Newcomers to Canada (immigrants)
The following information is to you only for the first tax year during which you are considered a resident of Canada for tax purposes . Next, we will consider more than you are a newcomer to tax purposes.
If you immigrate to Canada, we believe that you have acquired (Grow) almost all your assets to their fair market value the day you immigrated. If you return to reside in Canada and you had a year deemed disposition of your departure, check out our Web dispositions of property .
Residency status
You become a resident of Canada for tax purposes when you established residential ties with Canada’s leading, usually from the date of your arrival in Canada.
Newcomers who have established residential ties in Canada may be, as appropriate:
people who have applied for permanent resident status to Citizenship and Immigration Canada or who have received;
people who received the Citizenship and Immigration Canada an “approval in principle” to remain in Canada.
If you were a resident of Canada in a previous year and you have become non-resident, you will become a resident of Canada when you return to Canada and re-establish your residential ties.
What is residential ties?
Residential ties include:
a home in Canada;
a spouse or common-law partner (see the definition in the General Income Tax and Benefit Return ) and dependents who move to Canada to live with you;
personal property in Canada, as a car or furniture;
social ties in Canada.
Other ties that may be relevant are:
a Canadian driver’s license;
credit cards issued in Canada or Canadian bank accounts;
health insurance in a province or territory of Canada.
For more information, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-221, Determination of resident status of an individual .
If you want an opinion on your residency status, fill out and send us Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada) .
Your tax obligations As a resident of Canada:
you must report the income from all sources (income from sources inside and outside Canada) on your Canadian tax return;
you must make sure to pay the correct amount of taxes according to law;
you have the right and responsibility to verify your tax status each year;
you can claim all deductions, all refundable tax credits and all federal funding, provincial or territorial you are entitled.
As a newcomer to Canada, you should know that most individuals who reside in Canada must complete one tax return for the tax year, because the Canadian government collects taxes on behalf of all provinces and all territories, except Quebec.
Note
If you live in Quebec during the tax year, you may need to complete a provincial return. For more information, contact Revenu Québec .
Do you file a tax return?
Whether you are a resident of Canada for a part or an entire tax year (from 1 st January to 31 December), you must file a tax return if you are in one of the following:
you owe taxes;
you want to request a refund.
Even if you do not have to declare income or tax payable, you may be eligible for certain credits or payments. You must file a tax return to receive the credits or payments to:
the credit for the GST / HST (Goods and Services Tax / Harmonized Sales)
payments of child tax benefit ;
tax credits, provincial or territorial.
For more information, see “Should you file a return? “In the General Income Tax and Benefit Return .
Which tax package?
For the tax year during which you are a newcomer to Canada, and for each of the years you continue to be resident in Canada for tax purposes, use the General Income Tax and Benefit and the forms book for the province or territory of residence at December 31 of the tax year.
Tax rates and tax credits are different in each province and territory, so it is important that you use the correct forms book for your province or territory.
If you live in Quebec, you may need to complete a provincial return. For more information, contact Revenu Québec .
Filing deadline
You must send your return on or before:
April 30th of the year following the tax year;
June 15th of the year following the tax year if you or your spouse or common-law declare business income in Canada (unless the expenditures in connection with the operation of the business are mainly abrix tax).
Note
Any balance due must be paid no later than 30 April of the year following the tax year, and this, regardless of the filing deadline.
Eligibility for benefits and credits
As a newcomer to Canada, you may be entitled to credit for the Goods and Services Tax / Harmonized Sales Tax (GST / HST), the Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) and / or universal benefit for Child Care Benefit (UCCB) in the year you became a resident of Canada.
To claim the credit for the GST / HST, complete Form RC151, Request for the GST / HST Information for Individuals Who Become Residents of Canada .
To apply for the CCTB and / or UCCB, complete Form RC66, Application for Canadian children . In addition, depending on your immigration status or residence, you may need to complete Schedule entitled Status in Canada Statement of Income .
