When you move what do you do with your Canadian finances and debt?

[Olive25 3]

Hi Everyone,

I thought I’d get a head start in trying to get all my ducks in a row before we get too far down the road and before I know it, it's time to move!

I just want to be as prepared and not give myself any unnecessary headaches or stress because I wasn’t proactive enough. Most of my concerns revolve around finances. How did you all organize and transition from Canada to the US? Here are a few details of my situation:

- I work for a Canadian company that is owned by the US. I know there is a gray area of letting me work remotely and still get paid to my Canadian account. Most of the concerns I’ve heard about were tax implications… what taxes would I have to pay? If I am able to continue working, I’d be happy to pay double the taxes… I’d rather do that then to be out of work for 3+ months while my AOS – EAD and AP are in the works.

- If I have to take a unpaid leave of absence I have a few thousands of savings in my Canadian account. What is the best way to transfer those funds? I need to split up my savings and keep some in my Canadian account as I haven't sold my property yet… I do have a renter, if needed, so I'm not that worried, but still need to keep some funds for the insurance etc.

- I had zero (non mortgage) debt until a few months ago when I was hit with an emergency. It left $11,000 on my LOC. Since then, I have been able to pay it down to $8000.00 but although I am optimistic, I don’t believe I can pay it off completely by the time I move.

So what should I do? My fiancé will of course support me while we wait for the AOS but I still feel my canadian finances are mine to deal with. Should I call my bank and let them know that I will be moving out of country and will they be able to help me form a temporary payment plan for the 3+ months when I am doing my AOS, if I am unable to work remotely? If I am able to work, I don’t have many problems since I'd be paid into my canadian account and can continue to pay down the debt. I'd actually would be able to pay it down much quicker, if that was the case. But in the chances I can’t work remotely I will need to figure out a way to organize this. I know what I owe and I want to pay it down. I would like to come back and visit my family on a frequent basis. I would not flee the country to not pay my debt. I’ve never missed or been late for a payment and don’t plan on doing so when I am in the US. I just want to figure out what is the most efficient and economical (without having to wire or transfer to a US bank etc and have fee’s galore) way to bridge my finances until I am back on my feet in the US.

TIA!!

[Amanda and Evan 0]

Read everything you can on this forum regarding Canadian Employment Insurance. When you leave your job in Canada, tell them that the reason you are leaving is to get married in the US. It is a valid reason which will allow you to collect EI. You will not get any EI payments until you get your EAD, but you have to file as soon as you move to the US.

My husband worked for a company with business in the US and Canada. They had their legal department look for any loophole that would allow him to continue to work, but couldn't find one. We thought he could continue to work and get paid into his Canadian bank account, but we were wrong. I didn't realize that he had to file for EI right after crossing the border, so he filed after he got his green card, and it cost him a couple weeks of pay. Soon after that, his former employer had a position for him working remotely.

Good luck

[NikLR 13,227]

You will not be able to work, even remotely, until you get your EAD. There is no gray area here. The USA doesn't work like Canada in this area. You must have a work permit to be able to work no matter who you are working for (unless you were driving back to Canada to work everyday.) As for EI, file for the EI immediately before leaving Canada and you should get the first payment after they have proof you have your EAD.

Technically your debt, and thus your credit history, does not accompany you when you move. However, if you ever want to move back to Canada I suggest paying it off. Calling your bank is a great idea. Banks always prefer you continue paying vs not paying obviously.

You should talk to an accountant about your rental property and rrsps etc... There is a likelyhood you'll have to pay Canadian taxes on them so you'd have to continue to file Canadian tax returns? But I'm not sure about the details, which is why I suggest a good accountant.

[Erica & L 50]

Regarding paying off your bills and debt in the easiest way, this is what my wife and I did:

Before we left Canada we set up a joint, cross-border account at RBC that allows you to have a Canadian bank account and a US bank account. You get a Canadian debit card while you're there and once you move to the US, you call or go in and get your American Debit/Visa card combo. I pay $7 a month for both accounts, $4 from one and $3 from the other as basic maintenance fees. I had to cancel my Rogers cellphone plan, my cable, and I had two credit cards, and a SLOC.

