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Canadian OAS and GIS Eligibility


Ezzie

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On 4/17/2021 at 2:35 PM, 1Charro said:

I'm delighted to find all these experiences on line. I've lived in Mexico four & one half years now and have just this winter been notified by CRA in Sudbury that I owe over $2600 because I failed to tell them i was leaving Canada. ( I mistakenly thought that 's why we had our passports stamped.!)

As I am now in my 80 th year, I had been collecting OAS & CPP several years before leaving in 2016, for Ecuador. Am I to now believe, that they will 'claw-bask' or demand payment up front of the $2600 plus $ ??

I sponsored a new Mexican wife to Canada in 2007, so had no problem obtaining my 'Permante' here. She now works  in Alberta and winters in Mexico.(Separete from me!) 

Bill

I’m no expert in tax matters but there is something wrong with this story.  I have been here 15yrs and collect CPP & OAS   The CRA doesn’t care where you live as long as you file your income tax form..

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TelsZ4:  It's not a case of where you live.  I've been here longer than you and have always received both  while living here. But they DO know where I live and always have.

If OP is in fact referring to something related to OAS then it very well could be as I outlined.  I was actually a little unclear on whether OP meant OAS or GIS..... which definitely requires you live in Canada

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On 10/30/2015 at 6:11 AM, Ezzie said:

I was reading the other thread about the intention of Canadian Border Services to provide tracking data to various government departments to "flag" potential fraud with some of Canada's social programs. The other thread headed off into a different direction with a discussion on health care.

What I am interested in and frankly confused about is why living here in Mexico on a permanent basis would have any impact on OAS and GIS eligibility. If you are a Canadian citizen and lived in Canada all your life (until at least age 60) and then moved out of the country to spend your retirement years in a country that offers a lower cost of living and great weather, why should this be an issue for the Canadian government? I can't see how maintaining residency or declaring non-resident status should have any bearing on this other than how a person's income from Canadian sources is taxed.

Living in Mexico has no impact on your OAS and CPP. I have been doing it for years.  It has an impact on your free Canadian Health insurance.

If you do live here most of the year you should become a non resident and you iwll pay income at a lower rate.

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On 10/30/2015 at 7:37 AM, RCEHM said:

Dave, yes, I know that GIS is not available to non residents. However, there are some Canadians who live in Mexico full time, are still residents of Canada but take advantage of the offered government programs, i.e., medical, GIS, subsidized housing, etc.. Aren’t you tired of paying for them? I know I am.

Yes

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On 4/19/2021 at 12:39 PM, Natasha said:

What the passport stamp CAN do is be your proof of sufficient years (or not) of Canadian residence  when you apply for OAS.  It's complicated and not going into detail here, but even tho' I was born there I had to settle for 39/40th of OAS... OR go back and live one more year in Canada. NOT!!   I'm guessing perhaps you failed to meet that same criteria that would have kicked in on the date you left Canada for Ecuador?  (Remaining in Canada and the criteria would not have applied.) The year 1972 sticks in my mind.... maybe the year they changed the formula?

It also catches people (I know 2)   getting Canadian Medical even though they don't meet the days in the country requirements of home province. You get snagged for those costs as well.......

There is a fair bit of questions, misinformation, and speculation in all of the above thread, but let's keep it to the facts.

First fact, for Cdn born citizens OAS is based on the number of years, up to 40, that you were resident in Canada after the age of 18.  So anyone who is a resident until age 58 gets full OAS, no matter where you live.  Those that have less than 40 years get a proration of 1/40th per resident year.  Immigrants have different rules and are not not pertinent to this discussion.

Second fact, GIS, Guaranteed Income Supplement, is based on family income and is a non-taxable payment designed to supplement low income seniors who are collecting OAS.  To be eligible for this payment, you MUST be resident physically in Canada for 6 months a year.  This is somewhat similar to the Provincial medical plans that require you to be physically present in the province for 5 to 6 months, depending on the province.  This eliminates you if you live in Mexico, or anywhere outside of Canada, for 6months or more in a year.  This info is clearly spelled out in the govt info regarding OAS and  the 6 months each year is NOT flexible and Canadian non-residents do not fit the definition of 6 months residency, though I am not aware of that being tested in court.

As to administration, Service Canada in the last several years has become quite aggressive in catching GIS cheaters since the agreement was made with the US to cross-share border crossing info on Canadian and US citizens.  When you enter Canada, there is an immigration record.  When you enter the US, there is an immigration record.  When they scrub their files and find a GIS recipient who entered the US on one date and then their first return entry to Canada was more than 6 months later, they may begin an enquiry.  They then send a letter to the individual at the OAS address of record requesting them to sign an affidavit (read jail time if you lie) and your passport to back it up.  If you are found to be a cheat, you have to repay all the funds for the non-eligible years.  I know of people that were caught.  Some people attempt to fly into the Canada from Mexico or Europe without a transit stop in the US, but not sure if this will continue to work.  As a side note, I believe that at least one province is doing the same to catch Provincial Medical cheaters who used the medical system but didn't spend sufficient time in the province to be eligible, but this is not provable yet.

