Question for Canadian members

[sambo37]

I'm getting different answers to the question 'how long can I remain out of Canada'. Would be interested in any input from fellow Canadian members based on their experiences...how long can I be out of the country and is it possible to get an extension? I will have to return to Canada at some point, so is there a set length of time before I can leave again?

[Mike OReilly]

Sambo, there is no limit to how long you can be out of the country. You can come and go as you please. Other countries will limit how long you can stay in their country as a Canadian citizen, but Canada doesn't restrict your coming and going.

You can't lose your citizenship this way. You can lose your residency status though. Residency is tied to some rights, benefits and responsibilities. For example, taxation, health insurance, and other social benefits such as GIS (Guaranteed Income Supplement). Also tied to the ability to hold driver's license, etc.

[pcmm]

A lot depends o nwhat you are really asking? For OHIP I believe the answer is 183 days in order to maintain coverage. If you are going to be out of the country longer and want to retain coverage you can apply for either 2 x 1 year extensions or 1 x 2year extension.

either way if you stay out longer you have to wait 90 days to get reinstated. You just need some private insurance for that period when you get back. No big deal.

staying out of the country for years can impact your CPP payments but other than that I know of no real restriction on when you absolutely have to come back.

[AiniA]

Maybe if you really need a dose of winter you will feel the need to return, but that is you, not the rules.

[sambo37]

Hmmm, I need to find out how long I can be out of the country before GIS is impacted and if it were does one get it back upon return to Canada. Thanks Mike.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by sambo37

Hmmm, I need to find out how long I can be out of the country before GIS is impacted and if it were does one get it back upon return to Canada. Thanks Mike.

Fortunately (or unfortunately) I'm still many years away from being eligible to collect GIS, so I haven't looked at it closely of late. I recall reading that while CPP and OAS are not tied to residency, GIS is (or was back when I looked, a few years ago). You can find the answer on the various government websites though.

As pcmm notes, things like health insurance coverage are very tightly connected to residency. Most provinces allow residents to be away from their PROVINCE (not just the country) for either six or seven months out of every 12-month period. Exceed that and, technically, you forfeit your provincial health coverage.

The whole question of maintaining residency is actually a complicated one, and has different answers depending on which area of government you're looking at. It means something different for taxation purposes vs healthcare. I know most provinces have provisions for longer stays away that you can apply for. In Ontario (my current home province) it used to be a one-off benefit, but has more recently become something that you can renew -- but it's a complicated formula. Again, it's all online.

I spent quite a bit of time studying all this a number of years ago as we were preparing to take on the vagabond lifestyle. You can find all the answers, but it takes a bit of digging and reading.

[Montanan]

Reference:

https://www.pensioncanada.ca/can-i-r...ide-of-canada/

Can I receive OAS / GIS, Allowance when I’m outside of Canada?
BY PENSION EXPERT MARCH 30, 2021

The general rules of receiving your OAS, GIS, Allowance (ALW) when you travel outside of Canada are as follow:

If you are planning to live outside of Canada for more than 6 consecutive months, you must contact Pension call centre (1-800-277-9914) to advise your out of country activity. You will have to provide your departure date and your planned returned date. You will be paid for 6 months after your month of departure before seeing your benefits paused. For example, if you are leaving Canada on February and plan to be back in December, you will be paid for the month of your departure (February), still get paid for OAS/GIS for the month from March to August (6 months), then your OAS and GIS will be stopped from September until you come back in December to see your payment resume in the month of December again. There is exception to OAS payment. If you have lived more than 20 years in Canada, you can continue to receive your OAS payment while you are away over 6 consecutive months or permanently, however your GIS payment will be paused as of the seventh month and until you return to Canada. You will have to notify Pension call centre when you return to see your GIS payment reinstated.

The OAS/GIS, ALW residency rule is unlike what people think about their permanent resident status. They key is “are you making Canada your primary home?” and you must demonstrate Canada really is your main residence in order to collect your GIS or ALW. A typical example is if a person leaves Canada for 4 months, came back to live for 1 month, and left again for another 4 month. This scenario clearly shows the person is not making Canada their primary residence, therefore the person will not be qualify for GIS even they did not leave over 6 consecutive months.
The OAS/GIS, ALW residency time is not based on calendar year. It is about if you have over 6 consecutive months of living outside Canada.
The above information are of course just a general rule. If you get audited by Service Canada, you will have to demonstrate you are really living in Canada and have made Canada your main residence. When you come back to Canada, you will have to provide proof of residence to confirm the exit and re-entry dates. Please ensure to keep your airline boarding pass, travel boarder stamps handy for supporting proof.



If you leave Canada for more than 6 months

You cannot collect the Guaranteed Income Supplement if you are outside of Canada for more than 6 months.

If you plan to leave Canada for more than 6 months, you must contact OAS/CPP call centre to avoid an overpayment.

