Canada Tax for Newcomers: Your First-Year Filing Checklist

Canada tax for newcomers starts on the day you become a resident, which for most people is the day they begin living in Canada with enough ties to stay. From that date Canada taxes your worldwide income, you may qualify for benefits and credits, and the first return you file sets up your RRSP room, your benefit payments and your CRA account. This checklist is written for people arriving from India or the United States, and for permanent residents, workers and students settling in Toronto, Mississauga, Calgary, Surrey and similar cities.

When do I become a tax resident of Canada?

For most newcomers, residency starts the day they begin living in Canada: the CRA says you become a resident when you have enough residential ties. A dwelling, a spouse or common-law partner and dependants are the strongest ties. If your situation is unclear, for example because you arrived on a short permit or spent time away, you can ask the CRA for its opinion on Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (entering Canada). Our Canada tax residency rules guide explains ties, the 183-day rule and treaty tie-breakers.

Canada tax for newcomers: what is on the first-year timeline?

Who must file and when?

Newcomers are not required to do their taxes until the year after they become a resident: if you arrived in 2025, your 2025 return was due April 30, 2026. If you or your spouse or common-law partner is self-employed, the filing deadline is June 15, but the balance is still due April 30. Keep supporting documents for at least six years. You can get benefits before your first return, but you must file each year to keep receiving them.

How to prepare your first Canadian return

1. Confirm the entry date. Enter the date you became a resident in MMDD format (June 8 is 0608). You cannot file online without a SIN.
2. Report world income from that date. Income from all sources, in Canadian dollars, for the resident part of the year. For the earlier, non-resident part of the year, report only certain Canada-sourced income such as employment or business in Canada.
3. Convert foreign amounts using the Bank of Canada rate on the date you received the income.
4. Choose the province. Use the income tax package for the province or territory where you lived on December 31. Quebec residents also file with Revenu Québec.
5. Claim credits correctly. To claim the full amount of certain credits for the non-resident part of the year, the Canadian-source income you report for that period must be at least 90% of your net world income for that period, and paper filers attach a note stating that net world income. Electronic filers provide it through certified software or a preparer.
6. Claim foreign tax credits. Use Form T2209 for foreign tax on income Canada also taxes.
7. Note RRSP limits. You generally cannot deduct RRSP contributions made in your first year of filing in Canada.

See also the T1 return guide.

The Statement of Income and your benefits

Report income you earned outside Canada for up to two years before you became a resident, even if the amount is nil. You can do this online in your CRA account (the fastest route), by mail to your tax centre or by phone. The CRA uses the information to calculate benefit amounts. Convert amounts to Canadian dollars using the Bank of Canada rate on the day you received the income. The CGEB does not need a first tax return, but filing yearly keeps payments flowing; see credits and benefits.

Property you own on arrival

When you become a resident, the CRA considers you to have sold your property and immediately reacquired it at a cost equal to its fair market value on that date. A flat in Hyderabad, shares in an Indian company, mutual funds and a brokerage account in the U.S. are examples. Canada therefore taxes only the gain after you arrived. Keep valuation evidence, because that figure becomes your Canadian cost for later sales. Exceptions exist for some property, such as certain Canadian property and pension rights, so confirm with a Canadian CPA.

Foreign property reporting after arrival

An individual does not have to file Form T1135 for the tax year in which he or she first became resident. For later years the CRA uses fair market value at arrival as the cost amount. If specified foreign property costs more than $100,000 at any time in a later year, you file the form. See the T1135 guide.

Registered accounts for newcomers

TFSA room is the annual dollar limit for each year in which you are a Canadian resident at any time, so a 2026 arrival gets $7,000 for 2026. The FHSA requires you to be a resident, at least 18 and no older than 71 at year-end of opening, and a first-time buyer. The CRA defines a qualifying home as a housing unit located in Canada, so ask your Canadian CPA how a home owned abroad is treated. See registered accounts.

Documents you need

• Passport, permanent resident confirmation or work or study permit and proof of arrival date.
• SIN letter or temporary tax number, and children's documents.
• Income records from the two years before arrival and for the arrival year.
• A list of foreign property with dates and fair market values at arrival.
• Bank, brokerage and pension statements, and foreign tax certificates.

Worked example: Bengaluru to Calgary

Ananya, a software engineer, lands in Calgary on June 10, 2025 with her husband and daughter as permanent residents. Her entry date is 0610. She reports world income from June 10, 2025 and files by April 30, 2026. She sends a Statement of Income for her Indian salary from 2023 and 2024. On arrival she holds a rented-out flat worth $120,000, Indian mutual funds of $40,000 and deposits of $30,000, all in Canadian dollars. Her Canadian cost for each is its value on June 10, 2025. For 2025 no T1135 is due. For 2026 the property cost of $190,000 exceeds $100,000, so she files a T1135 with her 2026 return. India may treat her as non-resident from her departure date, which her Indian Chartered Accountant confirms.

If you also file in the U.S. or India

An American arriving in Canada still files a U.S. return on worldwide income and claims foreign tax credits, and must report Canadian accounts on the FBAR; read U.S. citizens living in Canada. An Indian citizen becoming a Canadian resident may become non-resident for Indian purposes, which affects bank accounts, taxation of Indian income and filing; see the moving from India to Canada tax checklist, the India residency rules and the NRE, NRO and FEMA guide.

Mistakes to avoid

• Skipping the Statement of Income when you had no income, since the CRA asks for it whether or not you had income.
• Treating the arrival date as the date of the SIN or bank account.
• Using purchase price rather than fair market value on arrival as your Canadian cost.
• Contributing to an RRSP in the first filing year expecting a deduction.
• Letting a temporary resident permit expire without telling the CRA.

How we can help

We are a U.S. CPA firm in Aurora, Illinois. We plan the U.S. side of a move to Canada, including departure from or continuing U.S. status, foreign accounts and credits, and coordinate with your Canadian CPA and Indian Chartered Accountant so the three returns agree. See relocation and immigration tax planning and individual tax returns for newcomers and NRIs. Immigration questions belong with an immigration professional. More Canadian guides are on the Canada hub.

Frequently asked questions

General information only. It is not tax, legal, accounting or immigration advice for your situation, and rules change; confirm the current rules with the official source or a licensed professional in the relevant country.