R U Canadian? R U Offshore?

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g33ks

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Nobody every taught me this or drilled home the importance/advantages so I never really investigated until I finally was fed up paying such high taxes, I had to learn the hard way...but if you are earning over $300,000 a year in AM and plan on earning that at least for the next 5 or so years and you are Canadian you should be offshore IMO. If you can work from anywhere in the world you are CRAZY to be a Canadian resident. Your money will be worth double essentially and you can still live in Canada for 6 months a year (the warmer months).

I have always found it hard to find lawyers, accountants who really help but I have finally found some good contacts. Let me know if you need help or considering and I am pretty sure they can help you too.

Thought I would post this after reading a couple posts here where people were discussing similar topics.

Send me PM if you want.
 
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Glad you started this thread, I'm sure a lot of canadians can use some advice when it comes to this stuff. PM sent.
 
Yep, Canadian, living in Australia now, spent some time in Indonesia, and would be in South East Asia somewhere now if I didn't have school age children.

Left Canada over 10 years ago, and tbh can't ever see returning to live.
 
Since there is a bit of interest I will make a quick post of what I have learnt/found interesting so far. This isn't advice and may not be 100% accurate. It only pertains to Canadians, I hear Americans have it alot worse.

1) You will still be a Canadian Citizen just not a resident
2) You will need to get health insurance you can no longer get medical attention in Canada for "free". This cost to a normal person is approx $2,000 to $3000 a year. You go to same dr and hospitals but you pay instead of just walking out as we do now. your insurance will reimburse you, just like they would if you got sick while travelling.
3) You cannot have a bank account, house, car lease, visa etc. Nothing with your name on it...NOTHING
4) You can keep your investments
5) You must be out of Canada for at least 6 months of the year
6) The day you leave is the day you file your final tax form after that point you are non res.
7) All your monies will be offshore (panama, barbadoes, turks etc.) when you are in the USA/CAN/EUR or anywhere else you use a Visa or ATM hooked up to your offshore bank
8) When you are in Canada you rent everything
9) You cannot store your furniture, you must sell everything
10) You need to let your drivers license expire but you will get an international drivers license
11) Keep your passport
12) Might have to get rid of life insurance
13) You must leave with the intent to never return
14) Your corp must have 5 employees offshore but if you set up personally you are fine.
 
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forgot to mention you will need to set up residency elsewhere which can cost $10,000+.
 
http://www.wickedfire.com/shooting-shit/83765-any-snowbirds-here-international-re-investors.html

Norb and me are planning to get our temporary resident card at dominican republic and then one year later get a permanent resident card. You'll need it to leave Canada on an one-way ticket. It is also advised that you do not return to Canada for the next 2-3 years just so you are safe with the CRA.

Why dominican republic? Well, once you get your temporary resident card you can leave the place and go back one year later to pick up your pr card. 3 years later, you can become citizen and get a passport which allows you to become anonymous with the Canadian gov (Change all bank documents to DR passport). Also there is no other place allows me to not stay at the country and get a PR. I am currently in contact with a domnican rep lawyer (Guzman Ariza Law Firm in the Dominican Republic) so if anyone interested in forming a group and get a temporary resident at DR, hit me up.

Since I am planning to leave for good and return occasionally, I didn't do that much research on the impact of returning to Canada and be safe from the CRA. Just remember that the CRA is out there to nail you down if you fail to pass THEIR non-resident guidelines.

For American, you can get another passport and open all your financial stuffs with your second passport and you are pretty much anonymous to the IRS but you are still evading tax.
 
g33ks said:
Since there is a bit of interest I will make a quick post of what I have learnt/found interesting so far. This isn't advice and may not be 100% accurate. It only pertains to Canadians, I hear Americans have it alot worse.

1) You will still be a Canadian Citizen just not a resident
2) You will need to get health insurance you can no longer get medical attention in Canada for "free". This cost to a normal person is approx $2,000 to $3000 a year. You go to same dr and hospitals but you pay instead of just walking out as we do now. your insurance will reimburse you, just like they would if you got sick while travelling.
3) You cannot have a bank account, house, car lease, visa etc. Nothing with your name on it...NOTHING
4) You can keep your investments
5) You must be out of Canada for at least 6 months of the year
6) The day you leave is the day you file your final tax form after that point you are non res.
7) All your monies will be offshore (panama, barbadoes, turks etc.) when you are in the USA/CAN/EUR or anywhere else you use a Visa or ATM hooked up to your offshore bank
8) When you are in Canada you rent everything
9) You cannot store your furniture, you must sell everything
10) You need to let your drivers license expire but you will get an international drivers license
11) Keep your passport
12) Might have to get rid of life insurance
13) You must leave with the intent to never return
14) Your corp must have 5 employees offshore but if you set up personally you are fine.
Click to expand...

