Guides

Straight answers, written by the people who’d file it.

1,407 plain-English guides on cross-border moves, US and Canadian returns, and small-business money. Each one ends in what to do next, and says when a written Position Check is the smarter first step.

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1,407 guides

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

US Dividend Withholding for Canadian Investors: Why 15% Comes Off the Top, Where It Doesn't, and How the Credit Comes Back

September 14, 2026

Every US dividend a Canadian earns arrives 15% lighter — the treaty rate collected at source — and Canada then taxes the full dividend with a credit for the withholding. But the rate, the credit, and even whether withholding applies at all depend on the account it sits in: taxable, RRSP, or TFSA give three different answers. Here is the map, account by account.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

An RRSP or RRIF at Death With a US-Person Beneficiary: Who Pays Canada, What the US Taxes, and the Rollover That Still Works

September 13, 2026

When an RRSP or RRIF annuitant dies, Canada wants tax on the full value — on the final return, or from the beneficiary. If the beneficiary is a US person, add withholding on cross-border payments, US income tax on the distribution, and treaty mechanics to stop the same dollars being taxed twice. Here is the sequence for spouses and for children on both sides of the border.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

The FBAR in Your First US Year: The Canadian Accounts Everyone Forgets and the Maximum-Value Rule

September 7, 2026

The FBAR requires US persons with foreign financial accounts exceeding $10,000 in aggregate to report them to FinCEN. For a Canadian who has just become a US person, the accounts are all Canadian, and the ones that get missed are the RRSP, the TFSA, the RESP, the LIRA, the joint account, and the corporate account you can sign on.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

IRA and Roth IRA Contributions for Americans in Canada: Why the FEIE Blocks Them and Why the Roth Gets Tainted

September 7, 2026

Can an American living in Canada contribute to an IRA or Roth IRA? Yes, if there is taxable compensation not excluded by the FEIE. But the Roth election under the treaty is lost by contributions made as a Canadian resident, and the RRSP is usually the better vehicle.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

RRIF Conversion and Minimum Withdrawals for Cross-Border Filers: The 71 Deadline, the Periodic Limit, and the 15% Rate

September 7, 2026

When and how an RRSP must be converted to a RRIF, the minimum withdrawal schedule, how the treaty's 15% rate applies to periodic payments within a limit, and how a US-resident annuitant reports the withdrawals.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

RRSP Contributions as a US Citizen in Canada: Deductible Here, Not There, and Still the Right Account

September 7, 2026

How an RRSP works for a US citizen living in Canada: the Canadian deduction, the absence of a US deduction, the treaty deferral on growth, the basis tracking for withdrawals, the FBAR and Form 8938 reporting, and why the RRSP still beats the alternatives.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

What Happens to Your RRSP, TFSA, and RESP in a Streamlined Filing: Deferral Restored, Earnings Taxed, Trust Forms Filed

September 7, 2026

The three Canadian registered accounts are treated differently in a streamlined submission. The RRSP's treaty deferral is restored retroactively under Rev. Proc. 2014-55 and the account goes on the FBAR. The TFSA's earnings are added to income for the three years and Forms 3520 and 3520-A are filed. The RESP is the same as the TFSA with the grant taxed too. Here is each account, form by form.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

RSP vs RRSP: Are They the Same Thing? What the Label Means, and Why It Matters on a US Return

September 7, 2026

Banks use 'RSP' and 'RRSP' loosely, and the difference matters for a cross-border filer: an RRSP is a registered plan with treaty protection; an 'RSP' may be an RRSP, a group plan, or a non-registered savings product. Here is how to tell, and why the US return depends on the answer.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Severance Across the Border: Sourced to the Job, Not the Address, and Why a Package Paid After the Move Is Still Taxed at Home

September 7, 2026

How severance and retiring allowances are taxed when the employee has crossed the border: Article XV sourcing to where the employment was exercised, Canadian non-resident withholding on retiring allowances, the RRSP transfer for pre-1996 service, and the US treatment of a Canadian package received by a new US resident.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

The Spousal RRSP for US Citizens in Canada: Who Deducts, Who Defers, Who Reports, and What the Three-Year Rule Does

September 7, 2026

How a spousal RRSP works when one or both spouses are US persons: the Canadian deduction to the contributor, the US treaty deferral for the annuitant, the FBAR and Form 8938 reporting by the plan's owner, the attribution rule on early withdrawals, and the basis question when the US person is the contributor.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

