxing you as a non resident. By still paying resident taxes they can come back to bite you later also for your permanent resident in the US you can't be a resident in Canada. 

 

Your tax break for your tuition is also a perk of being a Canadian resident. You will not be one when you endorse your visa as you start to be a US resident.  For sure double check with an actual tax accountant don't go just by what CRA said as they may not have understood you correctly. I know for my student loans the minute I crossed was the end to my perks and I wasn't crossing with a spousal visa. I had a K1 so not even a GC holder months later. 

[torontoim 19]

On 8/10/2018 at 8:43 AM, NikLR said:

When you become a resident of the USA you are no longer a resident of Canada. 

So I spoke to the CRA this morning to let them know of my emigrant status. The above is actually inaccurate. You’re only considered a non-resident for tax purposes once you leave Canada permanently.

 

For example if you were to activate your green card in August, if you chose to work in Canada for a further two to three more months while you wrap things up, you would still be considered a Canadian resident for tax purposes for that time period.

 

When you quit your job and cut ties to Canada, you should call CRA and give them your exit date which would be different from the date that you started being a US green card resident. After this exit date the CRA would consider you a non-resident for tax purposes.

 

Hope that helps others in my position who search this later.

Edited November 24, 2018 by torontoim

[torontoim 19]

On 8/21/2018 at 2:17 PM, Ontarkie said:

You need to get your employer to start taxing you as a non resident. By still paying resident taxes they can come back to bite you later also for your permanent resident in the US you can't be a resident in Canada. 

 

Your tax break for your tuition is also a perk of being a Canadian resident. You will not be one when you endorse your visa as you start to be a US resident.  For sure double check with an actual tax accountant don't go just by what CRA said as they may not have understood you correctly. I know for my student loans the minute I crossed was the end to my perks and I wasn't crossing with a spousal visa. I had a K1 so not even a GC holder months later. 

So I’m actually now done with this process. I used to work for a hospital in Toronto. They’ve had my situation before and they don’t tax people as non-residents that are working at their hospital as the CRA doesn’t view Canadian citizens working in Canadian institutions who haven’t cut ties yet as non-residents for tax purposes. 

 

I was taxed as a Canadian resident as usual on my paychecks until I left. Once I called the CRA to give them my exit date, I became a non-resident. The CRA confirmed that they were unconcerned with the date of my activating my green card for their purposes.

 

Also being a Canadian resident for tax purposes and being a green card permanent resident in the US have distinct and separate criteria that can overlap in situations such as these. 

 

I also comfirmed with the CRA that I will still be able to carry over my tuition tax refund benefits as a non-resident on income earned in 2018. If you’ve filled out TL11A forms as a student studying in a foreign institution and have tuition credit amounts to claim on your taxes when you return from your education abroad to Canada to work, you keep those perks on Canadian income taxes even after you’ve become a non-resident. Any unclaimed carryover of foreign tuition credit amounts will also be kept for you to claim later if you ever choose to return to Canada from the United States to work.

Edited November 24, 2018 by torontoim

[NikLR 13,227]

People have been told to pay back taxes becuase they work in Canada but live in the USA and are taxed as residents.  

There are other tax pitfalls too. For instance when I was married suddenly my husband's income for the entire year was calculated, not just the time I had been married and I suddenly owed gst credit to the govt despite my household size growing, him being a non resident, and not making much that first year.  

[NikLR 13,227]

When I had talked to the CRA they hadn't mentioned any of that would happen, just that they would need his income (even as a non-resident) but that it wouldn't change my benefits. 

Edited November 24, 2018 by NikLR
Small phone keyboards are the devil

[Ontarkie 14,236]

1 hour ago, torontoim said:

So I’m actually now done with this process. I used to work for a hospital in Toronto. They’ve had my situation before and they don’t tax people as non-residents that are working at their hospital as the CRA doesn’t view Canadian citizens working in Canadian institutions who haven’t cut ties yet as non-residents for tax purposes. 

 

I was taxed as a Canadian resident as usual on my paychecks until I left. Once I called the CRA to give them my exit date, I became a non-resident. The CRA confirmed that they were unconcerned with the date of my activating my green card for their purposes.

 

Also being a Canadian resident for tax purposes and being a green card permanent resident in the US have distinct and separate criteria that can overlap in situations such as these. 

 

I also comfirmed with the CRA that I will still be able to carry over my tuition tax refund benefits as a non-resident on income earned in 2018. If you’ve filled out TL11A forms as a student studying in a foreign institution and have tuition credit amounts to claim on your taxes when you return from your education abroad to Canada to work, you keep those perks on Canadian income taxes even after you’ve become a non-resident. Any unclaimed carryover of foreign tuition credit amounts will also be kept for you to claim later if you ever choose to return to Canada from the United States to work.

Sadly you were given wrong information for not getting taxed as a non resident. Not likely going to be a problem now, but  being taxed as a Canadian resident can cause issues with your GC. You cannot be a resident of Canada and a resident of the US at the same time when it comes to immigration. They can view that as abandoning your GC.  

 

Many tax benefits end that day you activated your GC. Search these boards and you will find many and I mean many members who ended up having to pay back all the money the received. CRA is notoriously bad giving advice and even worse when you try to update info and stop getting payments you should not be getting.