David,
We spoke on Sunday re: work permit for American Architect in Vancouver.
Per your suggestion, please send info including work permit application and advise difference between NAFTA work permit and regular work permit.
After our review, we will contact you to set up time to meet.
Thanks for your help,
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david ingram replies:
To get a one year TN Visa to work in Canada as an architect, you must show up at the Canadian Border with
1. Proof of US or Mexican citizenship (passport)
2. A copy of your ORIGINAL Degree - photocopies are unacceptable
3. A Job offer as an architect on either a full or part time basis but it has to be for a period of one year or less and it can not have a built in renewal process or reference to any time period of more than one year.
4. The remuneration must be equal to a going rate.
This visa is issued on the spot at the border.
--------------------------------
As an architect, you also qualify to come on your own under our self assessing system
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/skilled/assess/index.html
This is the self-assessment test for an individual to determine his or her
eligibility to immigrate to Canada without being sponsored by a spouse.
This will likely take you two years.
And, your spouse can sponsor you as follows:
You can start the process by going to:
1. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/guides/3910e.pdf
This is a guide for sponsoring a US citizen spouse into Canada.
Publication 3910E
2. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM1344EA.pdf
This is the application form to sponsor - form IMM-1344A
3. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM1344EB.pdf
This is the sponsorship agreement - Form IMM-1344B
4. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5481E.PDF
This is the Sponsorship Evaluation Form IMM-5481
5. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5409E.PDF
This is a statutory declaration of a common-law marriage - FORM IMM-5409
6. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5540E.PDF
This is the Sponsor Questionnaire - Form IMM-5540
7. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5540E.PDF
This is an authority to release information - FORM IMM-5540
8. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5491E.PDF
This is a document Checklist - Form IMM-5491
9. http://www.canadapost.ca/tools/docp/CIC/bin/hpm-e.asp
This is where you order your official receipt
10. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/imm0008egen.pdf
This is your actual Application for Permanent Residence - FORM IMM-0008GEN
11. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/imm0008_1e.pdf
This is your Background Declaration - FORM IMM-008_1
12. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5406E.PDF
This is your additional family information - FORM IMM-5406
13. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5490E.PDF
This is your spouse or conjugal partner questionnaire -= FORM IMM-5490
14. The Above PLUS a police report from your local police station (See
the guide for details) applies to those being sponsored from the UNITED
STATES. There is a separate brochure for every country. If you are reading
this and are from any other country (Australia, Brunei, Austria, Venezuela,
etc) goto
14a http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/applications/fc.html for other country
guides.
15. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/skilled/assess/index.html
This is the self-assessment test for an individual to determine his or her
eligibility to immigrate to Canada without being sponsored by a spouse.
-----------------------------------------
In addition, a company can sponsor you under the equivalent of a US H1 visa. However, this will take months and is not necessary when you qualify for a visa under NAFTA.
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The equivalent is what I have written about getting a TN Visa for the US. It is a tri-lateral treaty and the same rules apply when you want to come to Canada.
On December 8, 1993, President Clinton signed the NAFTA Agreement, which took effect on January 1, 1994 under 101(a)(15).
TD - Spouse or Child of NAFTA Professional under 214(e)(2) (TN holder)
TN - NAFTA Professional - (North America Free Trade Agreement) PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS PERSON
A professional is defined as a person with a minimum of a bachelor's degree, who applies for a position, which requires a degree as its minimum entry-level requirement unless otherwise specified.
This is the one we heard about in the news. To meet this classification which is unique to Canadians, you must have a bone fide job offer and all licenses and degrees in place for your profession.
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CHECK LIST for the TN Visa
* An applicant for admission must establish Canadian or Mexican or American citizenship
* The applicant must be entering the United States or Canada or Mexico to engage in a profession or occupation at a professional level under NAFTA
* The applicant must be in possession of an offer or contract of employment from a United States, Canadian or Mexican employer stating:
1) The professional activity to be engaged in
2) Purpose of entry
3) Remuneration
4) That the position is temporary in nature and will not exceed one year (although it can be renewed)
* The applicant must provide documentation of his or her educational degree or professional qualifications
* The applicant must meet all licensing requirements
* Employment need not be full-time
* Permanent residence abroad is not a prerequisite
* Maximum period of admission of a TN is one year
* TN Dependants accompanying the principal TN will be admitted under the "TD" classification for the same amount of time as the principal
* A $56 U.S. fee is required ($85.00 for renewal by mail)
* TN applicants are not permitted to enter as a professional to participate in any way to circumvent a strike
* SELF EMPLOYMENT IS NOT PERMISSIBLE
The following is a partial list of some who qualify under a TN Visa. Please note that extensive experience can equal a degree in many cases. All need a Bachelor or Baccalaureate degree unless otherwise noted. In some cases, 3 or 4 years of practical work in a discipline can count for one year of a University degree. Therefore if the University BA requires 3 years, you need 9 or 12 years of work experience to qualify.
