AMERICANS Living in Canada

You’re a U.S. citizen or Green Card holder who’s made Canada home. Maybe you moved for family, for work, for the lifestyle, or because you married a Canadian. Whatever brought you here, you’ve discovered something frustrating:

Your U.S. financial advisor can’t help you anymore.

The moment you established Canadian residency, most U.S.-based advisors became unable—or unwilling—to serve you. Your IRA sits unmanaged. Your 401(k) is stuck in a former employer’s plan. You have questions about how Canadian taxes affect your U.S. accounts, and no one seems to have answers.

You’ve been orphaned.

We Help Americans Living in Canada

At Sandhu Wealth, this is exactly what we do. We’re dually licensed in both Canada and the United States. We manage U.S. retirement accounts—IRAs, 401(k)s, Roth IRAs—from Canada. We understand both tax systems and build portfolios that work in both.

You don’t need two advisors who don’t talk to each other. You need one team that understands your whole picture.

The Challenges You Face

Annual U.S. Tax Filing

As a U.S. citizen, you must file a U.S. tax return every year, reporting your worldwide income. This is true regardless of how long you’ve lived in Canada or whether you have any U.S. income.

You also have reporting requirements for your non-U.S. accounts—FBAR (if aggregate balances exceed $10,000), Form 8938, and potentially others.

Miss these filings? The penalties are severe.

Investment Restrictions

Not all investments work for Americans in Canada:

Canadian Mutual Funds and ETFs: Classified as PFICs (Passive Foreign Investment Companies).

The PFIC trap isn't just about the tax rate; it’s about the onerous reporting requirements and forensic accounting costs that erode your wealth before the CRA or IRS even touches it.

We provide the forensic monitoring required to identify PFIC exposure and avoid them entirely, ensuring you don't lose out to the high-stakes cost of cross-border compliance.

TFSAs — The U.S. doesn’t recognize the TFSA’s tax-free status. All growth is taxable, plus you face complex foreign trust reporting. Don’t open one.

Consequently, all internal returns—including dividends, interest, and realized capital gains—are taxable annually to the IRS. We'll work with your cross-border accountant to determine if your contribution limits justify the additional reporting architecture.

RESPs — Complicated for U.S. persons. May create reporting requirements that cost more than the account benefits. We work directly with your tax team to determine if the 20% Canadian Education Savings Grant and deferred growth for CRA purposes justify the reporting architecture.

We build portfolios specifically for Americans in Canada—investments that work cleanly in both tax systems.

Retirement Account Management

Your IRA and 401(k) are still your accounts. They can remain in the U.S. and continue to grow. But you need someone to manage them.

We do. We’re licensed to manage U.S. retirement accounts from Canada. We provide ongoing investment advice, handle rebalancing, and coordinate withdrawals when you’re ready.

Roth IRA Protection

Your Roth IRA can remain tax-free in both countries—but only if you file a treaty election with CRA in the year you become a Canadian resident. This is critical and often missed.

We ensure this election gets filed.

What We Help With

• Managing U.S. retirement accounts (IRA, 401(k), Roth IRA, 403(b)) from Canada
• Building investment portfolios that avoid PFIC complications
• Coordinating with cross-border tax accountants
• Retirement income planning across both countries
• Estate planning with cross-border considerations
• Roth conversion strategies (for those considering returning to the U.S. or converting before they move)

The Process

Why Sandhu Wealth

We’ve built one of the largest cross-border practices in Canada because we understand what you’re going through. We’ve helped hundreds of Americans living in Canada get their financial lives organized.

We speak both tax languages. We hold licenses in both countries. We know what to do—and what to avoid.