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Old 02-10-2009, 06:57 PM
 
3 posts, read 25,068 times
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Hello, I posted this question under a different topic, but perhaps it is more relevant here.... my apologies to anyone who sees this twice!

I am a US citizen living in NY state. This past year (Sept.) I became employed by a Canadian university. I am now trying to figure how to file my taxes. As far as I know, Canada doesn't take anything out of my paycheck, so I am responsible for determining what I owe in taxes. I still live here in the US, and I withdraw my paychecks from a Canadian bank account.

What form(s) should I use for my federal tax return? Do I still need to file a state tax return (for NY, presumably)? Thanks ahead to anyone that can provide advice!
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Old 02-10-2009, 08:21 PM
 
4,282 posts, read 15,765,948 times
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This sounds like a domestic IRS matter rather than anything concerning Canada, so we'll just kick it over to a more appropriate forum.
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Old 02-14-2009, 05:50 PM
 
Location: Cosmic Consciousness
3,871 posts, read 17,127,316 times
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Since your 2008 income was derived from two countries, you need three things.

First, consult the H.R. department of the Canadian university, and get IN WRITING the answer to your withholding question, which is "What national Canadian taxes and what other (if any) local Canadian taxes, and what other (if any) withholding was withheld from my income at X University during 2008?" You need this information documented.

Second, if you received interest or dividents from any Canadian source, such as that bank account you have in Canada which receives your university paycheck, you must also have documentation of that interest.

Third, when you gather all that documentation -- and now that it's after Jan. 31 and you have presumably received all your documentation for 2008 income, interest and dividends earned within the U.S. -- take your documents plus your 2007 1040 to a CPA who is knowledgeable about Canadian income sources for U.S. citizens and residents, and paying Canadian taxes. Since you're in NYS, there are a lot of such CPAs. You can find that specialization in the yellow pages under Accountants -- or you can walk into an H&R Block office near you. They will be able to help you, including filing both your U.S. return and forms and, if necessary, your Canadian return.

TurboTax and similar softwares won't do this work for you, so don't put yourself in the position of "deceiving" the IRS, or short-changing yourself, by using software that isn't up to the job. Although I have worked with high-end CPA firms, I have also used H&R Block myself and have found them to be fully knowledgeable and capable, for a very low price, whcih you can use as a deduction on your 2009 1040. Nice how that works, isn't it?
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Old 02-19-2009, 12:05 PM
 
Location: Skokiewood
732 posts, read 2,986,157 times
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As a US citizen you pay income taxes on your worldwide income. As a NY resident, you pay taxes on your income earned while a resident of NY. There are exemptions from US income tax for certain foreign earned income for individuals but not sure it applies in your case if you were living in the US while earning the income. Theoretically Canada has the right to tax your income but there may be provisions in the US-Canada income tax treaty that mitigate this.

Definitely go to a CPA, but educate yourself before you go - check out these IRS publications:

Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (http://www.irs.gov/businesses/article/0,,id=182017,00.html - broken link)
Publication 597 (2/2006), Information on the United States-Canada Income Tax Treaty
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