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Foreign Income Verification Statement

What is considered foreign property for purposes of Form T1135?

Brian Steeves
2/8/2024
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The foreign property you are required to report on form T1135 includes:

  1. Funds (all currencies) situated, deposited, or held outside Canada
  2. Intangible property (patents, copyrights, etc.) situated, deposited, or held outside Canada *care should be taken surrounding cryptocurrency investments
  3. Tangible property situated outside of Canada
  4. A share of the capital stock of a non-resident corporation held by the taxpayer or by an agent on behalf of the taxpayer (includes shares held in a Canadian brokerage account)
  5. An interest in a non-resident trust
  6. An interest in a partnership that holds a foreign property included in this list, unless the partnership you are a partner in, already files the T1135
  7. An interest in, or right with respect to, an entity that is a non-resident
  8. A property that is convertible into, exchangeable for, or confers a right to acquire
  9. A property that is foreign property included in this list
  10. A debt owed by a non-resident, including government and corporate bonds, debentures, mortgages, and notes receivable
  11. An interest in a foreign insurance policy
  12. Precious metals, gold certificates, and futures contracts held outside Canada

You do not have to report the following properties on form T1135:

  1. A property used or held exclusively in carrying on an active business
  2. A share of the capital stock or indebtedness of a foreign affiliate *use caution in corporate groups when a related Canadian person (corporate, individual, trust) has balances owing from the foreign affiliate throughout the year. E.g. Canco A is the parent of ForcoA, but CancoB has indebtedness from ForcoA; CancoB would have a T1135 requirement. 
  3. Some foreign pension plans such as a US IRA
  4. A personal-use property which would include real estate outside of Canada that is for personal use only (i.e. it is not rented out or used for business purposes)
  5. An interest in, or a right to acquire, any of the above-noted excluded foreign property

The above are not exhaustive lists and there could be specific facts on your foreign properties that exempt you from reporting them on the T1135. Talk to your advisor about your fact-specific situation or any changes in your situation on all properties situated outside of Canada.

You can complete the form electronically via an Excel form or fillable PDF and provide it to your tax advisor when preparing your tax return for 2023. The due date of the T1135 is the same due date as your personal tax return.

If you have any of these properties, the aggregate total cost for all of them is greater than $100,000 CAD and you have not filed the T1135 information return in previous years, please start the communication with your advisor to understand if there are steps to be undertaken for your situation.

 

2023 FIVS Excel Form

 

2023 FIVS Fillable PDF


More details on reporting your foreign property

More details on reporting your foreign property can be found on the CRA's website here.

Brian supports a wide variety of clients in many different fields of accounting, taxation, and advisory services for both large and small enterprises in private and not for profit sectors.
Brian Steeves
Brian Steeves
Partner, Incorporated, Tax
Kelowna

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