Access to USA or Canada not possible passed 45yo?

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nztim

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#2598846 6-Nov-2020 11:26

Geektastic:

Yes and you get a kind of reverse problem moving a UK pension to NZ. UK pension savings are not taxed at all, so you have more money earning for you throughout your working life. The money is taxed (a certain amount may be removed tax free first) as income once you start taking your pension.

However move the capital from the pension fund in the UK to NZ and NZ will stick you with a massive tax bill...for money you already own and which you did not earn in NZ..!

If you move it in the first 4 years its all tax free, if you don't move it in the first 4 years I would leave it there, and as you withdraw it NZ would treat it as taxable income and the UK NZ Tax treaty *SHOULD* mean the UK doesn't tax it and its only Taxable by the IRD

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BlinkyBill

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#2598852 6-Nov-2020 11:36

I hadn’t previously understood that the PIR for non-residents was 28%, I thought it would be the same as the NRWT, thanks for that.

BlinkyBill

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#2598856 6-Nov-2020 11:41

nztim:

Geektastic:

Yes and you get a kind of reverse problem moving a UK pension to NZ. UK pension savings are not taxed at all, so you have more money earning for you throughout your working life. The money is taxed (a certain amount may be removed tax free first) as income once you start taking your pension.

However move the capital from the pension fund in the UK to NZ and NZ will stick you with a massive tax bill...for money you already own and which you did not earn in NZ..!

If you move it in the first 4 years its all tax free, if you don't move it in the first 4 years I would leave it there, and as you withdraw it NZ would treat it as taxable income and the UK NZ Tax treaty *SHOULD* mean the UK doesn't tax it and its only Taxable by the IRD

This makes more sense to me, except for the first 4 years part. I think that, having made no contribution to the social fund via taxation previously, it is eminently reasonable to tax un-taxed funds when arriving in NZ, so as to catch up and make at least some contribution to your own welfare going forward.

There’s probably some rationale for the first 4 years aspect, but it gets my goat when people whinge about paying a contribution towards living in our beautiful country.

TeaLeaf

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#2602314 12-Nov-2020 01:56

Sidestep:

I love life in Canada - and NZ will always be my homeland. Happy to spend my time shuttling between the two, and glad that's a viable option.
Making the move to live in a different country's a big, serious step.
Good Luck with your plans!

It has access to the US and I love some of the costal areas of Canada. If I wanted to be located in a costal City, which would be the best for having a boat/yacht?

I thought I had to speak French, thank goodness. How hard are the English tests and are there any example tests I can find online?

So I get my Bachelor points, how many points total do I have to make, and the Mrs will get some age based points and a Doctorate. I presume the rest of the points are language based?

The wbesite is a little non straightforward.

I plan to apply for the EXPRESS ENTRY, should I be trying another avenue instead?

It is also a bit closer to Europe where the Mrs family are.

The Tax confuses the freckle out of me, does the treaty just mean I get taxed the same as in NZ, and why does 28% go to Kiwisaver? Most of my retirement savings are in Australian Super !

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#2602315 12-Nov-2020 02:08

BlinkyBill:

but it gets my goat when people whinge about paying a contribution towards living in our beautiful country.

Me too. Im anti Boomers getting Pensions. They should be asset tested for both liquid and fixed and if above a certain level they are not eligible for a pension. It is not a right, it is taken from our annual tax. It should be passed on to WINZ to look after as something like " the older person benefit". We have far too many people at the retiree age that have all the money. It is sadistic to expect a pension when they have a $10m home and $2M cash in the bank and drive a $200k car. Everything closed behind their generation, ie free university. So I expect this will occur for Gen X. But I think it should occur now, especially to pay down the debt we incurred to keep old people safe from covid, who then voted no for a harmless drug and yet likely drink a far more toxic (personally and to society) drug that kills people, yet they didnt bother looking past the fraudulent emotional campaigns, ie cannabis sold at dairies, no idea how that got past the advertising standard but a head should roll there. Either way, tired of them controlling NZ and not contributing to putting the wealth back into it.

Partly I want to get away from NZ again, this latest election made me realise how progressively archaic NZ is becoming and I want to be somewhere that embraces facts and builds upon science, not fear mongering. I ill be back in 15=20 years when NZ catches up.

I did consider Australia again due to its superior 9%+ super and private health insurance included in very similar tax brackets to NZ.

But time for a totally new adventure :-)

mattwnz

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#2602316 12-Nov-2020 02:23

nztim: If you do get into the US or Canada be careful of your assets back here in New Zealand

Both the US and Canada tax worldwide income and things like Kiwisaver don't have special tax treatment like it does here. The growth within these funds can be punitively taxed under their tax laws

Also if you have a home here in NZ and a mortgage against it the interest in that mortgage can be subject to NRWT tax also if there is a currency fluctuation any gains against the local US/Canadian dollar can be considered taxable income too - This is not a problem if you don't own a home and a mortgage free

Sell your home after you leave? Both those countries have capital gains tax you will have to estimate the value of your home when you become a resident there and if you sell. pay tax on the gains on the sale

Don't sell your home and keep it? Canada has a “departure tax” that is a tax on the gains of your home when you leave Canada. Lets say your house is worth 700k when you arrive in Canada and 900k when you come back to NZ that 200k of gains is Taxable in Canada

Go out, explore the world, but get professional Tax advice from a professional who knows both tax systems to protect your wealth

Is that because NZ doesn't usually have a capital gains tax on homes? Otherwise, if NZ did have a CGT, wouldn't someone moving to Canada be taxed twice.? Guessing it pays for any estimation when arriving in Canada , to overestimate it's value, as these house estimatuib can be a lottery anyway.

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Sidestep

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#2602318 12-Nov-2020 04:10

mattwnz:

Is that because NZ doesn't usually have a capital gains tax on homes? Otherwise, if NZ did have a CGT, wouldn't someone moving to Canada be taxed twice.? Guessing it pays for any estimation when arriving in Canada , to overestimate it's value, as these house estimatuib can be a lottery anyway.

Canada also has a CGT exemption on your primary residence.
After we left NZ in 2018 we initially kept the house we'd been living in (just in case we changed our minds).
We did get it professionally valued on our departure. That avoids the 'price lottery' issue and gives a fixed, and accepted point of reference.

Early this year - when Covid appeared - we decided to sell, advised a Real Estate Agent friend, and the property sale was completed with NZ in lockdown (we underestimated the effect of QE and resilience of NZ's property market, but that's another story).

The Capital Gains tax we're going to pay (Canada's Tax year is based on the Calendar year.. Jan 1 to Dec 31) - on that sale - will be just on the difference between our valuation and the sale price, less deductible costs.

I don't believe any of the taxes you pay on a move to or from Canada are meant to be punitive or unfair.

I do feel there's a moral and legal requirement to pay taxes that are genuinely owed - after all, many of the things we appreciate about both countries are funded by the taxes we pay.

Researching the rules beforehand, or using a tax planner or accountant to make sure you don't make mistakes is a common-sense approach.
I've heard stories of people who've made genuine mistakes around taxes, and Tax agencies can be very unforgiving.

cshwone

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#2602333 12-Nov-2020 06:31

TeaLeaf:

BlinkyBill:

but it gets my goat when people whinge about paying a contribution towards living in our beautiful country.

Me too. Im anti Boomers getting Pensions. They should be asset tested for both liquid and fixed and if above a certain level they are not eligible for a pension. It is not a right, it is taken from our annual tax. It should be passed on to WINZ to look after as something like " the older person benefit". We have far too many people at the retiree age that have all the money. It is sadistic to expect a pension when they have a $10m home and $2M cash in the bank and drive a $200k car. Everything closed behind their generation, ie free university. So I expect this will occur for Gen X. But I think it should occur now, especially to pay down the debt we incurred to keep old people safe from covid, who then voted no for a harmless drug and yet likely drink a far more toxic (personally and to society) drug that kills people, yet they didnt bother looking past the fraudulent emotional campaigns, ie cannabis sold at dairies, no idea how that got past the advertising standard but a head should roll there. Either way, tired of them controlling NZ and not contributing to putting the wealth back into it.

Partly I want to get away from NZ again, this latest election made me realise how progressively archaic NZ is becoming and I want to be somewhere that embraces facts and builds upon science, not fear mongering. I ill be back in 15=20 years when NZ catches up.

