Working remotely in the US for my Canadian company, have green card but...

[Loki_Go 126]

So I was able to successfully work remotely for my Canadian company and went through AOS from a K1 visa and received my green card last month- yay! My question is- I want to go back to Canada for a week and stay with my dad and actually work a regular shift Monday to Friday at my company. Do I need to tell customs anything and do I need some kind of paperwork? I know if you live in Canada and work in the states there's paperwork required but I don't know if I need anything when I go back. Shot in the dark but would anyone know?

[NikLR 13,220]

You need to file your taxes in both Countries. Make sure your taxes removed on your pay check are for a non-resident. Do not claim Canadian residency, period. Not even for health benefits.

Will you be staying the whole week in Canada or driving back and forth daily?

[Lemonslice 4,623]

NLR is not wrong, but you do not decide if CRA consider you a resident or not; they do. Residency status for taxes ≠ Residency.

You will want to fill this form: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/nr73/README.html

You might also be subject to a non-resident surtax: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/tchncl/ncmtx/fls/s5/f1/s5-f1-c1-eng.html

There is a tax treaty between both countries, so you should not be double-taxed, however, some states are not recognizing the treaty (brief explanation here: https://www.amexpattax.com/news/alleviating-double-taxation-foreign-income-state-level/ ).

Plan to find an accountant, especially for your first taxes in this situation.

[NikLR 13,220]

I mean when you file your taxes, you make sure to select non-resident. Thanks for posting all that extra reading for the OP.

[Lemonslice 4,623]

One week, Monday-Friday, she will stay non resident. If she goes every week, Monday-Friday, CRA might determine she is a deemed resident.

[NikLR 13,220]

Thats why asked more questions to determine if it's every week, staying all week, just one week period, etc..

[Loki_Go 126]

I only stayed in Canada Tuesday to Friday, working 4 days. I stayed at my dad's in Ontario the whole time. I'll be returning to Ohio right after work this afternoon.

I've hired people to take care of my taxes in both Canada and the US. I was thinking more about some sort of paperwork when I cross the border, like a work permit or something?

I plan on making week long trips every month or so.

[NikLR 13,220]

No if you're a Canadian citizen you dont need a work permit or anything else to work in Canada. The only thing to be aware of is the time in and out if you plan on doing this every week or more often than once a year...

Once a month probably will be fine as least from a US residency standpoint. You're spending more time in the country than out.

[warlord 72]

Since you have your GC you are fine. You can just tell customs you were visiting your dad which you were. They may ask you other questions, but nothing that will prevent you from coming back in.

The biggest issue would have been before you had your GC or even your EAD (through AOS). Before that, even living in the US and remotely working to another country would be under scrutiny since it's still classified as "working" in the eyes of the INS and that could have caused a lot of issues, but you have your GC now and you will be fine...

[Loki_Go 126]

I was hoping since I was a Canadian citizen I wouldn't need anything. I really want to do this correctly. I'll be spending the majority of my time living in the US.

My working remotely was never under scrutiny and we were up front about it the entire time. We asked about it after our K1 interview. The CO asked my husband about my work in my green card interview and didn't care; it was asked more as a how well do you know her type of a way. At this point I firmly believe working remotely is allowed, not because USCIS says it is, but more because they can't say no. I never worked for anyone in the US.

[moemac59 192]

I was hoping since I was a Canadian citizen I wouldn't need anything. I really want to do this correctly. I'll be spending the majority of my time living in the US.

My working remotely was never under scrutiny and we were up front about it the entire time. We asked about it after our K1 interview. The CO asked my husband about my work in my green card interview and didn't care; it was asked more as a how well do you know her type of a way. At this point I firmly believe working remotely is allowed, not because USCIS says it is, but more because they can't say no. I never worked for anyone in the US.

You can work for a Canadian company remotely but you have to be very careful about how much time you are spending in Canada. Keep track of all your days coming in and out of Canada as you will have to provide this information to USCIS if you plan on going through the N400 process.

I also work for a Canadian company and was telecommuting from home twice a week then was working in TO Weds-Fri during my ROC/N400 process. I keep a log of the time that I entered/departed Canada.

I had a great lawyer who advise me to do this. My job situation was brought up at my citizenship interview and the CO seemed satisfied with the answer I gave him.

Just an fyi but the day that you depart the US and the day that you come back into the US counts as a day of physical presence in the United States.

Hope that this information is useful to someone.

[moemac59 192]

One week, Monday-Friday, she will stay non resident. If she goes every week, Monday-Friday, CRA might determine she is a deemed resident.

I went every week to Toronto for work as I work for a Canadian company based out of Toronto. I listed my US address as my residency when I filed my Canadian tax return and had no issues.

[moemac59 192]

You can work for a Canadian company remotely but you have to be very careful about how much time you are spending in Canada. Keep track of all your days coming in and out of Canada as you will have to provide this information to USCIS if you plan on going through the N400 process.

I also work for a Canadian company and was telecommuting from home twice a week then was working in TO Weds-Fri during my ROC/N400 process. I keep a log of the time that I entered/departed Canada.

I had a great lawyer who advise me to do this. My job situation was brought up at my citizenship interview and the CO seemed satisfied with the answer I gave him.

Just an fyi but the day that you depart the US and the day that you come back into the US counts as a day of physical presence in the United States.

Hope that this information is useful to someone.

One more thing, I know that Warlord suggested that you tell customs that you were visiting your dad but I would suggest that you be completely honest and let them know what you were doing in Canada especially if you intend on going back and forth frequently for work. I never had any issues with customs and I have been crossing weekly to work in Canada since 2014. I have a NEXUS card but keep my Canadian passport with me as a back up in case I had any issues crossing into Canada for work.