resident alien, filing for the first time....

[hyperbling]

i've read and read a bunch on this great forum, and i'm about to get ready to start filling out everything. i just wanted to list all the required steps so it's easy to find in one place. please correct me if any of my assumptions are wrong. this is for someone who was resident alien with RRSPs and TFSAs.

in 2011, i worked in canada for jan/feb, and in USA for the rest of the year. by treaty, i'm deemed resident alien for US.

with that in mind, i'll need to do all of the following:

- file canadian taxes as per usual, for all canadian income while i was canadian resident.
- declare departure date
- since i don't own property, i don't have deemed disposition to worry about
- i had a savings account...maybe made me $2 for the year...not worth mentioning...
- as far as canada's concerned, i'm done!

for the rest of the year...

- file 1040 full year. report all canadian income. report all US income.
- deduct canadian income with 2555
- report all capitals gains/losses from all accounts (since the departure date)
- file 8891 for every RRSP account
- report any RRSP distributions as pension income, and deduct with schedule A (or with 1116)
- i closed all my TFSA accounts in 2011, thus i do _not_ need to file 3520.
- tell the US government of my finances via TD F 90-22.1


some interesting things to note:
- TD F 90-22.1 has a different due date, and sent somewhere else entirely


i think that covers everything....if there's something obvious i'm missing or if there's any hints/tips to avoid mistakes it'd be greatly appreciated.

thanks.

[nelsona]

you don't file cdb return "as per usual". You file departure return.

For 1040, you report all income for whole year, including cap gains/losses, not just those from after departure.
I agree that TFSA need not be reported on 3520, but remember to include it on your FBAR forms along with all other accounts that were existing, opened, or closed in the year.

You report distributions from RRSP on 8891, which will then feed line 16 on 1040. The Cdn tax will either be deducted on schedule A, or credited on 1116.

[hyperbling]

thanks for the quick reply! i have a lot more confidence now.