N-400 CANADIAN-WANT DUAL CITIZENSHIP

[penn-kd 0]

My name is Kerri I am a Canadian with my green card since 2009 and married to us citizen since 2008. I am considering getting my citizenship here but not sure. I have many questions like:

Can I have dual citizenship?

If so, what do I have to do to let Canada know?

Fellow canadians gone thourgh this are there any tax implications if I have dual?

Would I have to pay taxes in both countries?

I just want to make sure I do my research before hand as I am not willing to give up my citizenship.

[Autumnal 25]

TL;DR: You can have US-Canadian citizenship. Getting USC does not make you a non-Canadian.

1. Can I have dual citizenship: Yes. Canada recognizes any Canadian (born or naturalized) as a citizen, unless you revoke that status formally. The US does not deny your right to have Canadian citizenship if you are a naturalized USC.

2. You don't have to tell Canada anything. You carry your passport when you enter the country, and you're treated as a Canadian. Note that your ability to participate in federal elections is lost after being out of the country for 6+ years.

3. Taxes: You should ask the CRA for the most up-to-date information on the tax exemptions and treaty between the US and Canada. The international tax services office is at: 1-800-267-5177.

I file my federal income taxes in both Canada and the US. Because Canada and the US have tax treaties, you are not double taxed on income earned in one country you are resident in. If you're working in the US, you pay taxes on your American wages; you don't claim the same $55,000 in Canada. I believe there's a cap to this, but call the Canadian Revenue Agency and/or IRS to be absolutely sure. I've done this since 2006 without a hiccup.

If you have investments, property, and other sources of income in Canada, you have to file Canadian taxes on those normally. The Canadian government wants its share even if you're a non-resident. Those are questions best directed to a good tax professional or CPA.

(After talking to CRA, see the IRS information here: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p901.pdf and for Canada/US: http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/International-Businesses/Canada---Tax-Treaty-Documents).

[penn-kd 0]

I assume that you are filing taxes in Canada because you have income/investments from there.

[Autumnal 25]

I file in Canada regardless of whether or not I have income so that I have accounted for any/all activities with CRA for the time I'm abroad. I intend to move back to Canada at some point in the future, and a potential 10 year gap could be a problem. It takes me all of 15 minutes to prepare my taxes most years with StudioTax, fire that out the door, and all is well. So far no problems, I get my letter back from Surrey, BC noting that I've successfully filed and that's that. I did have investments in Canada that I needed to accommodate in my taxes before I transferred them to the US, and they had to be declared on my income taxes.