I set up my bills and credit cards as payees on the Canadian account, and anytime I need to pay, the money my wife makes is transferred from RBC US to RBC Canada, it's unlimited transfers, and converts the money for you as well. It takes no more than one business day to show up in the Canadian side. I had an account with BMO that my credit cards were with and I closed that account down, and transferred any money I had into my RBC Canadian account before we left. I believe there is an initial deposit of $25 dollars and then you have a month to put $100 into your RBC US account so they know you're using it.

You also get Canadian/American cheques, which is where the issue of a SLOC/LOC comes into play. For whatever reason, some SLOC/LOC cannot be made into payees with RBC, they're just not registered in their system. So what I had to do was send in a void cheque to my old bank (BMO) and then have them set up a pre-authorized debit from my RBC Canada account to be taken out monthly. Depending on what bank you use, you may have to do that or you may be lucky and your institution is registered under RBC and can just be added as a payee.

RBC branches/PNC ATMS are what can be used to deposit/go into in the US, so you'd have to double check where the nearest ones are to you of course.

Just a suggestion! My wife has been supporting me financially and if we hadn't set up this account before we left (we thought we were going to have to move back and forth between countries before DOMA was passed, so this made our finances seem easier) I would have had a really tough time paying all my bills or having to send in a cheque every single month which is a pain. It also conveniently helps are case for proof of a bona fide marriage etc.

Read up on it here: http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/usbanking/access-usa-details.html

[Crumulent 7]

You will not be able to work, even remotely, until you get your EAD. There is no gray area here. The USA doesn't work like Canada in this area. You must have a work permit to be able to work no matter who you are working for (unless you were driving back to Canada to work everyday.) As for EI, file for the EI immediately before leaving Canada and you should get the first payment after they have proof you have your EAD.

Can you point me to more information on that subject? The majority of posts and topics on that subject are of the opinion that working remotely is technically allowed if you it is a Canadian employer, paying in Canadian dollars to a Canadian account.

My current employer wants to keep me on staff, and all the research I did here, and on similar sites led me to the conclusion that's okay.

[Amanda and Evan 0]

Check the dates of those posts. Even if they are recent posts, it could be somebody repeating what they read in an old post. I believe you used to be able to get a work authorization stamp from DHS when you crossed over with a K1 visa, but they don't do that anymore. I asked a very similar question to an online lawyer service because I truly thought that my husband's employer was just being stubborn. You can read their responses here: http://tinyurl.com/q2dv7ne

You stated in your original post that it's a gray area. I suppose in a court of law, everything's a gray area if you can afford to have an attorney make your case. From my research on the subject, it's not legal to work until you have your EAD, period.

Here's an article where two attorneys argue each side of the debate: http://www.ilw.com/articles/2012,0625-Paparelli.shtm

Oh, and another source would be my husband's employer. They're a worldwide company whose legal department handles work visas all day long. If it were legal, they would have found a way.

Trust me, I was completely livid when I found out that the "Canadian paycheck in a Canadian bank account" was misinformation. I really wish visajourney would take down those posts. It cost us a lot of money because we didn't find out until his employer said 'no' as he was getting ready to pack.

Edited January 14, 2014 by Amanda and Evan

[NikLR 13,227]

I also looked it up when I first began the journey in curiosity. I can find some of the links later when I have a comp vs phone but the person above me has pointed out some for you already. It's a major advantage of the CR1 visa. You can work and travel asap. It takes longer to get the visa but usually it's significantly shorter to the green card by months, if not a year.

Edited January 14, 2014 by NLR

[NikLR 13,227]

RB USA allows you to direct deposit for US employers and also scan or take a photo of a check for deposit. I've done it a couple times. You can still do the direct deposit with the RB Canada account as well or mail your branch a cheque with your info on it for deposit.

[Flames9_RN 358]

I know others here on VJ that have had a job back in Canada and moved to the USA on a K1 and worked remotely while in the USA....Don't know if it is legal or not, and VJ isn't probably a good resource on this issue

[Rob & Monika 87]

I also looked it up when I first began the journey in curiosity. I can find some of the links later when I have a comp vs phone but the person above me has pointed out some for you already. It's a major advantage of the CR1 visa. You can work and travel asap. It takes longer to get the visa but usually it's significantly shorter to the green card by months, if not a year.

It's been argued both ways on here many times. Lawyers can't even agree on this topic, and the gov't refuses to clarify the legality on this exact issue, leaving it a 'grey area'. There aren't any reports of people getting into trouble for it, leaving me to believe that if you aren't taking a US job, then you've done nothing wrong.

http://www.nationofimmigrators.com/employment-based-immigration/immigration-lawyers-arguing-can-i-work-from-home-for-a-foreign-employer/

http://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/may-i-work-remotely--while-physically-inside-the-u-1365605.html

[warlord 73]

It's been argued both ways on here many times. Lawyers can't even agree on this topic, and the gov't refuses to clarify the legality on this exact issue, leaving it a 'grey area'. There aren't any reports of people getting into trouble for it, leaving me to believe that if you aren't taking a US job, then you've done nothing wrong.

The laws for the EAD are outdated and so working remotely wasn't an issue at the time the USCIS drafted the EAD language. And now it's a huge gray area because of that.

Simply put, I am pretty sure you cannot work at all in the US even remotely. This is because they don't want people just move here at random. It would be the same thing if a Canadian just simply one day living in say Windsor, decided, "Hey I'm going to want to live in Ann Arbor and just commute to my job in Windsor". You would be denied that request to live in the US. So waiting for an EAD is much the same thing, you are under a waiting period, but you cannot work.

Now the confusion is, who is monitoring it? Definitely not the USCIS, so that leads people to believe that it's legal as no one ever gets in trouble for it. And we all know once you get the GC, then any illegal entry issues etc are pardoned and that would mean any illegal working in the US would most likely get pardoned as well. Again leading many to believe that it's perfectly legal to work remotely.

So yes against the rules of the EAD, but the punishment for doing so is non-existent. So take that as you want...

[Flames9_RN 358]

Just my opinion..keep it to urself, and all would be well.

[Krikit 1,164]

I worked remotely, and I also travelled back and forth for business reasons, prior to receiving my GC. It's right there in the Advance Parole document. I also had it okayed at the local USCIS office. You're not taking a job, unauthorized, from an American so that's where the grey area comes in and what they are trying to guard against. There are a lot of people who will argue against this but there are just as many of us who have done it. You claim the income on both sides of the border but you'll need to read up on the tax treaty to see how to go about it.

Edited January 15, 2014 by Krikit

[Olive25 3]

I worked remotely, and I also travelled back and forth for business reasons, prior to receiving my GC. It's right there in the Advance Parole document. I also had it okayed at the local USCIS office. You're not taking a job, unauthorized, from an American so that's where the grey area comes in and what they are trying to guard against. There are a lot of people who will argue against this but there are just as many of us who have done it. You claim the income on both sides of the border but you'll need to read up on the tax treaty to see how to go about it.

Is it possible to PM you? I tried, but doesn't seem to work.

[gingernugget 1]

You will not be able to work, even remotely, until you get your EAD. There is no gray area here. The USA doesn't work like Canada in this area. You must have a work permit to be able to work no matter who you are working for (unless you were driving back to Canada to work everyday.) As for EI, file for the EI immediately before leaving Canada and you should get the first payment after they have proof you have your EAD.

Technically your debt, and thus your credit history, does not accompany you when you move. However, if you ever want to move back to Canada I suggest paying it off. Calling your bank is a great idea. Banks always prefer you continue paying vs not paying obviously.

You should talk to an accountant about your rental property and rrsps etc... There is a likelyhood you'll have to pay Canadian taxes on them so you'd have to continue to file Canadian tax returns? But I'm not sure about the details, which is why I suggest a good accountant.

So once I leave my job to move with my fiancé I will be eligible to receive EI even though I will be living in the US? I did not know you could receive EI while you are out of the country.