Planning on moving to the US in 2020

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sheri
Posts: 15
Joined: Thu Jun 10, 2010 9:53 am

Planning on moving to the US in 2020

Post by sheri »

Hello,
My family and I are moving to the US in a year (summer 2020) and we would like to start to plan early to ensure that we are making the right decisions when in comes to tax implications.

We are all Canadian citizens and own a principal residence and a rental property in Canada. We are not planning to dispose of these properties. We are planning on renting out the principal residence when we leave. We also have various bank accounts, TFSAs, RRSPs and RESPs (for our children).

Would anyone be able to provide some advice on how best to handle the properties and bank/investment accounts so that we limit our tax exposure?

thank you so much in advance.
S.
nelsona
Posts: 18508
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Re: Planning on moving to the US in 2020

Post by nelsona »

2 things to do would be to get rid of the TFSA in 2019, to avoid trust reporting issues (they aren't tax-free in US anyways), and transfer your RESPs to a grandparent in Canada, in 2019. These are not tax-free in US either.
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
groovejumper
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Oct 09, 2019 8:29 am

Re: Planning on moving to the US in 2020

Post by groovejumper »

We are in a similar situation (moving to US in summer 2020), and I am curious about the advice to "get rid of the TFSA in 2019".

Why? I mean, I completely understand about the taxability and complicated reporting required on TFSA's for tax residents of the US, and we fully intend to cash out and close ours BEFORE we move (for example, in July 2020, a month before we move in August 2020).

Is there a specific reason why we would want to close these in the 2019 calendar year, instead of the 2020 calendar year (it would still be before we move)?
nelsona
Posts: 18508
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Re: Planning on moving to the US in 2020

Post by nelsona »

As you will learn next year, you have the option of filing a full year 1040 in your move year, which would likely save you quite a bit of US tax. Having the TFSA and its income on that return may diminish the advantage of filing full year joint 1040. Best to take care of this in the year before moving if possible.
At a minimum, you would want to cash in any gains in 2019 within your TFSA, if you are that attached to having it.
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
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