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Let me preface by saying I have not yet completed my Canadian taxes. It could yet be a horrible experience that will color my current thoughts. But right now my thoughts are so positive that I want to share!!!
To begin with, as a resident of Canada I get all the tax benefits of a citizen. ALL of them. Which, with the social net as it is, is a lot. Including a quarterly GST/HST tax check!! But there are two places where they really make you feel welcome and encourage you to stay in the country longer then your schooling through taxes:
1. The first time you do your taxes you get special consideration. First off, the guy leading the tax session was an actual employee of the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA). He obviously knew a ton about taxes and about how it relates to international students in general. Clearly super helpful. They also gave us all our forms and an extra booklet made just for international students. Additionally, the first year we do taxes in Canada we have to send them to a special office that is designed to process provincial and federal forms for those who have just entered the country. They do this because the first year you do your forms, they check it for you and give you feedback. You do not get any sort of penalization if you do them wrong - and you actually get told if you are doing it right. How helpful is that?!?! Why did the US never do that when I started doing it on my own? There is also a direct line to their office to call about questions specific to people like me - you are actually encouraged to call (not email!) and ask about how the tax treaty for your country affects your taxes and such!
2. Tax credits for tuition and living expenses while in school are significantly higher then in the US and they ROLL OVER into future years. He literally said "You all are international students, so you pay a high amount of tuition. Thus, you should never have to pay taxes here while in school and possibly for a few years afterward, until you use up the accumulated credit." As long as you keep filing your taxes, this credit doesn't expire. You also get to apply non-roll over tax credits first, and then that after if there is more to apply it to . . . if not, it rolls over! Crazy. Seriously.
I am seriously looking forward to tackling these taxes this weekend and figuring out how much credit I have already!
To begin with, as a resident of Canada I get all the tax benefits of a citizen. ALL of them. Which, with the social net as it is, is a lot. Including a quarterly GST/HST tax check!! But there are two places where they really make you feel welcome and encourage you to stay in the country longer then your schooling through taxes:
1. The first time you do your taxes you get special consideration. First off, the guy leading the tax session was an actual employee of the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA). He obviously knew a ton about taxes and about how it relates to international students in general. Clearly super helpful. They also gave us all our forms and an extra booklet made just for international students. Additionally, the first year we do taxes in Canada we have to send them to a special office that is designed to process provincial and federal forms for those who have just entered the country. They do this because the first year you do your forms, they check it for you and give you feedback. You do not get any sort of penalization if you do them wrong - and you actually get told if you are doing it right. How helpful is that?!?! Why did the US never do that when I started doing it on my own? There is also a direct line to their office to call about questions specific to people like me - you are actually encouraged to call (not email!) and ask about how the tax treaty for your country affects your taxes and such!
2. Tax credits for tuition and living expenses while in school are significantly higher then in the US and they ROLL OVER into future years. He literally said "You all are international students, so you pay a high amount of tuition. Thus, you should never have to pay taxes here while in school and possibly for a few years afterward, until you use up the accumulated credit." As long as you keep filing your taxes, this credit doesn't expire. You also get to apply non-roll over tax credits first, and then that after if there is more to apply it to . . . if not, it rolls over! Crazy. Seriously.
I am seriously looking forward to tackling these taxes this weekend and figuring out how much credit I have already!