Why this decision matters
Cross-border tax trouble rarely comes from tax rates; it comes from missed forms. The move year produces the longest filing list of your life, and several of its items are pure information returns — no tax due, but penalties starting in the five figures for silence.
This guide maps the standard filings. Individual circumstances add and subtract items, which is exactly why the list belongs in professional hands the first year.
The central idea
Canada wants a final return with departure schedules. The U.S. wants everything disclosed. The information returns are where the danger lives.
The Canadian side of the move year: a final T1 showing your departure date, with Form T1161 (properties owned on emigration, if over $25,000 total), Form T1243 (the deemed disposition calculation), and Form T1244 if electing to defer departure tax with security. Afterward, Canada hears from you only if Canadian-source threads remain: section 216 returns for rental income, section 116 clearances and returns for property sales, and Part XIII withholding — handled by payers — on pensions, RRSP withdrawals, and dividends.
The U.S. side begins with a residency-start determination under Publication 519 (dual-status year or full-year elections), then the Form 1040 with worldwide income and foreign tax credits (Form 1116) doing the anti-double-tax work. Around it orbits the information stack: FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) for foreign accounts exceeding $10,000 US in aggregate, Form 8938 for specified foreign assets, Form 5471 for your Canadian corporation, Forms 3520/3520-A where trust-like accounts require them, Form 8621 for any PFIC that survived the move, and Form 8833 for treaty positions. State returns follow their own rules. It is a system that rewards inventory-keeping above all else.
Educational use notice
This publication is part of the Numera Decision Library and is provided for education only. It is general information — not accounting, tax, legal, or investment advice — and it does not consider your personal circumstances. Every guide is grounded in official guidance from government and regulated authorities — including the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), the Department of Finance Canada, Service Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security — with the sources listed at the end of each guide. Tax rules and dollar limits change; confirm current figures with the official source, and speak with a qualified professional before acting on any decision discussed here.
This guide addresses tax and financial-reporting matters only. Nothing in it is immigration advice; residency for tax purposes is distinct from immigration status, and immigration questions should be directed to a licensed immigration professional.
Official references
Sources are official government and regulated-authority publications. Official sites reorganize periodically — search the document title if a link has moved.