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* Accountants - RIA or SIA or CPA or CGA or CMA or CA
** Actuaries (this is one of two classifications added since 1989)
* Agriculturalists
* Agronomists
* Animal Breeders
* Animal Scientists
* Apiculturist
* Architects - BA or state / provincial license
* Astronomers
* Biochemists
* Biologists
* Botanists
* Chemists
* Computer Systems Analyst - BA or Post-secondary Diploma or Post-secondary certificate and three years of practical experience. This does not get you to the USA, if your job is programming a computer. An Analyst might spend a day a month working on some modifications (in a testing mode for instance), but they better not be thought of as a "programmer" within the company.
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**** Computer Software Engineer *** This is NOT here as an approved occupation. However, Jackie Bednarz (US head of the NAFTA Section 16 Working group in Washington stated specifically that if a recognized University was to offer the degree, she would consider computer software engineers under the ENGINEER classification when a recognized University granted the degree. My understanding is that SFU and McGill are now granting such degrees and that the Professional Engineers of British Columbia have recognized graduates as members of their professional society. Note that TC and TN's were being granted for this category on a sporadic basis until the INS realized that no such "official" degree existed.
Jackie Bednarz also pointed out (She was part of the original negotiating team when the original FTA (Free Trade Agreement) was being negotiated in 1985, 86, 87 and 88, there was no such thing as the INTERNET, "web masters" and "web sites". When negotiating the job titles, no thought was given to the computer revolution, other than the computer system analyst designation, which at the time meant a main frame analyst for a $1,000,000 computer.
(Thanks to Stuart Lynne and Richard Pitt) (www.fireplug.net), the CEN-TA Group was an official member of the Internet as far back as 1986 and thanks to Bill Gates himself (he told me to use Microsoft Xenix as my operating system) and Radio Shack Model 16 computers, CEN-TA was using "email" between offices in Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver as early as 1983.
As another aside, Stuart Lynne and Richard Pitt went on to found WIMSEY, the FIRST ISP in CANADA. Bill Gates became quite famous as well.
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* Dairy Scientists
* Dentists - DDS, DMD, or state / provincial license
* Dental Technicians
* Dietitian
* Disaster Relief Insurance Claim Specialists - (claims adjuster employed by an insurance company located in the territory of a party or an independent claims adjuster) - BA and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims; or, three years experience in claims adjustment and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims
* Doctors - (see physician further on)
* Economists
* Engineers - BA or state / provincial licensing
* Entomologists
* Epidemiologists
* Forester - BA or state / provincial licensing
* Geneticists
* Geochemist
* Geologist
* Geophysicists (including Oceanographer in the United States)
* Graphic Designer - BA or post-secondary diploma and three years experience.
* Hotel Managers - BA in hotel / restaurant management; or, post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate in hotel / restaurant management and three years experience in hotel / restaurant management
* Horticulturist
* Industrial Designer - BA or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate and three years experience
* Interior Designer - BA or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate and three years experience
* Journalist BA plus three years experience - (This category is no longer valid and has been left in to explain the circumstances. As I understand it, journalists in general took it as an insult that they had to have a BA degree, because, "most, if not all," of the best known journalists do not have a BA degree.)
* Land Surveyor - BA or state / provincial licenses
* Landscape Architect
* Lawyer (including notary in the Province of Quebec) - LLB, JD, LLL, BCL degree (five years); or membership in a state or provincial bar
* Librarians - MLS or BLS (for which another BA was a prerequisite)
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* Management Consultants - BA; or equivalent professional experience as established by statement or professional credential attesting to five years experience as a management consultant, or five years experience in a field of specialty relating to the consulting agreement. I must make it clear here. A Management Consultant is NOT a manager. The surest way to lose your management consultant renewal is to show up at the border with a business card with the title General Manager, Western Region, or Human Resources Manager, or, or, or. A management consultant could consult with the actual sales manager about sales techniques or about selling into Canada. A management consultant could be advising the actual human resources manager in hiring techniques or even suggesting that one candidate is a better fit than another one. A management consultant can do market research, gather and assemble data and write a report to give to the manager. This is likely the hardest TN visa to get but is also a very important one when it comes to serving the needs of the US company.
