I created a separate topic but I'm thinking it might fit in this thread instead.
I left Canada last year so my tax return is that of a non resident. I don’t have physical property in Canada but I have my money invested in Canada in iShares with TD.
I hired a professional accountant to prepare my return, but they tell me that I don’t have to pay a departure tax or report anything beyond the T3/T5 about the investments because it’s not physical property.
I think that is wrong. The preparer didn’t even include a T1161 with my tax return which according to the CRA must be completed even if you have nothing to report on it. I also think they’re mistaken and I should pay taxes as if I sold and bought back my investments on the day I left (to trigger a tax event for the profits/loss on the investments market value)
What do you think? Am I mistaken?
And what happens if the tax preparer was wrong and the CRA hits me with penalties (25$ a day for that matter) + interests? Is the tax preparer responsible at all for their mistakes or am I on the hook as if I did it all myself?
Finally, should the bill for the tax preparer services be exempt of sales tax since I’m buying from outside Canada?
Hello, fellow non resident.
I'm assuming the TD account is not an RRSP/TFSA? T1163 is pretty explicit at the top there:
https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/cra-arc/formspubs/pbg/t1161/t1161-18e.pdfFill out this form if you ceased to be a resident of Canada in the year and the fair market value of all the properties you owned when you left Canada was more than $25,000, excluding the following properties:
1)cash (including bank deposits)
2)pension plans, annuities, registered retirement savings plans, pooled registered pension plans, registered retirement income funds, registered education savings plans, registered disability savings plans, tax-free savings accounts, deferred profit-sharing plans, employee profit-sharing plans, employee benefit plans, salary deferral arrangements, retirement compensation arrangements, employee life and health trusts, and rights or interests in certain other trusts. For a complete list, refer to the definition of "excluded right or interest" in Subsection 128.1(10) of the Income Tax Act read without reference to paragraphs (c), (j), and (l)
3)property you owned when you last became a resident of Canada, or property you inherited after you last became a resident of Canada, if you were a resident of Canada for 60 months or less during the 10-year period before you emigrated and the property is not taxable Canadian property
4)any item of personal-use property (such as your household effects, clothing, cars, collectibles) that has a fair market value of less than $10,000. See the definition of "personal-use property" in Section 54 of the Income Tax Act
Cap gains is on a different form, T1243. T1161 is just reporting (CRA being nosy, like T1135, bleh).