Hfx_Cdn
Well-known member
Tom, as has been covered in various previous strings, it is a very convoluted set of laws and interpretations. There are no formal visa requirements for tourist between Canada and the US, it is deemed an informal one by the respective country's border guard upon entry.
There are 2 areas of concern for Canadians entering the US and they have differing rules. Canadians tourists are allowed 6 months entry in any given year, with the year defined as a rolling 12 month period. So when we cross say on December 1st, we must leave by June 1st, unless we leave the US for 30 consecutive days. Or as some do, they cross stay 2 months, leave for a month, cross again etc, but still need to keep track of their number of days to ensure the maximum 6 months with the 12 month rolling year is not exceeded. There never used to be any tracking, but Homeland Security now requires Canadian border patrol to electronically advise US border patrol when we return.
The second set of rules that need to be followed are the US IRS requirement that all "residents" must submit an income tax return on world wide income. Their definition is 184 days calculated as 100% of the current year, 33% of the preceding year, and 17% of the second preceding year, however they will allow exemptions of filing upon the filing a Form 8840, (Closer Connection Exception Statement for Aliens), again there are several strings dealing with its submissions.
Forum Staff member Stu has done a good job explaining both of these requirements, some are in the Library, and others are within strings.
A common misconception is that Canadian health ceases after 6 months out of province. While that was previously true, many provinces have extended that deadline to 7 months, and one has gone to 8 months. Plus many allow extensions upon written request.
Sorry for the long answer to a short question, but it is a complicated issue.
Ed
There are 2 areas of concern for Canadians entering the US and they have differing rules. Canadians tourists are allowed 6 months entry in any given year, with the year defined as a rolling 12 month period. So when we cross say on December 1st, we must leave by June 1st, unless we leave the US for 30 consecutive days. Or as some do, they cross stay 2 months, leave for a month, cross again etc, but still need to keep track of their number of days to ensure the maximum 6 months with the 12 month rolling year is not exceeded. There never used to be any tracking, but Homeland Security now requires Canadian border patrol to electronically advise US border patrol when we return.
The second set of rules that need to be followed are the US IRS requirement that all "residents" must submit an income tax return on world wide income. Their definition is 184 days calculated as 100% of the current year, 33% of the preceding year, and 17% of the second preceding year, however they will allow exemptions of filing upon the filing a Form 8840, (Closer Connection Exception Statement for Aliens), again there are several strings dealing with its submissions.
Forum Staff member Stu has done a good job explaining both of these requirements, some are in the Library, and others are within strings.
A common misconception is that Canadian health ceases after 6 months out of province. While that was previously true, many provinces have extended that deadline to 7 months, and one has gone to 8 months. Plus many allow extensions upon written request.
Sorry for the long answer to a short question, but it is a complicated issue.
Ed