Note that the management consultant does NOT need a degree, just five years experience. This is the perfect job description for the person with 23 years of job experience who has never gone through the formal process of getting a university degree in the discipline.
* Mathematician (including statistician)
* Medical Laboratory Technologist (Canada) / Medical Technologist (U.S.) - BA; or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate and three years experience
* Meteorologist
* Nutritionist
* Occupational Therapist - BA; or state / provincial license
* Organic Chemist
* Pharmacologist (Pharmacist) - BA; or state / provincial license
* Physician - (teaching or research only), MD or state /provincial license. To work as MD, a doctor must pass his MLE (medical licensing exam), which has three, parts written over a year. After passing, he or she would enter the U.S. under an H-1A.
* Physicist (including oceanographer in Canada)
* Physiotherapist/Physical Therapist - BA; or state /provincial license
* Plant Breeder
** Plant Pathologists (This is one of two professions added since 1989)
* Poultry Scientist
* Professional (most recognized professions)
* Psychologists - state / provincial license
* Range Conservationist
* Recreational Therapist
* Registered Nurse - state / provincial license
* Research Assistant (working in post-secondary educational institution)
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- * Scientific Technician - Possession of: (a) theoretical knowledge of any of the disciplines: agricultural sciences, astronomy, biology, chemistry, engineering, forestry, geology, geophysics, meteorology, or physics; and (b) the ability to solve practical problems in any of those disciplines, or the ability to apply principles of any of those disciplines to basic or applied research.
* Social Worker
* Soil Scientist
* Sylviculturist
* Teacher (College, Seminary, or University) (Post Secondary level only)
* Technical Publication Writer - BA, or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate, and three years experience
* Urban Planner (including geographer)
* Veterinarian
* Vocational Counselor
* Zoologist
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SUBJECT TO CHANGE
This list is subject to change at any time. When talking to Dennis Olsen about updating the rules, I mentioned a nurse who had found out that nurses could go south instantly in the late 1970's. She got a job offer from a Hawaii hospital, came back to Vancouver, quit her job, sold her house, kicked out her husband, gave away the dogs and showed up at the airport to move to Hawaii, only to find out that they had closed the quota for nurses.
And then, as I was writing this exact section of the book in March, 1995, I received a call from a Doctor who had a job offer from the U.S., sold his house and Canadian practice, only to be told that he did not qualify when he showed up at the border because although a practicing family physician in Canada and fully qualified to go south with a Green Card (a resident alien immigrant visa), he did not qualify as a TN (can only teach or do research) and he did not qualify as an H-1B because he had not written an MLE. This medical licensing exam is written in three stages over a one year timetable. I guess he has to sue his immigration attorney in Los Angeles. This attorney knew he did not have his MLE, but charged him significant monies and told him he could get in now!
Remember, NONE of the foregoing confers permanent status. For permanent status, you must still stand in some sort of line. However, it seems to be true that if you are in the U.S. as a TN or as a L-1, your line moves much faster than if you start from out of the country.
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W A R N I N G
March 8, 1995 - When a Canadian leaves Canada to move to the U.S., there is a departure tax. This means that all of the Canadian's assets are deemed "to have been sold" at fair market value the day before he or she leaves. If there are "paper profits," tax is due on this paper profit although a bond may be posted. The United States did not have this departure tax because the U.S. citizen has to keep on filing U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX RETURNS while out of the country for as long as they remain a U.S. citizen. If they gave up their citizenship, they could own a million dollars worth of assets that they had paid a dollar for and their "paper profit" would have just disappeared into the mist. Section 352 of the new Legal Immigrant and Illegal Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 states that the U.S. Citizen who gives up their citizenship to avoid U.S. income taxation is also banned from ever returning to the U.S. for any purpose.
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NO LONGER!
On February 6, 1995 a departure tax was passed for U.S. citizens giving up their citizenship. This means that when a U.S. citizen gives up their citizenship, they are taxable as if they sold everything and died the day they give up their citizenship and there will be a departure tax on their world wide assets. As of today, March 8, 1995, I have no idea what the form will look like. The U.S. also continues to tax the income of its ex-citizens for ten years after they give up their citizenship if the reason for giving up the citizenship was to avoid U.S. income, gift, and estate taxes. And the question is why would anyone give up U.S. citizenship for any reason other than to avoid income, gift and estate taxes?