I did consider Australia again due to its superior 9%+ super and private health insurance included in very similar tax brackets to NZ.

But time for a totally new adventure :-)

For someone who wants to embrace facts there were very few in your tirade :)

Sidestep

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#2602339 12-Nov-2020 06:53

TeaLeaf:

It has access to the US and I love some of the costal areas of Canada. If I wanted to be located in a costal City, which would be the best for having a boat/yacht?

If you haven't been to Canada before I'd advise a visit first - before making the jump to immigration.

I first came here on a working holiday during my O/E. A long time ago but (apart from the mandatory partying in Whistler and Banff) it gave me an idea what life in Canada might be like, so there wasn't anything too unexpected when I moved here years later.

The West Coast province of BC (British Columbia) has coastal cities.

I used to spend a month or two a year based out of Vancouver (the largest city in BC) or Victoria (BC’s capital) - really enjoyed my time there, but that was some years ago and Real Estate prices are at NZ levels now.

Friends in both places had boats/yachts and I thought the boating, Salish Sea into the US - Straits of Georgia - and particularly through the Gulf Islands was amazing.

The Tax confuses the freckle out of me, does the treaty just mean I get taxed the same as in NZ, and why does 28% go to Kiwisaver? Most of my retirement savings are in Australian Super !

Your Kiwisaver, once you depart NZ, will have a prescribed investor rate (PIR rate) of 28%.
Take a look here and click 'non-resident'.

Once you’ve been out of NZ one year you have the option of pulling your Kiwisaver out (less government contributions) as I did, or leaving it - as my wife and kids did - your own circumstances will dictate what’s best.

Your Australian Super will be different. I had a ‘self directed’ Super Scheme when I was resident there and was able to wind that up and move it when I left - but that was in the early 2000’s and looks to have changed.

I haven’t any experience in the rules around the points system with “Express Entry” but if you click through the links I provided earlier there seems to be plenty of discussion around that and the difficulty of the English/French tests.

I used the path of Business Immigration, and later sponsored both my Sister and a friend from NZ into Canada to work for my business (the specific skill sets of their positions weren't able to be filled by Canadians at the time). Neither decided to follow that path to permanent Canadian Residency - so it shows that moving to Canada may not be right for everyone..

BlinkyBill

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#2602355 12-Nov-2020 07:44

TeaLeaf:

BlinkyBill:

but it gets my goat when people whinge about paying a contribution towards living in our beautiful country.

Me too. Im anti Boomers getting Pensions. They should be asset tested for both liquid and fixed and if above a certain level they are not eligible for a pension. It is not a right, it is taken from our annual tax. ...

I am against people who make no contribution, you are railing against people who make a huge contribution. We could not be further apart on our thinking.

Sidestep

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#2662571 25-Feb-2021 10:21

TeaLeaf:

I really want to move to Canada or USA when things calm down.

But noticed the Canada easy access says 0 points for age once you are passed 45yo.

Is there any other way to access these countries, in layman simple terms? I find all the systems etc a bit of a maze. So hoping somebody has done it or is clued up how to.

No dependants. I have Bach IT 25 years in IT, Mrs has double PHD in Biology and now a senior ecologist along with a project manager of GIS type systems and data for fauna and flora.

There's just been a major change announced to the Canadian "Express Entry" Immigration scheme.

Immigration Canada has cut the number of points required for those in the Canadian Experience category from 'above 400' to 'above 75'
More points are awarded to candidates for things like being younger than 30, having strong language skills, advanced degrees and extensive Canadian work experience.

As pointed out in this article, the aggressive targets in this recent draw have exhausted the pool of domestic candidates in the Canadian Experience Class program, and make it likely they'll also boost targets for other immigration streams.

The federal Government has announced a target over 400,000 immigrants this year (about 184,000 arrived last year)
A local Immigration Lawyer was on the news yesterday saying she's calling all her overseas clients who didn't make the cut previously, and telling them to re-apply, particularly those outside Canada who lack Canadian work experience, but otherwise have desirable credentials.

So quite likely the easiest time in recent history to apply for Immigration to Canada.

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