Working outside of the U.S.

[raymaga 25]

Hi:

My 21-year-old daughter (PR - 10 yr. GC) can apply for her U.S. citizenship in November, 2010.

She is a full-time college student (in the U.S.) and wants to go up to Canada this summer to work. She can't find a job in the area where she is living and her Dad said she could work where he works in Victoria, B.C. for the summer.

1. Will her being out of the U.S. and working in Canada for around 2 1/2 months (college will restart in September) affect her citizenship application at all?

2. Will she need to do a Canadian tax return and a U.S. tax return for 2009 (to report the income she made in Canada)?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Rayma

[payxibka 10,044]

1) only absences of 6 mos or greater

2) probably

[Wubzywub 0]

Hi:

My 21-year-old daughter (PR - 10 yr. GC) can apply for her U.S. citizenship in November, 2010.

She is a full-time college student (in the U.S.) and wants to go up to Canada this summer to work. She can't find a job in the area where she is living and her Dad said she could work where he works in Victoria, B.C. for the summer.

1. Will her being out of the U.S. and working in Canada for around 2 1/2 months (college will restart in September) affect her citizenship application at all?

2. Will she need to do a Canadian tax return and a U.S. tax return for 2009 (to report the income she made in Canada)?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Rayma

I would assume that if she is a US permanent resident card holder, she would need to have some sort of working permit/visa to be able to hired for a job in Canada unless she is being paid cash? Then no need to report any taxes. As far as question #1 the answer is no.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

I think she would indeed have to file both; but the US system allows for excluding foreign income up to certain amount.

As for leaving for the summer; she should be ok ---unless someone with experience tells us otherwise.

[payxibka 10,044]

I would assume that if she is a US permanent resident card holder, she would need to have some sort of working permit/visa to be able to hired for a job in Canada unless she is being paid cash? Then no need to report any taxes. As far as question #1 the answer is no.

US tax law makes no distinction on "cash" income being somehow "tax free". All income is to be reported.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

I would assume that if she is a US permanent resident card holder, she would need to have some sort of working permit/visa to be able to hired for a job in Canada unless she is being paid cash? Then no need to report any taxes. As far as question #1 the answer is no.

she is a Canadian citizen.

and yes, she has to report income.

[raymaga 25]

My daughter is a Canadian citizen, so she has no problem working in Canada.

She would not be paid cash, there would be tax deductions taken from her check by the employer.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

I can't find anything in the USCIS literature that would suggest that taking on a summer job and being temporarily outside of the US - 2.5months doesn't meet the extended absence threshold that would have an effect on either a future citizenship application (6mo) or the current PR status (12mo) - would be an issue as long as your daughter can demonstrate that she is not abandoning her PR status. Both the nature of the overseas engagement (summer job) and the fact that she'll be returning to school here would support her intent to maintain her PR status.

As a PR, she has to file US taxes even if she is (and works) temporarily outside the US. There should be an exclusion available on foreign earned income which is - if I remember correctly - calculated based on time spent outside the US and the maximum annual exclusion allowed. I know nothing about Canadian taxes.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/M-618.pdf

Edited June 23, 2009 by Mr. Big Dog

[raymaga 25]

I can't find anything in the USCIS literature that would suggest that taking on a summer job and being temporarily outside of the US - 2.5months doesn't meet the extended absence threshold that would have an effect on either a future citizenship application (6mo) or the current PR status (12mo) - would be an issue as long as your daughter can demonstrate that she is not abandoning her PR status. Both the nature of the overseas engagement (summer job) and the fact that she'll be returning to school here would support her intent to maintain her PR status.

As a PR, she has to file US taxes even if she is (and works) temporarily outside the US. There should be an exclusion available on foreign earned income which is - if I remember correctly - calculated based on time spent outside the US and the maximum annual exclusion allowed. I know nothing about Canadian taxes.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/M-618.pdf

Thank you so much for your reply. I was pretty sure it would be alright for her to leave the U.S. and work in Canada temporarily due to the fact that she still has a permanent address here in the U.S. AND the fact that she will be returning to finish college in the U.S. in September.

[raymaga 25]

My daughter is pretty nervous about doing this because she doesn't want to jeopardize her citizenship application.

I told her to say she's going to visit her Dad in Victoria, B.C. for the summer when she crosses into Canada and to tell the U.S. border officer that she went to visit her Dad for summer break when she returns to the U.S.

Do you think she needs to mention that she had a job while she was in Victoria while staying with her Dad?

[KromiX 1]

My daughter is pretty nervous about doing this because she doesn't want to jeopardize her citizenship application.

I told her to say she's going to visit her Dad in Victoria, B.C. for the summer when she crosses into Canada and to tell the U.S. border officer that she went to visit her Dad for summer break when she returns to the U.S.

Do you think she needs to mention that she had a job while she was in Victoria while staying with her Dad?

Follow the don't ask don't tell policy with the USCIS No need to spill your guts at the gate. If they ask specifically about work, don't lie. If they ask what are going to do in Canda? "Visit my dad for the summer"

Edited June 24, 2009 by KromiX

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

My daughter is pretty nervous about doing this because she doesn't want to jeopardize her citizenship application.

I told her to say she's going to visit her Dad in Victoria, B.C. for the summer when she crosses into Canada and to tell the U.S. border officer that she went to visit her Dad for summer break when she returns to the U.S.

Do you think she needs to mention that she had a job while she was in Victoria while staying with her Dad?

Your daughter is a Canadian citizen, right? As such, there should be no concern as to what she tells the Canadian guys when entering Canada. The conversation shouldn't really extend beyond a "Welcome Home" from the Canadian officials. From a Canada point of view, she has every right to go to Canada to work there, no?

As for the return, again, there's nothing wrong with her accepting a summer job north of the border and then coming back to continue to live and study in the US - she is a PR. That said, I agree with the previous poster that a "don't ask, don't tell" approach is probaby the way to go.

[Krikit 1,163]

I would assume that if she is a US permanent resident card holder, she would need to have some sort of working permit/visa to be able to hired for a job in Canada unless she is being paid cash? Then no need to report any taxes. As far as question #1 the answer is no.

Whoa! Wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong.

Raymaga, I have been back in Canada working many times. It is not a problem. Just make sure her employer knows to tax her as a non-resident. She will need to file tax returns with both countries. There is a thread about it in the Canada Forum. The IRS/CRA Income Tax Thread.

[raymaga 25]

Thank you Krikit... I will tell her that someone else has done this, and that should make her feel better. She just doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize her citizenship.... she's waited for 4 years (and still has more than a year to go) to apply.

[warlord 72]

Remember 6 months is not always the safe zone. Anyone seen as living and working outside the US for non-US companies or "Special Circumstances" like the military etc can easily be seen a abandoning the Green Card. People have been denied on the N-400 for being out less then 6 months and living and working outside the US.

It is a risk you take. Worst possible situtation is the IO will deem her to have validated the Green Card and abandoned it, meaning she would start back from scratch. The IO would find this information out during the interview if they ask her about previous trips and he might casually ask what she was doing there. Brining up her job could put her in a bad situation, not mentioning it to the IO and him finiding out, could put her in a worse situation.

So you really need to look into that further, it's not as simple as saying, oh you're gone under 6 months you're safe. This is not true and people have been denied the N-400 because of things like that, as well as others have had their Green Cards revoked.

Now having her still using your address in the US helps, but you really need to be careful of leaving the US like that to work. If she was leaving for vacation and not working then that wouldn't be an issue as long as she's satisfied the number of days in the US requirement.

You might want to make an INFOPASS appointment first to discuss this and make sure that this will be ok...