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Citizenship and Tax Filing Status

Abe G. Weit

Newbie
Apr 12, 2011
9
0
Our family (including our minor 14 year old daughter) was granted PR status in 2011. My (now adult) daughter applied for citizenship in July, 2018 and was subsequently granted citizenship in April, 2019. After she graduated from college in May, 2018, she applied for jobs in her field in both USA and Canada and ultimately accepted a position in the USA in November, 2018 and is still employed at that position in the USA.

As she is filing her 2019 tax return now, the accountant suggested that she might want to refile her 2018 Canadian tax return to note that she was no longer a Canadian resident as of November, 2018. This is done by including a departure date (the date she started full-time employment in the USA, i.e., November, 2018) on the first page of the tax form. The advantage of this is that she would not have to file a Canadian tax return for 2019 and subsequent years (until she returns to live in Canada) as she would be filing and paying USA income taxes instead (as allowed by Canada-USA tax treaty).

Does anyone have any thoughts on whether her claiming non-resident status on her tax return would have any adverse impact on her Canadian citizenship (i.e., could citizenship be questioned or revoked if non-resident tax status is claimed prior to the citizenship grant)? Again the sequence was:
  1. July, 2018: applied for citizenship
  2. November, 2018: Accepted full-time position in USA
  3. April, 2019: granted citizenship
Thanks in advance for any insight you may have on this.
 

cansha

VIP Member
Aug 1, 2018
6,675
5,853
Our family (including our minor 14 year old daughter) was granted PR status in 2011. My (now adult) daughter applied for citizenship in July, 2018 and was subsequently granted citizenship in April, 2019. After she graduated from college in May, 2018, she applied for jobs in her field in both USA and Canada and ultimately accepted a position in the USA in November, 2018 and is still employed at that position in the USA.

As she is filing her 2019 tax return now, the accountant suggested that she might want to refile her 2018 Canadian tax return to note that she was no longer a Canadian resident as of November, 2018. This is done by including a departure date (the date she started full-time employment in the USA, i.e., November, 2018) on the first page of the tax form. The advantage of this is that she would not have to file a Canadian tax return for 2019 and subsequent years (until she returns to live in Canada) as she would be filing and paying USA income taxes instead (as allowed by Canada-USA tax treaty).

Does anyone have any thoughts on whether her claiming non-resident status on her tax return would have any adverse impact on her Canadian citizenship (i.e., could citizenship be questioned or revoked if non-resident tax status is claimed prior to the citizenship grant)? Again the sequence was:
  1. July, 2018: applied for citizenship
  2. November, 2018: Accepted full-time position in USA
  3. April, 2019: granted citizenship
Thanks in advance for any insight you may have on this.
You may want to take opinion from a different tax accountant. As far as I can say in my limited understanding she doesn't become Non resident in Nov 2018. At the maximum she would be considered part year resident of Canada. In any case there is no need to make this super complicated. Let 2018 tax returns as they are and just claim non resident status on 2019 taxes.