RESP reporting in the US / Form 3520

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Engineer
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Oct 16, 2009 10:58 am

RESP reporting in the US / Form 3520

Post by Engineer »

Question for Nelson and all knowledgeable people: after reading many posts on this forum I realized that Canadian RESP should be reported to IRS as a foreign trust. The reporting should be done by using IRS form 3520. However, after reviewing the form and instructions for this form, I feel completely lost because the form is very complicated and could be used for many different purposes. So my questions:

- Are there any guidelines on the 3520 form usage to report RESP?
- Could someone who has done the RESP reporting using the 3520 form before share his/her knowledge?
- Or the only option I have is to use an experienced cross-border accountant?

Thanks!
Diskdoctor
Posts: 75
Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2010 9:46 am
Location: Winnipeg

Post by Diskdoctor »

Any insights yet Engineer? I'm also looking for some guidance in filling out this form.

On a related note, I can't seem to find mention anywhere of how the CESG should be handled. In the eyes of the IRS is this income for the subscribers of the RESP (usually the parents)? It obviously increases the value of the CESG but that money can only ever go to the beneficiaries, the subscribers will never touch it.
nelsona
Posts: 18311
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Post by nelsona »

BDO has a good explanation on this:

http://www.bdo.ca/library/publications/ ... 32007b.cfm

The Grant is taxable if the plan contributor is a US taxpayer.
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
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