Reporting UAE FAB bank balance and transfers to Canada for tax purposes

[PresidentMonk]

Hi everyone, I recently moved to Canada as a PR and I am trying to make sure I handle my foreign bank accounts properly for tax filing. Before coming here I was working in the UAE and I still have my salary account with First Abu Dhabi Bank. I have some savings there and I plan to transfer the money gradually to my Canadian account over the next few months.

My confusion is about how this should be reported to CRA. The money is not new income, it is just savings from previous years when I was living and working outside Canada. I am worried that large transfers might look like income or trigger questions from the bank or CRA. I have also read something about declaring foreign assets if the total is over a certain amount but I am not sure if a regular bank balance counts.

Has anyone dealt with something similar after moving from the Middle East or another country? Do I need to report the FAB account on my tax return or only if the balance crosses the threshold, and will transferring it to Canada create any tax liability? Just want to avoid mistakes in my first filing year. And one last thing, will the method of checking the account balance would be same in Canada (especially the SMS method)???

Thanks in advance for any guidance.

 

[steaky]

Hi everyone, I recently moved to Canada as a PR and I am trying to make sure I handle my foreign bank accounts properly for tax filing. Before coming here I was working in the UAE and I still have my salary account with First Abu Dhabi Bank. I have some savings there and I plan to transfer the money gradually to my Canadian account over the next few months.

My confusion is about how this should be reported to CRA. The money is not new income, it is just savings from previous years when I was living and working outside Canada. I am worried that large transfers might look like income or trigger questions from the bank or CRA. I have also read something about declaring foreign assets if the total is over a certain amount but I am not sure if a regular bank balance counts.

Has anyone dealt with something similar after moving from the Middle East or another country? Do I need to report the FAB account on my tax return or only if the balance crosses the threshold, and will transferring it to Canada create any tax liability? Just want to avoid mistakes in my first filing year. And one last thing, will the method of checking the account balance would be same in Canada (especially the SMS method)???

Thanks in advance for any guidance.

Form T1135, Foreign Income Verification Statement, must be filed by:

• Canadian resident individuals, corporations, and certain trusts that, at any time during the year, own specified foreign property costing more than $100,000
• certain partnerships that hold more than $100,000 of specified foreign property

https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-ag...ng/foreign-income-verification-statement.html

For your last question, we use telephone, in-branch (if available) and internet to check the account balance.

 

[AnnieBr]

If the money in your First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) account is savings from before you became a Canadian tax resident, transferring it to Canada is not taxable. It’s your own old money, not new income.

However, once you became a resident, you must report:
• Any interest earned on that account after your residency date (that part is taxable).
• The account on Form T1135 if your total foreign assets exceeded CAD $100,000 at any time in the year, as required by the Canada Revenue Agency.

Large transfers may trigger routine bank checks, but that does not mean tax is owed. Keep proof the funds are pre-arrival savings.

Regarding balance checks: yes, you can still check your FAB balance from Canada using the FAB mobile app, online banking, or SMS (if your UAE number is active). For a quick overview of FAB balance checking methods abroad, https://fbbalancecheck.ae explains the process clearly.