Tag Archives: tax residency

You Have Your Certificate Of Canadian Citizenship – What Next? Six Options For Newly Recognized Canadians

Leave a reply

John Richardson, J.D. – August 13, 2026

Introduction and purpose

This is the third of a series of posts to help you understand Canadian citizenship by descent. Canada’s Bill C-3 which took effect on December 15, 2025 made major changes to Canada’s citizenship laws. By changing it’s “citizenship by descent” rules, Canada has created an opportunity for many U.S. citizens to be formally recognized as Canadian citizens. This series of posts has been designed to understand Canada’s Bill C-3 (effective December 15, 2025) and understand how and why these changes are so valuable for many U.S. citizens.

A series of posts

The first post focused on Understanding The Citizenship By Descent Provisions Of Bill C-3 – The Canada Citizenship Act. Specifically what factual conditions would result in an indiviudal being a Canadian citizen and therefore entitled to a Certificate of Canadian citizenship? (Note that with the exception of naturalization or direct grant, one would, under Canadian law, be a Canadian citizen from birth. Those born in the United States are U.S. citizens from birth. Hence, many people, recognized as Canadian citizens from birth, would be Canada/U.S. dual citizens from birth.)

Understanding The Citizenship By Descent Provisions Of Bill C-3 – The Canada Citizenship Act

The second post is a discussion of “Canadian Citizenship By Descent – A Search For Proof (To Prove The Truth)”

Canadian Citizenship By Descent – A Search For Proof (To Prove The Truth) – 4 Perspectives

If citizenship cannot be proven, it has no functional or practical existence. Therefore, those seeking a Certificate of Canadian citizenship embark on “a search for proof”. Although the law does not establish a formal deadline to submit the application for a “Certificate of Canadian Citizenship”, I suggest applying as quickly as possible. Laws can and do change!

This third post is to explore why eligibility for a “Certificate of Canadian Citizenshp” matters. What good is it to be a Canadian citizen? What role could Canadian citizenship play in your life. So, you are a Canadian citizen? What do you do with it? How can it benefit you and your descendants? I suggest that (particularly as a U.S. citizen) that there are (at least) six ways that having a Canadian passport could enhance your life.

What does it mean to be a Canadian citizen? What does it mean to move to Canada as a Canadian citizen?

This post is organized in the following Parts.

Part A – Taxation is destiny – moving to another country always has tax implications

Part B – If you move to Canada and renounce U.S. citizenship you may be subject to the U.S. “Exit Tax” rules

Part C – A review of who IS a Canadian citizen and entitled to a Certificate of Canadian citizenship”

Part D – I have my certificate of Canadian citizenship – what do I do with it? How do I turn it into a family heirloom? How can I sponsor my spouse?

Part E – Six specific opportunities Canadian citizenship provides to U.S. citizens

Part F – Renouncing U.S. citizenship and having access to the United States as a Canadian citizen

Conclusion

Appendix A – The 877A U.S. Exit Tax Rules

Appendix B – The 877A “dual citizen from birth” exemption to the Exit Tax Rules

Appendix C – The legislative text of the “dual citizen from birth” exemption to “covered expatriate” status

Here we go …

Continue reading →

Of all the different kinds of residency, the one that matters most is your “tax residency”

Leave a reply

Introduction

In a world of information exchange (FATCA and CRS), fiscally challenged governments (United States and other Western Democracies) and expanding notions of taxation (GILTI, France Digital Tax, etc.), your “tax residency” matters. In fact, in the 21st Century the most interesting thing about a person is his tax residency (or residencies).

At the same time, we are living in a world of increased Global Mobility. There are more and more opportunities for residency and citizenship. As people and capital have become more global, tax authorities have worried more and more about how human migration impacts their their tax bases. For example, people are severing tax residency with high tax states like New York and California. The level of (and form) of taxation impacts investment and migration decisions.

Taxation matters. Tax residency matters. People must keep track of both their “citizenship” and “tax residency” portfolios. It’s important to understand how the concepts of “citizenship”, “nationality”, “domicile”, “deemed residency”, “actual residency” and “tax residency” relate.