State Income Tax for Cross-Border Workers: The Layer the Treaty Doesn't Reach

September 7, 2026

US states are not bound by the Canada-US tax treaty. Here is how states tax Canadians who work in them, commute to them, or work remotely for employers in them: residency rules, day-count thresholds, the convenience-of-the-employer rule, reciprocity, and the state that taxes your RRSP.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

The Streamlined Domestic Penalty: What Is the 5% Actually 5% Of? The Assets That Were Never Reported, at Their Highest Year-End Value

September 7, 2026

The domestic streamlined procedure charges a 5% miscellaneous offshore penalty. It is not 5% of the income, the tax, or everything foreign; it is 5% of the highest aggregate year-end value of the foreign financial assets that should have been reported and were not, across the six FBAR years and three return years. Here is how the base is built, what is excluded, and how a Canadian mover's RRSP usually escapes it.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Taking the Commuted Value of a Canadian Pension Before Moving to the US: The LIRA, the Excess, and the Treaty

September 6, 2026

Taking the commuted value of a Canadian employer pension when leaving for the US creates tax in both countries if it is done wrong. The LIRA lock-in, the maximum transfer value, the treaty rate, and the RRSP election all interact.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Alberta to Texas: The Tax Side of Two No-Income-Tax-Adjacent Jurisdictions

September 5, 2026

Alberta has no provincial sales tax and Texas has no state income tax, but the cross-border tax picture is not as simple as 'no tax to no tax.' Departure tax, the RRSP and TFSA, and federal obligations all apply.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Moving from Canada to North Dakota: Two Low Brackets, the Bakken, and the Manitoba Border

September 5, 2026

North Dakota's recent reforms cut its income tax to two low brackets with the first tier at zero, close enough to no tax for most working families. Here is what that means for Manitoba and Saskatchewan movers, plus the RRSP, departure tax, and filing mechanics.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Moving to the US from Canada: The Tax Checklist, in the Order Things Actually Happen

September 5, 2026

What happens to your Canadian taxes when you move to the US: departure tax, RRSP and TFSA decisions, US entry filings, and the ongoing Canadian obligations that do not end when you leave. A working checklist in sequence.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Alberta to California: The Rare Corridor Where Your Tax Bill Goes Up

September 4, 2026

Alberta's flat 15% provincial rate is the lowest in Canada. California's 13.3% state rate plus the annual RRSP inclusion means this is one of the few moves where taxes rise, not fall. Here is the full picture for Alberta energy and tech professionals heading to California.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

BC to Florida: Departure Tax, RRSP, and the Retiree Move

September 4, 2026

British Columbia's combined top rate is about 53.5%. Florida's is zero. The BC-to-Florida move is usually a retiree file, and the three things that decide it are the departure date, the BC home, and the RRSP withdrawal plan.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

BC to New York: Two High-Tax Jurisdictions and What Each Does With Your RRSP

September 4, 2026

BC's combined top rate is about 53.5%. New York's runs about 51% inside the city. Both are high-tax, and the real difference is what New York does with your RRSP and your estate.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Calgary to Los Angeles: Energy, Entertainment, and a Rare Corridor Where the Bill Can Go Up

September 4, 2026

Calgary energy professionals moving to LA for clean energy or entertainment hit a rare case: the US tax bill can go up, plus California's annual RRSP inclusion.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Calgary to Phoenix: Energy to Aerospace, the RRSP, and Arizona's Flat 2.5%

September 4, 2026

Alberta's combined top rate runs near 48%. Arizona's flat 2.5% state tax, the lowest of any state with an income tax, and no city income tax bring the combined rate down sharply. Here is the full Calgary-to-Phoenix tax picture.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Calgary to San Diego: Energy to Defence, the RRSP, and One of the Few Corridors Where the Bill Can Go Up

September 4, 2026

Alberta's flat 10% base is among the lowest starting rates in Canada, but California's top combined rate edges past it at high incomes, one of the few corridors where the bill can go up. The RRSP addback and the defence-employer pipeline are the parts most people miss.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Calgary to San Francisco: Tech, the Energy Pivot, and a Corridor Where the Rate Goes Up

September 4, 2026

Calgary energy engineers are landing at Bay Area tech and climate-tech firms, where Alberta's 48% top rate can climb toward California's 50.3%. Here is the full picture, including the RRSP.

Cross-Border Tax (U.S.–Canada)

Canada to US Moving Guides: Every Corridor by City, Province, and State

September 4, 2026

An index of every Fairlight Canada-to-US cross-border tax guide: province and country guides, state guides, and city-by-city corridor articles covering the departure tax, the RRSP, and destination state and local taxes.

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