Comments on: Beware of CRA’s definition of “foreign property”

By: Fancy Tax Software - Should You Be Afraid? | My Findependence Day

Fancy Tax Software - Should You Be Afraid? | My Findependence Day — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 19:32:05 +0000

[...] the final numbers matched then next year I would do it all myself. However a recent article over at Canadian Capitalist has got me wondering if the average person (aka Me) can do their own [...]

By: Nice Weather Edition of Linkstuff April 27

Nice Weather Edition of Linkstuff April 27 — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 09:08:49 +0000

[...] Canadian Capitalist alerts us to a little-known fact with beware of CRA’s defiinition of foreign property. [...]

By: A Week in Review: Edition #8 | My Findependence Day

A Week in Review: Edition #8 | My Findependence Day — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 01:40:29 +0000

[...] – Canadian Capitalist clarifies the CRA’s definition of foreign ownership rules. Now he’s got me worried [...]

By: Canadian Personal Finance Blog » Blog Archive » Random Thoughts: Spring/Summer Begins

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 06:08:51 +0000

[...] tax tip from the Canadian Capitalist Beware of CRA’s defintion of Foreign Property, since it isn’t just foreign land holdings they [...]

By: Dividend Growth Investor

Dividend Growth Investor — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 20:34:41 +0000

CC,

That sucks, but hey having maxed out retirement contributions and having more than 100K in foreign assets is a pretty cool thing. I guess it’s not only americans who have to get cold calls from the tax man on international assets

By: Canadian Capitalist

Canadian Capitalist — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:45:56 +0000

piggybank: You’re right. I’ll edit the wording to make it accurate. Here’s the explanation from the FAQ:

“The $100,000 threshold is cost-based, that is, it’s the “cost amount” as defined under subsection 248(1) of the Income Tax Act. It is not based on the fair market value or an indexed amount.”

By: piggybank

piggybank — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:37:59 +0000

“Did you own or hold foreign property at any time in 2008 with a total cost of more than CAN$100,000?”

“If you own foreign stocks in a taxable account and your portion of the account exceeded $100,000 in value at any point during the year”

I think this just refers to the adjusted cost base of property, not the value, market or otherwise, as you pointed to.

By: Canadian Capitalist

Canadian Capitalist — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:03:24 +0000

Daniel: I don’t think answering ‘yes’ changes things one way or another for investments held in Canadian brokerage accounts. After all, Canadian brokerages report transactions to the CRA and issue T-slips, which should be reported in the tax return.

mjw2005: I was really surprised to read this but Michael’s comments suggests that at least some know about this regulation.

Jordan: Yes, Canadian domiciled ETFs (even when they hold foreign stocks) won’t fall under the definition of “foreign property”.

DGI: True, but those of us who max out and have started building a taxable portfolio should be aware of these rules.

By: Finance Matters

Finance Matters — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:40:26 +0000

Required knowledge for those of us that have studied for the CFP exam!

By: Dividend Growth Investor

Dividend Growth Investor — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:27:05 +0000

But then isn’t it more tax efficient for canadians to hold US dividend stocks in tax deferred accounts? So this little box helps you save money in the long run Tax avoidance at its best..