Service Canada compares information with the Canada Border Services Agency. If you leave Canada for more than 6 months while collecting the Guaranteed Income Supplement, we’ll determine if you’re eligible to those payments. If not, we’ll calculate how much we overpaid you, and you will then have to repay that amount.

Note: You could be fined for giving false, misleading, or purposely omitted information.

You can also come forward to correct wrong or incomplete information or to give important information that you haven’t already shared with Service Canada. Learn about Penalties, Interest and Disclosure Policy.

When you return to Canada, contact OAS/CPP call centre to restart your payments.

[sambo37]

Originally Posted by Montanan

Reference:

https://www.pensioncanada.ca/can-i-r...ide-of-canada/

Can I receive OAS / GIS, Allowance when I’m outside of Canada?
BY PENSION EXPERT MARCH 30, 2021

The general rules of receiving your OAS, GIS, Allowance (ALW) when you travel outside of Canada are as follow:

If you are planning to live outside of Canada for more than 6 consecutive months, you must contact Pension call centre (1-800-277-9914) to advise your out of country activity. You will have to provide your departure date and your planned returned date. You will be paid for 6 months after your month of departure before seeing your benefits paused. For example, if you are leaving Canada on February and plan to be back in December, you will be paid for the month of your departure (February), still get paid for OAS/GIS for the month from March to August (6 months), then your OAS and GIS will be stopped from September until you come back in December to see your payment resume in the month of December again. There is exception to OAS payment. If you have lived more than 20 years in Canada, you can continue to receive your OAS payment while you are away over 6 consecutive months or permanently, however your GIS payment will be paused as of the seventh month and until you return to Canada. You will have to notify Pension call centre when you return to see your GIS payment reinstated.

The OAS/GIS, ALW residency rule is unlike what people think about their permanent resident status. They key is “are you making Canada your primary home?” and you must demonstrate Canada really is your main residence in order to collect your GIS or ALW. A typical example is if a person leaves Canada for 4 months, came back to live for 1 month, and left again for another 4 month. This scenario clearly shows the person is not making Canada their primary residence, therefore the person will not be qualify for GIS even they did not leave over 6 consecutive months.
The OAS/GIS, ALW residency time is not based on calendar year. It is about if you have over 6 consecutive months of living outside Canada.
The above information are of course just a general rule. If you get audited by Service Canada, you will have to demonstrate you are really living in Canada and have made Canada your main residence. When you come back to Canada, you will have to provide proof of residence to confirm the exit and re-entry dates. Please ensure to keep your airline boarding pass, travel boarder stamps handy for supporting proof.



If you leave Canada for more than 6 months

You cannot collect the Guaranteed Income Supplement if you are outside of Canada for more than 6 months.

If you plan to leave Canada for more than 6 months, you must contact OAS/CPP call centre to avoid an overpayment.

Service Canada compares information with the Canada Border Services Agency. If you leave Canada for more than 6 months while collecting the Guaranteed Income Supplement, we’ll determine if you’re eligible to those payments. If not, we’ll calculate how much we overpaid you, and you will then have to repay that amount.

Note: You could be fined for giving false, misleading, or purposely omitted information.

You can also come forward to correct wrong or incomplete information or to give important information that you haven’t already shared with Service Canada. Learn about Penalties, Interest and Disclosure Policy.

When you return to Canada, contact OAS/CPP call centre to restart your payments.

Thanks so much for the detailed reply Montanan...super helpful.

[Montanan]

Determining your residency status

https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-age...cy-status.html

Under Canada's tax system, your income tax obligations to Canada are based on your residency status. You need to know your residency status before you can know what your tax responsibilities and filing requirements to Canada are.

To determine your residency status, all of the relevant facts in your case must be considered, including residential ties with Canada and the length of time, purpose, intent, and continuity of the stay while living inside and outside Canada.

The following steps can help you determine your residency status for income tax purposes and your tax obligations to Canada.

Step 1: Determine if you have residential ties with Canada
The most important thing to consider when determining your residency status in Canada for income tax purposes is whether or not you maintain, or you establish, significant residential ties with Canada.

Significant residential ties to Canada include:

a home in Canada
a spouse or common-law partner in Canada
dependants in Canada
Secondary residential ties that may be relevant include:

personal property in Canada, such as a car or furniture
social ties in Canada, such as memberships in Canadian recreational or religious organizations
economic ties in Canada, such as Canadian bank accounts or credit cards
a Canadian driver's licence
a Canadian passport
health insurance with a Canadian province or territory
The information above is general in nature. For more information on your residential ties, see Income Tax Folio S5-F1-C1, Determining an Individual's Residence Status.

