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Tax Considerations

 

 

Tax Considerations

(This is a very important factor to consider and straighten out before working abroad.)

One of the main reasons for going to work Overseas is for the money of course, tax free money to be more specific. Saudi Arabia, still as of writing this, has no income tax imposed on  wages that employees earn while working in the country. While their is no income tax to pay to the Saudi's, if you do not establish yourself as a non-resident of Canada, you will have to pay Mr. Chretien income tax when you eventually come home. The key is to become a non-resident so as to not pay income tax. After all, if you go to Saudi to work and still have to pay income tax, why bother going? You might as well stay home and enjoy a nice cold beer on the weekends.

All of those ads you see in magazines and newspapers about earning tax free money are true, but there is a hitch for us Canadians. You need to contact Revenue Canada, explain to them that you are going overseas, and to ask them to send you a 'form', (yet another blessed form to fill out.) They will send you a form and ask a bunch of very pertinent questions. Questions such as will you own property in Canada while you are overseas, will you maintain an address in Canada, store furniture in Canada, keep your credit cards and driver's license. If you have more 'ticks' in one column and less in another, you may satisfy the tax guru's in Ottawa and become a non resident. When you send them the form, they will return it and say, that either you have satisfied them and will be considered a non-resident, or you haven't. 

Trying to get a clear, cut and dry answer from Revenue Canada is difficult. You need to be sure that they have deemed you a non-resident of Canada before you jump on a plane and head off to the desert, or for that matter, anywhere outside of Canada, including the USA. 

Click on the web address below to log into Revenue Canada.  Bring extra patience with you.  Have Fun!

www.ccra.gc.ca

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Copyright © 2001 Mario J. Hemens
Last modified: September 02, 2001