=====================
SUGGESTED PRICE GUIDELINES - Aug 5, 2008
david ingram's US / Canada Services
US / Canada / Mexico tax, Immigration and working Visa Specialists
US / Canada Real Estate Specialists
My Home office is at:
4466 Prospect Road
North Vancouver, BC, CANADA, V7N 3L7
Cell (604) 657-8451 -
(604) 980-0321 Fax (604) 980-0325
Calls welcomed from 10 AM to 9 PM 7 days a week Vancouver (LA) time - (please do not fax or phone outside of those hours as this is a home office) expert US Canada Canadian American Mexican Income Tax service help.
email to taxman at centa.com
www.centa.com www.david-ingram.com
pert US Canada Canadian American Mexican Income Tax service and help.
David Ingram gives expert income tax service & immigration help to non-resident Americans & Canadians from New York to California to Mexico family, estate, income trust trusts Cross border, dual citizen - out of country investments are all handled with competence & authority.
Phone consultations are $450 for 15 minutes to 50 minutes (professional hour). Please note that GST is added if product remains in Canada or is to be returned to Canada or a phone consultation is in Canada. ($472.50 with GST for in person or if you are on the telephone in Canada) expert US Canada Canadian American Mexican Income Tax service and help.
This is not intended to be definitive but in general I am quoting $900 to $3,000 for a dual country tax return.
$900 would be one T4 slip one W2 slip one or two interest slips and you lived in one country only (but were filing both countries) - no self employment or rentals or capital gains - you did not move into or out of the country in this year.
$1,200 would be the same with one rental
$1,300 would be the same with one business no rental
$1,300 would be the minimum with a move in or out of the country. These are complicated because of the back and forth foreign tax credits. - The IRS says a foreign tax credit takes 1 hour and 53 minutes.
$1,600 would be the minimum with a rental or two in the country you do not live in or a rental and a business and foreign tax credits no move in or out
$1,700 would be for two people with income from two countries
$3,000 would be all of the above and you moved in and out of the country.
This is just a guideline for US / Canadian returns
We will still prepare Canadian only (lives in Canada, no US connection period) with two or three slips and no capital gains, etc. for $200.00 up. However, if you have a stack of 1099, or T3 or T4A or T5 or K1 reporting forms, expect to pay an average of $10.00 each with up to $50.00 for a K1 or T5013 or T5008 or T101 --- Income trusts with amounts in box 42 are an even larger problem and will be more expensive. - i.e. 20 information slips will be at least $350.00
With a Rental for $400, two or three rentals for $550 to $700 (i.e. $150 per rental) First year Rental - plus $250.
A Business for $400 - Rental and business likely $550 to $700
And an American only (lives in the US with no Canadian income or filing period) with about the same things in the same range with a little bit more if there is a state return.
Moving in or out of the country or part year earnings in the US will ALWAYS be $900 and up.
TDF 90-22.1 forms are $50 for the first and $25.00 each after that when part of a tax return.
8891 forms are generally $50.00 to $100.00 each.
18 RRSPs would be $900.00 - (maybe amalgamate a couple)
Capital gains *sales) are likely $50.00 for the first and $20.00 each after that.
Catch - up returns for the US where we use the Canadian return as a guide for seven years at a time will be from $150 to $600.00 per year depending upon numbers of bank accounts, RRSP's, existence of rental houses, self employment, etc. Note that these returns tend to be informational rather than taxable. In fact, if there are children involved, we usually get refunds of $1,000 per child per year for 3 years. We have done several catch-ups where the client has received as much as $6,000 back for an $1,800 bill and one recently with 6 children is resulting in over $12,000 refund.
Email and Faxed information is convenient for the sender but very time consuming and hard to keep track of when they come in multiple files. As of May 1, 2008, we will charge or be charging a surcharge for information that comes in more than two files. It can take us a valuable hour or more to try and put together the file when someone sends 10 emails or 15 attachments, etc. We had one return with over 50 faxes and emails for instance.
This is a guideline not etched in stone. If you do your own TDF-90 forms, it is to your advantage. However, if we put them in the first year, the computer carries them forward beautifully.
--IRS Circular 230 Disclosure: To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, please be advised that any U.S. tax advice contained in this communication (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used or relied upon, and cannot be used or relied upon, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code, or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein.--
-Disclaimer: This question has been answered without detailed information or consultation and is to be regarded only as general comment. Nothing in this message is or should be construed as advice in any particular circumstances. No contract exists between the reader and the author and any and all non-contractual duties are expressly denied. All readers should obtain formal advice from a competent and appropriately qualified legal practitioner or tax specialist for expert help, assistance, preparation, or consultation in connection with personal or business affairs such as at www.centa.com or www.garygauvin.com. If you forward this message, this disclaimer must be included." -
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