Earlier this summer, the CSA distributed an electronic advisory to our members updating them regarding the status of the entry/exit initiative. As most of you know, the entry/exit initiative is the co-ordinated entry-exit information system between Canada and the United States. is system permits information sharing so that the record of a land entry into one country can be used to establish an exit record from the other. Previously, Canada and the U.S. only exchanged biographic entry information at land crossings about third-country nationals (non-U.S. or non-Canadian citizens), permanent residents of Canada who are not U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents of the U.S. who are not Canadian citizens. As of July 11, 2019, the entry/exit initiative has been expanded to include the sharing of information about all travellers − including Canadian and American citizens − at land ports of entry. is means that now, when Canadian citizens enter the United States at a land crossing, their information will automatically be sent to Canada Border Services Agency and they will be recorded as having le Canada. When they re-enter Canada, this information will be transmitted to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and an exit record will be created on the U.S. side. In other words, U.S. Customs and Border Protection o cers will now know precisely when you entered and exited the United States. e biographic information shared will include the travellers’ rst, middle and last name, date of birth, nationality, sex, document type (i.e. passport), document number and the name of the country which issued the travel document. In addition to the biographic information that Canada and the U.S. currently collect about travellers at ports of entry, the date and time of entry, as well as the port through which the traveller entered is collected by each country, and are exchanged to create exit records. While the current federal government has gone on the record stating that the entryexit information will not be shared with the provinces to administer provincial health programs, it will be used to administer federal bene t programs such as Old Age Security (OAS) and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS). Under the current OAS rules, if you have resided in Canada for 20 years past the age of 18, there are no residency requirements tied to your OAS bene ts. is means that those who meet the 20-year criterion are not required to stay in Canada for a prescribed amount of time in order to continue to receive their OAS bene ts. e Guaranteed Income Supplement, on the other hand, will be suspended once a recipient is outside of Canada for more than six consecutive months. It is important to remember that the immigration and tax rules for Canadian snowbirds remain unchanged. For immigration purposes, as Canadian citizens travelling to the United States for tourism purposes, we are limited to “sixmonths less a day” (182 days) within any 12-month period. For example, if you entered the U.S. on November 1, 2019, your 12-month period would conclude on October 31, 2020. Within this time frame, you would be limited to 182 days. One of the recurring questions which members have been asking our head o ce sta is how the full implementation of the entry/exit initiative will impact the so-called “30-day rule.” For those who are unfamiliar with this policy, when you enter the United States for your winter stay and temporarily return to Canada for fewer than 30 days, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) o cer may, at their discretion, treat your brief return to Canada as if you never le the United States. At this time, we are advising our members to continue to err on the side of caution and to include short-term trips back to Canada of fewer than 30 days in their 182-day allotment. We will be seeking further clari cation from U.S. Customs and Border Protection regarding this issue. For tax purposes, any Canadian who spends roughly four months or longer in the U.S. each calendar year would want to le IRS Form 8840 in order to be treated as a non-resident. e three-year calculation known as the substantial presence test determines whether or not you need to submit the closer connection form. If you typically spend four or more months annually in the U.S., the CSA strongly recommends ling the 8840 Formby theJune 15deadline. You are eligible to le the 8840 Form as long as you do not exceed 182 days in a single calendar year. It is more important than ever that Canadian travellers adhere to American immigration and tax rules now that this stage of the entry/ exit initiative is fully implemented. Travellers can view their U.S. travel history online here, i94.cbp.dhs.gov. Safe travels. Government Relations Report Ron Steeves First Vice-President CSANews | FALL 2019 | 13
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzMzNzMx