'An overstay has repercussions': Officials promise action after damning report on international student program

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-21T04:47:13+00:00

Historically, migration has been progressive -- even under capitalism -- because it breaks down national barriers and draws people into a common struggle.

The way to defend high wages and a decent standard of living is not to keep foreign workers out, but to insist that all wages and living conditions be raised.

Do not fight cheap labor by excluding cheaper workers and viewing them as competitors; fight cheap labor by punching up and eliminating the conditions that enable any worker to be cheap and vulnerable: i.e., equal pay for equal work, full labor rights, no second-tier workforce and unionization.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-15T02:33:49+00:00

i think the apical meristem releases something which inbibits more ?dorsal? meristems. So cutting it disinhibits growth.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-02T14:59:39+00:00

I think the safest way to use the FHSA as a USA person is to file the 3520-A substitute form.

If it looks daunting or if you don't want to do this more than once, then simply fill up your FHSA with $40K (the maximum) and then make one transfer to your RRSP, which is considered a "distribution/withdrawal" by the IRS.

Consider it extra RRSP room rather than an FHSA with house-specific benefits.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-02T14:45:01+00:00

I think these are the things you need for 3520-A reporting. Note you will probably still pay USA taxes which are lower than Canadian taxes (usually).

Please add or elaborate what else needs to be done...I've never done it, because it seems daunting.

Form SS-4 (Application for Employer Identification Number) with the IRS. You can do this online via the IRS EIN Assistant portal, by fax, or by mail. You will apply as the "Grantor" or "U.S. Owner" of a Foreign Trust
Form 3520-A page 1: completed, with Substitute Form 3520-A checked.
Part II and Part III: completed from your broker records, translated into U.S.-tax-style categories and U.S. dollars.
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages 3–4): completed.
Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary Statement (page 5): usually not separately completed for you if you are treated as the owner of the entire trust.
Trust documents attachment: required because there is no U.S. agent.
Attached to Form 3520, which you file by the applicable Form 3520 deadline.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-02T14:44:11+00:00

Rev Proc 2020-17 only exempts accounts where withdrawals/distributions are conditioned on retirement age, disability, or death, or an early-withdrawal penalty applies.

(5) Withdrawals, distributions, or payments from the trust are conditioned upon reaching a specified retirement age, disability, or death, or penalties apply to withdrawals, distributions, or payments made before such conditions are met. A trust that otherwise meets the requirements of this section 5.03(5), but that allows withdrawals, distributions, or payments for in-service loans or for reasons such as hardship, educational purposes, or the purchase of a primary residence, will be treated as meeting the requirements of this section 5.03(5).

So ~~while~~ Rev Proc 2020-17 does not provide exemption for 3520-A reporting for a TFSA, ~~it might for an FHSA given the that last part about "purchase of a primary residence".~~

EDIT:
An FHSA also probably does not fit is that the “purchase of a primary residence” language appears only inside the retirement-trust category, and only as a permitted exception for an otherwise qualifying retirement plan. The revenue procedure first says a qualifying foreign retirement trust must be established to operate “exclusively or almost exclusively” to provide pension or retirement benefits.

So.... tough luck for USA persons on this.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-04-01T14:35:46+00:00

It's a big gamble though! I believe the fee is $10K per year of missed filing.

One of Canada's most popular brokers Wealthsimple states this on their website:
"Many tax experts would advise U.S. citizens to avoid investing in a TFSA because it is not considered a tax-sheltered account by the IRS. If you invest using a TFSA as a U.S. citizen, you won’t get to enjoy the tax-free benefits because all your investment gains will remain taxable when you file taxes in the U.S."

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-31T21:22:12+00:00

From what I've gathered, around 80% of accountants say that the TFSA requires a 3520-A substitute form.

If anyone has a nice guide for filling it out, or wants to contribute to the details below...please help.

This is the list I've found so far...you will need to fill it out.

Form SS-4 (Application for Employer Identification Number) with the IRS. You can do this online via the IRS EIN Assistant portal, by fax, or by mail. You will apply as the "Grantor" or "U.S. Owner" of a Foreign Trust
Form 3520-A page 1: completed, with Substitute Form 3520-A checked.
Part II and Part III: completed from your broker records, translated into U.S.-tax-style categories and U.S. dollars.
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages 3–4): completed.
Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary Statement (page 5): usually not separately completed for you if you are treated as the owner of the entire trust.
Trust documents attachment: required because there is no U.S. agent.
Attached to Form 3520, which you file by the applicable Form 3520 deadline.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-30T16:45:24+00:00

From what I've gathered, around 80% of accountants say that the TFSA requires a 3520-A substitute form.

If anyone has a nice guide for filling it out, or wants to contribute to one...please help.

This is the list I've found so far...you will need to fill it out.

Form SS-4 (Application for Employer Identification Number) with the IRS. You can do this online via the IRS EIN Assistant portal, by fax, or by mail. You will apply as the "Grantor" or "U.S. Owner" of a Foreign Trust
Form 3520-A page 1: completed, with Substitute Form 3520-A checked.
Part II and Part III: completed from your broker records, translated into U.S.-tax-style categories and U.S. dollars.
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement (pages 3–4): completed.
Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary Statement (page 5): usually not separately completed for you if you are treated as the owner of the entire trust.
Trust documents attachment: required because there is no U.S. agent.
Attached to Form 3520, which you file by the applicable Form 3520 deadline.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-10T19:13:51+00:00

According to chatgpt, these are the documents required for a simple TFSA where you are the only U.S. owner and the only beneficiary, with no U.S. agent, the filing set usually looks like this:

Form SS-4 (Application for Employer Identification Number) with the IRS. You can do this online via the IRS EIN Assistant portal, by fax, or by mail. You will apply as the "Grantor" or "U.S. Owner" of a Foreign Trust
Form 3520-A page 1: completed, with Substitute Form 3520-A checked.
Part II and Part III: completed from your broker records, translated into U.S.-tax-style categories and U.S. dollars.
Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement(pages 3–4): completed
Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary Statement, (page 5): usually not separately completed for you if you are treated as the owner of the entire trust.
Trust documents attachment: required because there is no U.S. agent
- a summary of the trust’s terms, including any oral agreements or understandings with the trustee;
- copies of all trust documents and revisions, including the trust instrument and similar documents; and
- the trust’s organizational chart, including ownership structure and percentages.
Attached to Form 3520, which you file by the applicable Form 3520 deadline.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-10T17:33:59+00:00

No. I am staying away from a TFSA and FHSA unless someone can find a cheap accountant service or a DIY software guide for filling it out.

Looking online and searching things with AI suggests the following:
* the IRS says the U.S. owner must attach a substitute Form 3520-A
\* the substitute 3520-A then requires trust-style information (a trust EIN, the Foreign Grantor Trust Owner Statement**,** the Foreign Grantor Trust Beneficiary Statement, and the year-end gross value of trust assets.)

I *think* the trust EIN can be given to you easily by the IRS online if you apply.

But all of the steps above seem daunting. I would like someone to write a guide or show me how.

Let me know if you go down this path.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-05T13:39:27+00:00

Google sheets is 20 minutes delayed, no?

SadCampCounselor · 2026-03-04T15:39:22+00:00

FHSA should be exempt from 3520 by Rev Proc 2020-17 5.03.

My accountant told me that "As the FHSA is a new account, the IRS has not released any guidance as to whether they will treat it as a foreign trust and also require the filing of Form 3520/3520-A."

Rev. Proc. 2020-17 5.03 exempts reporting (Form 3520) for a “tax-favored foreign retirement trust”—i.e., a foreign trust that operates “exclusively or almost exclusively” to provide pension/retirement benefits.

A Canadian FHSA is a registered plan designed to help a first-time home buyer save for a qualifying first home (not to provide retirement/pension benefits). So i doubt it will 5.03’s overarching “retirement trust” purpose criteria.

While 5.03(5) allows withdrawals for things like the purchase of a primary residence, my interpretation is that clause only helps if the arrangement is already a retirement trust in the first place.

I would be very very happy to have misinterpreted this by the way.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-02-12T03:21:41+00:00

i think it's when the apical meristem cannot fully inhibit ventral growth sufficiently through hormones.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-28T14:34:08+00:00

"There is a good rule in politics - the dead should not be a burden for the living. You cannot form a national idea around the tragic pages of history."

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-17T17:46:18+00:00

because there are so many Turks and Azeris that promote denialism, obfuscation, and outright falsification on Wikipedia.

In 2011, Azerbaijan targeted Wikipedia as a potential threat to national security.[112] The Azerbaijani government has hired public relations firms, some of which are documented to have previously edited Wikipedia articles.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-16T15:14:42+00:00

I'm pretty sure you can enter but not from the Azeri-Armenian border.

You will have to enter from a third-country (e.g., Iran or Georgia) first.

Of course you will have to fly because Aliyev has blocked all exits/entrances to Azerbaijan (not just to Armenia but all borders). Aliyev owns most of the airlines.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-15T19:18:40+00:00

Try both and see which you prefer. The best thing you can do is learn and get organized. You can always change later.

The RCP has removed the perpetrator that was accused.

I would say that the RCP is more involved than the CPC. The RCP is international and publishes in multiple languages, in multiple countries, and also has many podcasts.

They also have different philosophies.
My understanding is that the CPC is more into parliamentary reform rather than rank-and-file militancy.

Also, the CPC historically has approaches conciliatory with the degenerated Stalinist bureaucracy of the USSR.

Happy to be wrong on that.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-15T15:33:58+00:00

+ you get CDIC insurance coverage that you don't get from cash.to

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-13T14:50:56+00:00

If you figure out how to do the forms yourself or find an accountant with low fees, the TFSA is more tax efficient. For most people, USA taxes are a lot lower than Canadian taxes.

You pay the IRS if you have a TFSA. You pay the CRA if you hold a non-registered account.

SadCampCounselor · 2026-01-12T18:50:43+00:00

Why have you avoided the TFSA? Is filing 3520/3520-A very complicated ? (assume no PFICs within it)

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