This is not a Canada Customs issue but is solely a Service Canada program.

 

 

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25 minutes ago, BrianInMexico said:

Some people attempt to fly into the Canada from Mexico or Europe without a transit stop in the US, but not sure if this will continue to work. 

??? Not following you here, although everything else you wrote is spot on. I always fly direct from Mexico to Canada. It's not an "attempt" at anything. Canadian Immigration has a record of my entries and exits. What does the US have to do with it?

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Flying directly from Canada to Mexico and vice-versa is not a problem.  The context was that people were doing this rather than transiting thru the US and leaving a US Immigration record that is shared with Canada, allowing Service Canada to compare arrival dates.  At this time, I do not believe that Canada and Mexico are sharing immigration records and this MAY allow people to collect OAS when not eligible without yet getting caught.  None of these countries has an immigration record of when you exit, only when you arrive.

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8 hours ago, BrianInMexico said:

Flying directly from Canada to Mexico and vice-versa is not a problem.  The context was that people were doing this rather than transiting thru the US and leaving a US Immigration record that is shared with Canada, allowing Service Canada to compare arrival dates.  At this time, I do not believe that Canada and Mexico are sharing immigration records and this MAY allow people to collect OAS when not eligible without yet getting caught.  None of these countries has an immigration record of when you exit, only when you arrive.

This is a great example about about asking questions on a Webboard.  So many of the posters just don’t have a clue about what they are talking about.. I would hazard a guess that 95% or more of the Canadians here are collecting OAS which equates to thousands of Canadians every year, multiplied by years .. it would be tens of thousands if not a hundred thousand or more who have collected OAS  And the government hasn’t figured it out yet...Yeah Right..

The government couldn’t care less where you are for collecting CPP & OAS.

 

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15 minutes ago, Ferret said:

Brian is mixing up GIS (Guaranteed Income Supplement) with OAS (Old Age Security). He knows the difference but is getting them wrong in some of his posts. 

Yes, unfortunately his otherwise well stated post had them swapped.

I have also read that it is the entrance that gets recorded, and then shared between the countries. When you fly from Canada out on an international flight; There is no contact with CBSA.

I'm quite sure things will change in the future. 

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You are correct.  I inadvertently used the term OAS because GIS is an income subsidy program administered within OAS by Service Canada and I should have stuck with the term GIS to avoid this confusion.  The question was about GIS and avoiding the record collection by immigration..  I repeat, Canadians legally collect OAS & CPP wherever they live and whatever their residency status.  GIS is dependent on residency in Canada of 6 months per year and those trying to skirt these GIS rules are taking a chance of being caught.

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1 hour ago, TelsZ4 said:

I doubt if anyone here is collecting GIS  . GIS is for people with low incomes, nothing to do with the length of time you spend in Canada.. I seriously doubt if you are collecting GIS. you can afford to live here, 

You are missing the jist of the conversation. I definitely have known people who were illegally collecting the GIS while living in Mexico.

What makes you think that those who would be eligible to collect the GIS if they lived in Canada can't afford to live in Mexico? That's a ridiculous presumption. Not all senior Canadians living in Mexico have maids and gardeners and pools and nice new cars and go out to eat all the time. 

I am definitely low income and would qualify for GIS if I lived in Canada for 6 months a year. 

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6 hours ago, TelsZ4 said:

I doubt if anyone here is collecting GIS  . GIS is for people with low incomes, nothing to do with the length of time you spend in Canada.. I seriously doubt if you are collecting GIS. you can afford to live here, 

But wouldn't that be a reason for moving to a lower  cost location  like Mexico?

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8 hours ago, Ferret said:

So what else is new. There are also people who live here full time that haven't given up their Canadian Health Insurance either. Grifters. The lot of 'em. Eventually they'll get caught and pay the price.

There is no such thing as Canadian Health Insurance.  Health insurance is provincial so it is (Province) Health Insurance. Each province sets its own rules.

You don’t give up your Ontario  Health Insurance,,  it expires after 212 days out of Ontario.  To renew you need to reside in Ontario for 155 days or pay the the required fee and your coverage starts then.. 

The requirements for each province can easily be checked by going to the (Province) Health Insurance website 

 

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16 minutes ago, happyjillin said:

Turn the scoflaws in. We all still pay income tax,get virtually nothing in return and these scum are supported by our taxes.

So are there degrees of  "scum" like those who turn up from the blue and get free benefit and those who made contributions like sales tax etc but are now out of the country? 

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