Semi-Permanent to Permanent move to OZ

[joey2009]

Hey Guys,

I have searched through the forums and could not find an answer to my question, sorry if it is a repeat.

I am a Canadian citizen in the process of a 176 PR visa to Western Australia. I however do not know if i want to live in Australia permanently, i opted for the PR visa because i thought it would get me a better job and it would be easier to stay permanently if i decided for that route. I definitely want to stay for a min of 2 years in Australia but i want to put my Canadian life (bank accounts, driver's license, OHIP, RRSP's) on HOLD just in case i decide to come back. This whole non-resident status thing has really thrown a wrench in my plan. Do you have to declare non-resident status? The taxes in OZ are not better than CAN so there is no benefit there.

So my question is: Can i still hold onto all these ID's/ties with Canada while building new ties with Australia (bank accounts/driver's license/filing taxes)?

Thanks so much.

[postdoc]

Hi Joey

In short, the answer to your question is yes, you can still maintain your ties. We've been here for a year, and intending to stay for 3. We have Aussie driver's licenses, bank accounts, etc. (you pretty much have to get those anyways), and we still have Cdn bank accounts, credit cards, RRSPs, etc. For our Cdn taxes in 2008, Ufile automatically changed our return to a non-resident version, even though we were in Canada for most of 2008. Then, it calculated our basic personal amounts based on how many days we were residents of Canada. We had to also fill out a form noting our "world income", therefore both our Cdn income and Australian income for 2008. This appeared to be descriptive only, since it didn't appear to change anything - meaning, our tax return was identical with the Aussie income added in. Clearly, you get taxed on your Aussie income here, and Revenue Canada recognizes that.

In short, you can maintain ties in both countries. However, I can recall seeing online forums noting things get far more complicated if you own a house or property in Canada while you are away. There are also certain things you have been aware of that you can't do while a non-resident, such as opening one of the new tax-free savings accounts, or expecting to have provincial health care coverage when you might be on a visit back.

In our experience so far, being a non-resident hasn't been too much trouble. One note though, we're on temporary visas in Australia. It shouldn't matter to Rev Canada, but just so you know there may be differences.