Why cross-border tax is its own specialty

Tax law on either side of the Canada–US border is complex enough on its own. Combine them, layer in the Canada–US Tax Treaty, the IRS’s citizenship-based taxation, FATCA, FBAR, T1135 foreign asset reporting, departure tax, and dual residency tie-breaker tests, and most general practitioners on either side of the border quietly avoid these files. BOMCAS Canada has built a dedicated cross-border practice because we believe Canadians caught up in both systems deserve accurate, coordinated filings rather than two separate accountants quietly hoping the other side is getting it right.

Who we serve

Canadians working in the US on TN, H-1B, L-1, or other US work visas — with both US W-2 income and continuing Canadian tax considerations
Americans living in Canada — US citizens and green card holders who must file US 1040 returns annually regardless of where they live
Snowbirds with US winter property who need to manage US Substantial Presence Test thresholds and IRS Form 8840 Closer Connection Exception
Dual citizens born in the US or naturalized in Canada who carry permanent US filing obligations
Canadian businesses with US operations needing US entity selection, EIN registration, sales tax nexus analysis, and 1120 or 5472 filings
US-based clients of Canadian contractors who must comply with W-8BEN treaty positions and reduced withholding
Canadians selling US real estate dealing with FIRPTA withholding and US 1040-NR returns
Canadians inheriting US property facing US estate tax exposure

What we deliver

Coordinated T1 + 1040 preparation for the same taxpayer, with proper foreign tax credit positions on both sides
Form 8833 treaty disclosure for treaty-based positions claimed under the Canada–US Tax Treaty
FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) and Form 8938 FATCA compliance for US persons living in Canada
Form 8854 expatriation analysis and filing for US citizens or long-term green card holders relinquishing US tax residence
T1135 Foreign Income Verification Statement for Canadian residents holding US assets over CAD $100,000
Form 1116 (foreign tax credit) optimization for Canadians earning US income
Departure tax (deemed disposition) analysis for Canadians moving permanently to the US, including section 128.1 election analysis
Arrival tax planning for Americans becoming Canadian residents, including step-up planning for stock and pension accounts
US business entity selection (LLC vs S-Corp vs C-Corp) for Canadian business owners expanding into the US
Sales tax nexus analysis under post-Wayfair US state economic nexus rules

The single biggest cross-border mistake

The single most common and most expensive mistake we see is American citizens living in Canada who have never filed a US 1040 return. The IRS taxes US citizens on worldwide income regardless of where they live. Most owe no US tax because of the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555) and the foreign tax credit (Form 1116) — but the filing obligation remains. The Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures allow non-willful US citizens living abroad to come into compliance with three years of late 1040s and six years of late FBARs without penalties. We file these regularly for new clients who discover the obligation only after years in Canada.

Snowbirds and the Substantial Presence Test

Canadian snowbirds who spend significant time in the US must track days carefully. The IRS Substantial Presence Test counts: all days in the current year, plus 1/3 of days in the prior year, plus 1/6 of days in the second prior year. If the total is 183+ AND the current year is at least 31 days, the snowbird is treated as a US tax resident unless they file Form 8840 Closer Connection Exception Statement on time. Snowbirds who exceed the day threshold and miss Form 8840 face full US 1040 filing as a US resident. We file Form 8840 for snowbirds annually and advise on day-counting strategies.

Our process

Initial intake including all relevant residency, immigration, and asset information
Analysis of treaty positions and Canada/US filing obligations
Fixed-fee engagement letter covering both sides
Coordinated preparation of all required Canadian and US returns
Treaty-based optimization to avoid double tax
E-filing where supported; paper filing where required (IRS still requires paper for several forms)
Year-round support including IRS correspondence, CRA correspondence, and treaty position defence

Frequently asked questions

I am a US citizen living in Canada and have never filed a US tax return. What do I do?

You likely qualify for the IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures, which allows you to come into compliance with three years of late 1040s and six years of late FBARs without penalty. We handle these submissions regularly.

Do I owe US tax on my Canadian RRSP?

Generally no — the Canada–US Tax Treaty defers US tax on RRSP growth until withdrawal. However, withdrawals are reportable on the 1040 and there are specific elections required to maintain the deferral. We handle these elections.

I work in the US on a TN visa. How does that affect my Canadian tax?

You may be a Canadian resident, a US resident, or a dual resident depending on facts. The Canada–US Tax Treaty has tie-breaker rules. We analyze residency carefully because the wrong call can mean paying tax in the wrong country or paying twice.

Related services

Personal tax (T1), Non-resident tax, Real estate tax, Tax planning.

What Canadian businesses commonly miss about this service

Across the hundreds of Canadian businesses we work with, the same handful of issues come up repeatedly. Many small business owners delay engaging professional accounting until a crisis: a CRA review letter, an unfiled GST/HST return demand, a denied bank loan because financial statements aren't ready, or a Notice of Reassessment that arrived weeks ago. By the time we are first contacted, the cost to fix the problem is often several times what proper ongoing accounting would have cost from the start. Proactive engagement is dramatically cheaper than reactive cleanup.

The Canadian tax landscape also changes constantly. Recent changes that affect most Canadian taxpayers include the 2023 anti-flipping rule (residential real estate sold within 365 days is automatically business income, not capital gain); the Underused Housing Tax (UHT-2900 annual filing requirement for many corporations, partnerships, and trusts holding residential property even when no tax is owing — with $5,000 to $10,000 per-property failure-to-file penalties); the Quebec QST joint registration changes since 2021; the post-2018 Tax on Split Income (TOSI) rules that effectively eliminated casual income splitting through family dividends; the post-2021 $200,000 stock option vesting limit on the 50% deduction for options granted by non-CCPCs; the CSRS 4200 Compilation Engagement standard replacing the older Notice to Reader engagement; and ongoing CRA increased scrutiny on pre-construction assignments, short-term rental businesses, and cash businesses.

