Questions we hear most

What is cross-border financial planning?

Cross-border financial planning coordinates your taxes, investments, and estate across more than one country at the same time. Often that means Canada and the US, but not always. Most of the people we help leave Canada for somewhere else entirely, and part of the work is choosing where. The right province, state, or country can save serious lifetime tax. It matters when your life touches more than one country: moving, working in one and living in another, holding assets on both sides, or selling a business with buyers abroad. Every country writes its own tax rules and they don’t always play nice together. We plan across all of them at once, so a smart move in one country doesn’t become an expensive mistake in another.

What is departure tax?

Departure tax is what happens when you leave Canada for tax purposes: the CRA treats most of your assets as if you sold them the day you left, even though you didn’t. That deemed sale can trigger capital gains tax on paper profits. Some assets are exempt, some can be deferred, and the planning you do before you leave makes an enormous difference. If a move is even on your radar, talk to us before you book the flight.

Salary or dividends: which should I pay myself?

There’s no universal answer, which is why the internet keeps arguing about it. Salary builds RRSP room and CPP but costs payroll taxes. Dividends skip payroll taxes but build no RRSP room. The right answer depends on your personal cash needs, corporate tax balances, retirement planning, and where you want wealth to accumulate. We model your actual numbers instead of guessing.

Should I set up a holding company?

Sometimes. But holding company is usually shorthand for a bigger question: is my structure right at all?

Start with what prompts it. Cash and investments pile up inside your operating company, and two problems follow. That surplus stays exposed to the risks of the business, and it can disqualify your shares from the Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption, the tax break that can shelter a large slice of a future sale. A holding company can move the surplus out through dividends between the companies. That separates saved wealth from operating risk and keeps the exemption in play.

But a holding company is one part of the puzzle. A family trust changes who gets taxed and how wealth moves to the next generation. A second operating company can wall off different parts of the business. Who holds the shares and where each company is incorporated matter just as much, and both are cheap to get right at the start and expensive to unwind later. We look at the whole structure, model what the extra layers cost you, and tell you which ones are worth keeping.

How is this different from what my accountant does?

Your accountant files what already happened, and a good one does it well. We plan what happens next. Most of our clients keep their accountant. We coordinate with them so the plan and the filings line up, and the work in front of you stops being reactive.

When do I need a business valuation?

Mostly at the decision points: selling, restructuring, leaving Canada, or bringing in a partner or handing down the business. The exit from Canada is the sharp one, because the deemed sale needs a real number behind it. We build valuations that hold up when the CRA or a buyer looks at them.

What does fee-only mean?

Fee-only means we’re paid by you and only you. There are no commissions, no referral kickbacks, and no products we’re trying to sell you. Our only incentive is advice that works.

What do you charge?

Every engagement starts with a paid advisory consultation, and any project beyond that gets a written scope with fees in dollars before anything starts. No surprises, no meters running.

Do I need a financial planner?

Honestly, it depends. The first consultation includes our honest take on whether you need more. Some people do, and some people don’t. We’ll tell you.