I'm preparing my form 3520 for my TFSA and noticed the following in the instructions for the form.
A domestic trust is where one or more US persons have authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust.
As I am a US citizen and the owner of my TFSA, could I use the above definition and treat my TFSA as a domestic US trust, therefore, eliminating the requirement to file form 3520 since that is only for a foreign trust.
Also, I saw an earlier post saying that a Canadian bank would have QI status and therefore will have an EIN number. My bank has refused to provide me the EIN number for the form 3520 because they said that my TFSA is not a trust. Does anyone have any suggestions for what to fill in for US agent or what documents to provide, as there are no real trust forms that exist.
Thank you all for the replies.
form 3520
Moderator: Mark T Serbinski CA CPA
Hi - I ran into the same problem. I called Fidelity Investments (Canada) and they didn't know what I was talking about with regards to an EIN number, and they didn't know who in their organization could help me. I did manage to get their EIN number by googling the relevant terms, and I tracked down a document with an EIN number on it.
As far as I know, the TFSA is considered a trust for Canadian purposes, and there has been no guidance from the IRS on how they view TFSAs. I've asked 4 CPAs, 2 said a TFSA is a foreign trust, 2 said, there has been no IRS guidance - but declare the income on your 1040.
You might be on to something regarding a TFSA being a domestic trust since only 1 US owner has full control of the funds. I hope this is true. On my TFSA arangement it says that the Trustee is: "The Trust Company of Canada", and my estate is the beneficiary, and I am the owner.
I look forward to other replies!
As far as I know, the TFSA is considered a trust for Canadian purposes, and there has been no guidance from the IRS on how they view TFSAs. I've asked 4 CPAs, 2 said a TFSA is a foreign trust, 2 said, there has been no IRS guidance - but declare the income on your 1040.
You might be on to something regarding a TFSA being a domestic trust since only 1 US owner has full control of the funds. I hope this is true. On my TFSA arangement it says that the Trustee is: "The Trust Company of Canada", and my estate is the beneficiary, and I am the owner.
I look forward to other replies!
TFSA's which have a trustee are trusts, and are foreign trusts.
My advice is to treat ALL TFSA's as trusts unless you have documentation stating that "This TFSA is NOT a trust".
Some savings-account-only TFSa's fall into that category. Almost all other do not.
My advice is to treat ALL TFSA's as trusts unless you have documentation stating that "This TFSA is NOT a trust".
Some savings-account-only TFSa's fall into that category. Almost all other do not.
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