Best advice on the subject I've ever seen posted.
 
g33ks said:
10) You need to let your drivers license expire but you will get an international drivers license
Click to expand...

Are you talking about just a drivers license from another country?

There is something that many people call an "International Drivers License" which is basically just translations of your valid license from elsewhere and is not valid by itself.
 
Netphase said:
Are you talking about just a drivers license from another country?

There is something that many people call an "International Drivers License" which is basically just translations of your valid license from elsewhere and is not valid by itself.
Click to expand...

You need the paper international license to legally drive in a lot of places on your Canadian license. You need to have both documents. You would need to eventually get a license in the country in which you choose to reside. Most won't let you drive on a foreign license, and the paper international license, past a certain time period. It's a year in Spain, and then another 6 months once you receive your residencia I believe.
 
With the drivers license, just try to get a license in your new country as soon as possible. Each country will have their own laws about how you get a license in the new country, but I remember when they first issued my Australian license they asked to see my Canadian one and proceed to punch a hole in it, presumably invalidating it, or certainly making it questionable.

Always wished I could have maintained both and pulled out the Canadian license whenever I got pulled over for speeding in Australia. Then again in the last 10 years I've never been issued a roadside speeding ticket here, they always come in the mail with my Aussie details already known.
 
Some great information here. i have looked into this myself but wasn't willing to give up my residence and investments here.
 
Brad Gosse said:
Some great information here. i have looked into this myself but wasn't willing to give up my residence and investments here.
Click to expand...

It seems like you have not read g33k's posts... Residence is rather useless since the only thing it entitles you to is our amazing tax rate and health insurance. By giving up your residency, you do not lose your citizenship which makes leaving Canada so much more tempting. You can also keep your investments if you leave Canada and become non-resident. Just check with few accountants to what to do with them like assigning your properties to rental management company.

It is also in your best interest to get a driver license in the new country as soon as possible. It is just little things that tells the CRA that you are leaving Canada for good and want to settle at elsewhere.
 
Funny you mention it.. I'm Canadian and right now im living back in Canada but I've spent 9 years of my life down in Costa Rica and even a few months in Panama. I lived in CR for a few years when I was a kid because my parents moved there from Vancouver, and then I moved back to CR for 4 years when i was 19-23, my dad actually still lives there and so does one of my brothers. I love the climate, the beaches, having my money be worth 4-5 times what it is here and not worrying about taxes is great. (in CR the biggest bill they have is worth $17 or so, and taxi's, even restaurants and shops/stores will look at you like you are crazy if you try to pay the $3-10 equivalent bill with that $17).

Within the next year i'll be moving back to warmer climate.. im not sure where yet but I have a few ideas. I want to buy some property but I don't want it to be somewhere thats already taken off completely and is very expensive (basically costa rica).

Geeks, can you PM me your AIM id like to talk to you about some of this stuff..


g33ks said:
Nobody every taught me this or drilled home the importance/advantages so I never really investigated until I finally was fed up paying such high taxes, I had to learn the hard way...but if you are earning over $300,000 a year in AM and plan on earning that at least for the next 5 or so years and you are Canadian you should be offshore IMO. If you can work from anywhere in the world you are CRAZY to be a Canadian resident. Your money will be worth double essentially and you can still live in Canada for 6 months a year (the warmer months).

I have always found it hard to find lawyers, accountants who really help but I have finally found some good contacts. Let me know if you need help or considering and I am pretty sure they can help you too.

Thought I would post this after reading a couple posts here where people were discussing similar topics.

Send me PM if you want.
Click to expand...
 
The advice I was given by one of my accountants was (kinda hesitant to discuss this topic openly with many) -- set up an international corporation using a local director that forfeits any say in the business contractually. Foreign corporation pays domestic for consultation, which pays salaries etc. Beats having to making the move.
 
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