Does my American Spouse have to pay taxes to CA gov before PR Status?

[elithx]

My wife and I were married in Sept of 2016. After we were married, she moved to Canada to live with me. During this time we completed and submitted her PR application. She was accepted in 2017. I am assuming that she only has to file her american taxes for 2016, since there was no income made in Canada, and more importantly she was technically just a visitor to Canada last year, not a resident.

Am I correct in this assumption? My wife and I decided to get her taxes filed by a professional this year because of how complex it is (I need to get an ITIN etc), however our tax person mentioned that my wife would have to file Canadian taxes for the year we were married even though she was not a PR. I feel like he may just be trying to make more money from us. Any advise would be very much appreciated.


Cheers,
Steve

 

[Regina]

Well.. I recommend you ask a professional accountant. There is such a thing as "DEEMED resident for tax purposes" in Canada. Immigration status is not important. But for all details about taxes you better ask a specialist.

 

[elithx]

Well.. I recommend you ask a professional accountant. There is such a thing as "DEEMED resident for tax purposes" in Canada. Immigration status is not important. But for all details about taxes you better ask a specialist.

Thank you for the reply Regina.

Thanks for that info. I hadn't heard of "Deemed resident" before. I will look that up. I have no problem filling out her taxes for 2016. I just want to make sure that we are not being milked by the accountant to give him more work than necessary.

EDIT: I just came across this which looks to shed more light on this subject: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/non-residents-canada.html

This is also a relevant article:
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/about-your-tax-return/you-have-file-a-return.html

 

[elithx]

I think I just found the answer to my own question, but I'll post it here in case someone has the same question. It make it pretty clear, that my wife would have to file taxes for 2016 with Canada:

Are you a resident of Canada?
You become a resident of Canada for income tax purposes when you establish significant residential ties in Canada. You usually establish these ties on the date you arrive in Canada.

What are residential ties?
Residential ties in Canada include:

• a home in Canada;
• a spouse or common-law partner (see the definitions in the General Income Tax and Benefit Guide) or dependants who move to Canada to live with you;
• personal property, such as a car or furniture; and
• social ties in Canada.

Other residential ties that may be relevant include, but are not limited to, a Canadian driver's licence, Canadian bank accounts or credit cards, and health insurance with a Canadian province or territory.


Taken from: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/t4055-newcomers-canada-2016/t4055-newcomers-canada-2016.html

 

[Regina]

Well, not THAT easy. To flile taxes your wife has to have SIN. She may get it if she is a PR or on a work permit.

Go to an accountant for an ADVICE and not for a filing. Usually their advice is free.