Step 2: Determine your residency status and its tax implications
Your residency status if you left Canada
If you are working temporarily outside Canada, vacationing outside Canada, commuting (going back and forth daily or weekly) from Canada to your place of work in the United States, or attending school in another country, and you maintain residential ties with Canada, you may be considered a factual resident of Canada
If you left Canada and established a permanent home in another country and you severed your residential ties with Canada ceasing to be a resident of Canada in the tax year, you may be considered an emigrant
If you established residential ties in a country that Canada has a tax treaty with and you are considered a resident of that country, but you are otherwise a factual resident of Canada, meaning you maintain significant residential ties with Canada, you may be considered a deemed non-resident of Canada. The same rules apply to deemed non-residents as non-residents of Canada
If you left Canada and you are a government employee outside Canada, which includes members of the Canadian Forces posted abroad, you are usually considered a factual resident or a deemed resident of Canada. For more information, see Government employees outside Canada
Your residency status if you entered Canada
If you left another country to settle in Canada and you established significant residential ties with Canada becoming a resident of Canada in the tax year, you may be considered an immigrant
If you have residential ties in a country that Canada has a tax treaty with and you are considered to be a resident of that country, but you are also a factual resident of Canada because you established significant residential ties with Canada, you may be considered a deemed non-resident of Canada. The same rules apply to deemed non-residents as non-residents of Canada
If you have not established significant residential ties with Canada to be considered a factual resident, but you stayed in Canada for 183 or more days in the year, you may be considered a deemed resident of Canada
Your residency status if you normally, customarily, or routinely live in another country
If you did not have significant residential ties with Canada and you lived outside Canada throughout the year (except if you were a deemed resident of Canada), you may be considered a non-resident of Canada
If you did not have significant residential ties with Canada and you stayed in Canada for less than 183 days in the tax year, you may be considered a non-resident of Canada
If you want the Canada Revenue Agency's opinion on your residency status, complete either Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada) or Form NR73, Determination of Residency Status (Leaving Canada), whichever applies, and send it to the address indicated on the form. To get the most accurate opinion, provide as many details as possible on your form.

[sv_pelagia]

A couple of corrections/added details:

OAS: Amount of time out of Canada can reduce the amount you receive!
Other situations that can affect your Old Age Security pension amount

If you have lived in Canada less than 40 years

Not everyone receives the full Old Age Security pension. The amount you receive depends on the number of years you have lived in Canada.
If you lived in Canada for less than 40 years (after age 18) you will receive a partial payment amount. Your payment amount is based on the number of years in Canada divided by 40.
https://www.canada.ca/en/services/be...it-amount.html

Medical coverage reinstatement (OHIP, BC MSP, etc)
If you have lost your coverage due to being away from province too long, you can reinstate it after returning/living in province for a given time. Depending upon when you arrive in province (and assuming you apply on arrival), the waiting period will be between 2 months (less a day) and 3 months.

In most/many provinces, the "3-month" clock for reinstatement counts the months not the days. So, for example, arriving (and applying for coverage) on April 30, you will be able to get medical coverage starting July 1 (April, May, June being the 3 months wait required).
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/h...ge-wait-period

[Bourne Free]

Great information: I am in a similar situation, recently retired I want to take my boat south from Sept to May, which is more that 183 days an I am wondering how to make this work. I will not be working outside Canada.
1. Can I fly back for a month or so mid season?
2. Is a Canadian flagged boat not considered Canadian territory?
Any suggestions...

[alctel]

For what it's worth, it's pretty loosey-goosey.

I used a friends address in Canada for all my mail and was out of the country for almost a year, forgot to tell ICBC and came back and my health coverage, drivers license etc was still fine. As far as everyone was concerned, my primary residency was my friends address.

[deblen]

I doubt that you will be eligible for the G.I.S.-if you can afford to live outside Canada-especially on a yacht.
You have to be poorer than poor to be eligible for G.I.S.
Do the calc.
Cheers/Len


https://www.canada.ca/en/services/be...-54.html#above


Note: the amounts are in Can$$

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by Bourne Free

Great information: I am in a similar situation, recently retired I want to take my boat south from Sept to May, which is more that 183 days an I am wondering how to make this work. I will not be working outside Canada.
1. Can I fly back for a month or so mid season?

As per above:
he OAS/GIS, ALW residency rule is unlike what people think about their permanent resident status. The key is “are you making Canada your primary home?” and you must demonstrate Canada really is your main residence in order to collect your GIS or ALW. A typical example is if a person leaves Canada for 4 months, came back to live for 1 month, and left again for another 4 month. This scenario clearly shows the person is not making Canada their primary residence, therefore the person will not be qualify for GIS even they did not leave over 6 consecutive months.

2. Is a Canadian flagged boat not considered Canadian territory?

Nice try...

Any suggestions...

Can you imagine sailing around the world never leaving Canada?

[deblen]

Regarding provincial Medicare payment limits that apply to out of Canada health suppliers:
Each province has it's own policies. I am only familiar with N.B.
The short of it is: The payment limits are so low,they would hardly buy you a bandaid in the USA. N.B. will cover patching you enough to get you on the charter plane that they will send to bring you(not your wife or kids,etc.)home.
Do not count on Medicare if you are going foreign.Buy brand name travel insurance from a recommended insurer.Even they will try to avoid paying,especially for anything that can be construed as pre-existing.
The horror stories are many.
Check these N.B. payout rates


https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/d..._Services.html