Cross-border Financial Planning
Your Assets Might Not Cross as Easily as You Can
If you’ve accumulated assets like real estate, private corporations, or investments in 401k plans, IRAs, Roth IRAs, 529 plans, etc., from your time living in the U.S., it is in your best interest to consult a cross-border financial planning specialist to help you navigate the complexities of maintaining and growing assets across borders.
Planning Can Go a Long Way!
When moving across the border, poor financial planning can expose you to:
- Potential tax traps
- Limited access to your investment accounts
- Freezing of your assets
- Missed tax saving opportunities
- Unfavorable tax obligations resulting from poor choice of corporate structure
- Invalidity of your Will or Trust
Common Cross-Border Roadblocks and FAQs
Most American financial institutions are not registered to hold accounts for Canadian residents. You will likely be asked to liquidate or transfer your accounts to an institution that is capable of providing that service.
Although it is possible to do, an assessment of the situation at hand is necessary to determine whether or not you should follow-through with this strategy. In most situations, this strategy is not recommended and can lead to a substantial tax burden.
This is definitely possible; however, this is a complex matter that goes beyond simply handling a qualified account as a Canadian resident. There are legal and fiscal technicalities at play, which will require the participation of of cross-border specialists to cover legal, fiscal and financial planning of the estate.
You definitely shouldn’t. Gifting U.S. real estate to a Canadian resident family member will trigger a slew of unfavorable taxes for both you and your children.
