Start here
Start here: I'm leaving (or returning to) Canada
Last reviewed:
Guidance, not advice. We explain the rules, we don't assess your situation. Always seek financial or tax advice from your accountant, or contact CRA. Read our editorial scope →
- 1
Work out your residency status
Canada taxes on residence, so the first question is whether you have actually ceased to be a tax resident -- which turns on your residential ties, not just where you physically are.
Moving abroad hub → - 2
Understand the departure tax
When you emigrate you are deemed to have disposed of most property at fair market value, triggering tax on the accrued gains as if you sold everything the day you left.
Departure tax & emigration → - 3
Plan your return, if you'll come back
Returning to Canada re-establishes residency and gives you a fresh cost base on most property -- but the timing and the year of return matter.
Returning to Canada → - 4
Compare the destination tax system
Before you go, understand how the country you are moving to taxes you compared with Canada -- rates, capital gains, retirement accounts, and (for the US) citizenship-based taxation.
Canada vs US tax comparison →
Also useful
Last reviewed: