Interesting Artical for those snowbirding in the US

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canuckrv

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I thought I would pass along this article.
http://www.rvwest.com/journeys/article/important_changes_to_crossing_us_border
 
Only 120 days now...I guess a trip into Mexico will be in order :)

Great catch and thanks for the share..we are not going south yet but very soon so this will impact us..

Ian.
 
    Although, previous treaties only allowed the flow of criminal activities, they seemed to know how long Canadians have been down.  If you look at the library, or search for it, you will see this has been well covered, including the completion of Form 8840.  As for medical coverage, many of the provinces have increase the maximum out of province caviat.  NS for example went to 7 months last year, as did NB.  I think NL is 9 months, and QC is in the process of moving it too.  (if it hasn't already moved)

Ed
 
I wouldn't put my faith in our medical ins outside the province...I have heard far too many horror stories.  For some countries, you require third party medical coverage. Here is an interesting situation where everyone was pointing to the other,,,

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/jennifer-huculak-kimmel-billed-950k-us-after-giving-birth-in-u-s-1.2839319

Neither of us will ever fit into this situation :)

But the 120 day is somewhat a concern...but we intend on spending time in Mexico so we should be ok..

We have has some thoughts about leaving the rig in the US and flying to other destinations for a couple of weeks..

Again, thanks to the original poster..I knew of the 7 months out of Canada..didn't know you because a tax pay hororary US citizen after 120 days,..just another thing to go on the list..

 

 
    You missed my point, Canadian medical insurance will only pay up to the amount paid in each respective province, and that is significantly below US costs.  What I was talking about is that each province has set limits to which you are allowed to be out of province in any given year.  So, in NS we can be away for up to 7 months, for example that means if you spend 3 months in Mexico, one month in the US, and you want to go to work in Alberta, you only have 3 months left, or your MSI will reject any claim, even though you are only out of country 4 months.
    I know lots of people who go west to work and just ignore it, and don't get caught, but if you do, you end up with no coverage.

Ed
 
Ed, I did.

I thought you just had to be in Canada...not the province...and half of the Maritimes (well, not as much at the second) is out there...including my son if all goes well.

Thanks for bringing that to my attention...wow..

And I am on the same page with you re health insurance.
 
    If he is out there working and has a residence, then Alberta would cover him, but I'm not sure about those people who work 3 weeks on and 3 weeks home, I guess the 7 months out of NS would cover them.  I didn't understand it either until I retired and started looking into the rules.  The Canadian Snowbird Association has a load of info available, here their web site:  http://www.snowbirds.org/home

Ed
 
I am not sure about the "facts" that article seems to quote but.... It has always my impression that our maximum "vacation" as a retired snowbird in the USA has always been 182 days with no mention of any requirement to file that IRS TAX form. Not sure where that number of 120 days comes in, maybe for other working stiffs type of visits. That said, the need to file IRS Form 8840 is specified on the form itself where you complete a calculation based on the last 3 years of visits. When you meet or exceed the magic number, you file to prove you are a Canadian resident and you pay your taxes in Canada, not in the USA. As retired snowbirds, for myself and my wife it took 3 years before we met the requirement to file.

The Canadian Snowbirds Assn. sends each member a simplified calculation form each year to aid in the determination if you are required to file or not. The F8840 form itself is also included so it makes filing relatively painless. When required, one F8840 is required per PERSON.

Becoming a member of this association is a "no-brainer" for Canadians who wish to stay informed regarding the Canadian rules for allowed absences* from your home province before loosing your Medicare coverage and the ever changing American rules of visiting the warmer regions of USA to avoid the snow and freezing weather of our native homeland....

* Each province sets it own rules so they can vary quite a bit when comparing one to another!!!
 
Thanks Stu,

It is on our list...and there is no excuse for not knowing if the information is available...that is one reason I am on this board :)

Ian.
 
Ed,

We call the the Annapolis Valley our home at the second.  We are just outside Wolfville but most of my family lives in HRM (Dartmouth, Porter's Lake and a third sister moving back from Orleans so not sure where she will be settling). 

Hoping you are someplace warm..it is -17 before the wind chill factor last night and this morning,,,...it feels like we are living in Ottawa again..  you mentioned that you have  2 children there...ever visit in the winter ?  :)

On one cold Ottawa afternoon, we went out to skate on the canal...it was so cold that the skates just wouldn't work...like trying to skate on cement..
 
    We foolishly agreed to come to our place in St Petes via Ottawa to help our eldest as her husband was overseas for 2 weeks.  That was the end of November, and we froze the entire 2 weeks we were there, then we ended up driving into "lake effect snow" in northern New York when we left.  Back in 1970, I lived in Kentville for about a year, didn't seem to mind the cold as much back then.

    Ed
 
My Dad was a banker so every 3 years we moved...in '70, I was living in Amherst.

Would you believe it was t shirt weather most November here...up until January, we were thinking we were going to have a BC winter..cool with a lot of rain.

My sisters are putting the screws into me to move to HRM after we retire but Carol and I have wanderlust (old definitional). We traveled a lot before we married and before kids then kind of put things on hold.. our family had a cottage out towards Gaetz's Brook (old boundaries, not the new ones)  where I spend ever summer....but you just cannot go back. We visit but it doesn't have the same pull it used to..

Our new to us rig is "winterized" so it should handle slight cold when we are escaping the north...

ian. 
 
Today, Jan. 22, 2015 The Canadian Snowbird Association issued a clarification on the above mentioned article published on the CBC British Columbia site. The details can be found here:

http://www.snowbirds.org/us-travel-rules-clarified

All members with an email address registered with CSA received a copy of the bulletin......
 

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