Living/working in Canada

[Grignard_TN]

         Do any US citizens here work or live in Canada? What is the process you go through? For those that do, have you ever considered revoking your US citizenship and moving permanently?

[stratvox]

I have some input for you, with the caveats that I'm not a US citizen, I'm a Canadian, and I Am Not A Lawyer And This Is Not Legal Advice:

It's pretty much pointless to try to revoke your US citizenship as a Canadian, because our record keeping is good, and we (i.e. the Government of Canada) will share information with the US for tax purposes. This is because the US is unique in the world in taxing their citizens that reside in other countries. You can revoke your citizenship until you're blue in the face, and Uncle Sam is still going to come after you for taxes. My Mom's friend Barb holds dual citizenship, has lived here for decades, and still pays US taxes, albeit at a much lower rate than US residents do.

The general process is to gain working status in Canada and a job, and then apply for landed immigrant status. That's a process that (as I understand it) generally takes a couple of years to finish. After you become a landed immigrant, you can apply to become a citizen after five years. By this time and assuming there've been no crimes or anything like that this is pretty much a formality with a low rate of denial. This process is distinct from what happens for refugees (that is people who've been accepted as asylum seekers) who have a shorter process due to their inability to return to their country of origin (otherwise they don't qualify as refugees), but I suspect it's going to be a while before Canada starts seeing the US as a place that people can seek asylum from.

[Grignard_TN]

2 hours ago, stratvox said:

I have some input for you, with the caveats that I'm not a US citizen, I'm a Canadian, and I Am Not A Lawyer And This Is Not Legal Advice:

It's pretty much pointless to try to revoke your US citizenship as a Canadian, because our record keeping is good, and we (i.e. the Government of Canada) will share information with the US for tax purposes. This is because the US is unique in the world in taxing their citizens that reside in other countries. You can revoke your citizenship until you're blue in the face, and Uncle Sam is still going to come after you for taxes. My Mom's friend Barb holds dual citizenship, has lived here for decades, and still pays US taxes, albeit at a much lower rate than US residents do.

The general process is to gain working status in Canada and a job, and then apply for landed immigrant status. That's a process that (as I understand it) generally takes a couple of years to finish. After you become a landed immigrant, you can apply to become a citizen after five years. By this time and assuming there've been no crimes or anything like that this is pretty much a formality with a low rate of denial. This process is distinct from what happens for refugees (that is people who've been accepted as asylum seekers) who have a shorter process due to their inability to return to their country of origin (otherwise they don't qualify as refugees), but I suspect it's going to be a while before Canada starts seeing the US as a place that people can seek asylum from.

Oh, I was just curious on how frequent it is. Don't think I'd give up my citizenship but I did like visiting. Thanks though.

[stratvox]

Well, you asked, so.... 

Americans living and working in Canada is pretty reasonably common; I don't know any that renounced their citizenship. And come back up for a visit; if you ramble through Kingston Ontario you can look me up and I'll show you where the good bars are.

[Grignard_TN]

On 7/13/2019 at 1:03 PM, stratvox said:

Well, you asked, so.... 

Americans living and working in Canada is pretty reasonably common; I don't know any that renounced their citizenship. And come back up for a visit; if you ramble through Kingston Ontario you can look me up and I'll show you where the good bars are.

    Thanks man. I don't have any plans but you never know where life will take you.