How BOMCAS Canada delivers this service

Every engagement begins with a written, fixed-fee engagement letter signed before any work is performed. The engagement letter describes exactly what is in scope, what deliverables you will receive, when those deliverables are due, what your monthly or project fee is, and what (if anything) is outside scope. This eliminates the hourly-billing surprise that most accounting clients fear. The only time we use hourly billing is for genuinely unpredictable items such as CRA audit response or complex one-off projects — and even then we agree to a maximum cap before starting.

Once the engagement letter is signed, you e-sign the CRA authorization (RC59 for businesses or AUT-01 for individuals), and we onboard you to the encrypted client portal with multi-factor authentication. All document exchange flows through the portal — no emailing of sensitive financial documents. Meetings happen by video conference or phone at times that work for you, including outside normal business hours when needed.

Our Canadian tax compliance philosophy

BOMCAS Canada is structured around four operating principles:

Tell the truth. If a tax position is aggressive, we say so. If a deduction will not survive a CRA review, we say so. If the engagement is going to cost more than originally quoted because the scope changed, we say so before doing the work.
Bill what we said we would bill. No surprise invoices. No scope-creep billing. If something legitimately changes scope, we discuss it and re-quote before doing the additional work.
Answer the phone. One-business-day response standard on client communications during normal business hours. No voicemail backlogs.
Specialize. Canadian tax and accounting is too complex to be a generalist. We do not do US-only tax, UK tax, or any other foreign jurisdiction in isolation. We are Canadian. Our cross-border work is always anchored by deep Canadian compliance.

What ongoing engagement with BOMCAS Canada looks like

For most clients, the ongoing relationship is structured around predictable monthly deliverables. For an incorporated small business client, that typically includes: monthly cloud bookkeeping with full bank and credit card reconciliation; quarterly or annual GST/HST returns prepared and filed; monthly payroll for owner-managers and any employees, with CRA source deduction remittances; year-end Compilation Engagement (CSRS 4200) financial statements; T2 corporate income tax return; owner-manager T1 personal tax return (and spouse where applicable); annual salary-vs-dividend optimization with written recommendation; unlimited email and phone support during business hours; one quarterly check-in call to review numbers and discuss the business; and CRA correspondence handling for routine review letters.

For a personal tax client, the ongoing engagement includes: annual T1 preparation; any required Quebec TP-1 (for Quebec residents); CRA pre-assessment and post-assessment review response when CRA requests additional documentation; Notice of Assessment reconciliation; and proactive tax planning conversations during the year about RRSP, TFSA, and FHSA contributions, major life events (marriage, kids, retirement, real estate), and any planned business or investment changes.

Frequently asked questions about engaging BOMCAS Canada

How do I get started?

Call 780-667-5250 or submit the contact form on this page. We respond within one business day and schedule a 15–30 minute discovery conversation by phone or video. There is no obligation.

Are your fees fixed or hourly?

Almost all engagements are fixed fee — monthly for ongoing work, fixed-project for one-off engagements. Hourly billing is reserved for genuinely unpredictable items such as CRA audit response, and we agree to a maximum cap before starting even then.

Can I switch from my current accountant?

Yes. The transition typically takes 30–60 days. We coordinate with your prior accountant on records, file handoff, and CRA authorization changes. There is no obligation to switch all services at once — many clients start with one engagement and add others over time.

How are documents exchanged?

Through an encrypted client portal with multi-factor authentication. Documents are never emailed. The portal supports document upload, e-signature, and audit trail.

Do you work with my industry?

BOMCAS Canada has specialized experience across trucking, real estate investing, medical and dental professionals, contractors and trades, restaurants and hospitality, e-commerce, farms and agriculture, law firms, technology startups, nonprofits, and other Canadian industries. We discuss industry fit during the discovery conversation.

Why Canadian businesses choose specialized accounting over generalist accounting

The Canadian tax and accounting landscape has become significantly more complex over the past decade. The 2018 TOSI rules, the 2021 changes to stock option taxation, the 2022 mandatory reporting changes for trusts, the 2023 anti-flipping rule, the Underused Housing Tax, the changes to the small business deduction phase-out for passive investment income, the new CSRS 4200 Compilation Engagement standard, the continued expansion of digital sales tax rules, and the ongoing post-COVID CRA focus on cash businesses and unreported income have all required accountants to specialize more deeply. A generalist firm trying to cover personal tax, corporate tax, US tax, real estate, trusts, cross-border, and every industry vertical inevitably falls behind on the depth of expertise that any one client needs.

BOMCAS Canada is structured deliberately to maintain depth: we are Canadian-only by design; we work in industries where we have genuine specialized experience; we maintain ongoing professional education in Canadian tax law; we use Canadian-experienced staff at every level; and we coordinate with specialized partners (US-licensed cross-border, legal counsel for corporate restructuring, audit-engagement licensed practitioners) where required rather than trying to handle everything in-house.

Talk to a Canadian accountant

Call 780-667-5250 or submit the contact form. We respond within one business day and provide a fixed written quote before any work begins.

Call 780-667-5250 Request Consultation

Cross-Border Canada–US Tax Services