Retiring Abroad: Government benefits and the new border tracking system

 

Government benefits and the new border tracking system

Spending time outside of Canada during retirement is the goal of many Canadians.  However, the Canadian Government has recently released information that suggests that they are planning on tracking our cross-border movements much more closely than now.  If enhanced monitoring practices do come into place, this could possibly lead to financial implications for retirees. 

One important example would be possible non-qualification for provincial health benefits, based on how many days a Canadian spends outside the country.  A second example would involve being deemed a resident of another country for tax purposes.  Canadian snowbirds need to be very careful of monitoring how much time they spend in the United States, for example, to avoid being deemed a resident there as well as Canada.

Here is a good article detailing some of these potential issues to be aware of:

How the new border tracking system could affect your government benefits (click here)