Tax time is hardly anyone’s favourite time of the year and filing from OUTCAN comes with additional considerations, specifically around your residency status. Regardless of whether you file yourself, use an accountant or tax software, it is very important that you file with the correct residency status as it can impact your entitlement to government benefits as well as your ability to contribute to a TFSA.
Fortunately, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has an official information sheet on this subject. It can be found on the MFS(E) website. It is also on the flash drive that you received in your MFS(E) welcome bag.
However, every year, we see spouses who file correctly but have their status changed by the CRA agent reviewing their return. The reality is that the group of CAF spouses filing from OUTCAN is relatively small and many CRA agents are just not familiar with the regulations regarding them, having maybe never ever dealt with one of those returns.
If you call CRA, you will often get incorrect information. Getting an incorrect status corrected can take a lot of effort and time. Therefore, we highly recommend that you print out the CRA information sheet and attach to your return. If you are using an accountant, you should provide him or her with this information sheet along with your other tax documents. It may save you a lot of effort down the road.