I recently came across the following article that explores these concepts. Please note that the article uses the term “fiscal residency” as synonymous with “tax residency”.

The following post was authored by Marios S. Kalochoritis, Managing Partner of Loggerhead Partners. We are reproducing this with the full permission of Loggerhead Partners.

Loggerhead Partners is a provider of “multi-family office” services including, estate planning, transaction advisory, corporate structuring and tax planning.

Loggerhead Corporate Services is the Dubai-based specialized entity of Loggerhead Partners that optimizes tax and preserves the wealth of its clients, through tailor-made, corporate structuring solutions with a focus in the UAE

Enjoy …

John Richardson – Follow me on Twitter

Continue reading →

Presumptions, tax residency and presumptions of tax residency: Nonresident alien status in a FATCA world

Leave a reply

Introduction – All The World Is A Multiple Choice Test
Q.1 – A tax resident of the United States is taxable on his worldwide income. According to the Internal Revenue Code of the United States, which one of the following is NOT a tax resident of the United States of America?
(A) A Congresswoman “Born In The USA”, head of her household, who does not and has never had a U.S. Passport
(B) An unmarried Green Card Holder who has never filed an FBAR who lives in El Paso Texas
(C) A fifty year old U.S. citizen who is divorced has never set foot in the United States, doesn’t have a U.S. Social Security Number and lives in and pays full taxes in Germany
(D) A citizen of only Canada who lives four months a year in Florida with his U.S. citizen wife, in a house he owns where he parks a car he owns with Florida license plates
(E) A citizen of Grenada who lives full time in the USA with an E1 visa operating a fast food franchise
For help in finding the answer see …
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/1
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/2
Q. 2 – A tax resident of Canada is taxable on his worldwide income. According to the Income Tax Act Of Canada, which one of the following is a tax resident of Canada?
(A) A Canadian citizen who lives in the United States but has no business, family, social or residential ties to Canada
(B) An individual with a house and family living in Toronto who works and lives in the banking industry in the Middle East
(C) A Massachusetts resident with a summer home in Ontario, Canada in which he visits 180 days every year
(D) An individual who is a legal permanent resident of Canada but actually lives in Hong Kong
(E) A rich Canadian who buys permanent residency in Portugal and uses a tax treaty tie breaker provision to deem himself to be a tax resident of Portugal
Continue reading →

"Tax residence" for US Estate and Gift and "tax treaty tiebreakers with overlapping domicile

Leave a reply

Introduction – Two kinds of tax systems – Two kinds of “tax residency”
Title 26, the Internal Revenue Code of the United States is composed of twelve subtitles. Subtitle A deals with “Income Taxes”. Subtitle B deals with “Estate and Gift Taxes” AKA the “transfer tax regime”. The two subtitles are administered separately. They also have different definitions of “tax residence”.
Continue reading →

Tax residency vs. physical presence: The four questions you must ask before making a country your home

1 Reply

An introduction to “tax residency” …

Most people equate residency with physical presence. They assume that where you are physically presence determines where you live. They further assume that where you live is where you pay your taxes. Conclusion: The country where you live is the country where you must be “tax resident”. Not necessarily!

There is no necessary correlation between where one lives and where one is a “tax resident”. In fact, “residency for tax purposes” may be only minimally related to “residency for immigration (where you live) purposes”. It is possible for people to live in only one country and be a tax resident of multiple countries. The most obvious example is “U.S. citizens residing outside the United States”.

The concept of “tax residency” is fundamental to all systems of taxation. The fundamental question, at the root of all tax systems is:

“what kind of connection to a country is required to assume tax jurisdiction over an “individual”, over “property” or over an “entity”?”
Continue reading →

Welcome to Citizenship Solutions (and Green Card solutions) – John Richardson

Leave a reply

Welcome to Citizenship Solutions – The blog of John Richardson

https://twitter.com/asalexanderdesk/status/777939199265804288

I am guessing (actually I know for sure) that you arrived here because of some aspect of being a U.S. citizen living outside the United States. Maybe you are a Green Card holder. Perhaps you are a former U.S. resident who has just learned that you may still be subject to U.S. “worldwide taxation” even though are a “tax resident” outside the USA. I also know how you are feeling.
Continue reading →