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Posted on by Posted in Issues regarding US persons abroad 19 Comments

Cross-posted from Allison Christians Canada-US Agreement Reached on FATCA Data Sharing
(used with permission)

Things have been exciting the past few days as a long-expected agreement on FATCA between Canada and the US was announced and Canada’s Department of Finance released a flurry of accompanying materials. The US Treasury has now added Canada to the list of jurisdictions deemed to have an agreement in effect. I will have more analysis soon but just wanted to provide some of the most useful links to get things up to speed.

First, here is the text of the intergovernmental agreement–it is not a signed copy unfortunately, which leaves a couple of technical questions unanswered for now. Here is the Press Release from the United States. Here is the Press Release from Canada, and here are explanatory notes to the agreement, a backgrounder”, and an FAQ.

Canada’s Department of Finance has also produced a draft legislative proposal that would implement the agreement into Canadian law. This includes text for a new section on Enhanced International Information Reporting in the Income Tax Act. Assuming that the agreement is considered to be a treaty, Parliament needs to be officially notified that an agreement has been signed and 21 sitting days must pass before legislation is introduced to implement the agreement into Canadian law, which would take us to roughly March 27.

During Thursday’s Parliamentary proceedings, MP Murray Rankin offered some pointed questions on the
pact and the implications for the financial privacy of Canadians, but I am afraid the answers may actually sow confusion, more on that later.

Comments on the legislative proposal can be submitted to the Department of Finance at IGA-AIG@fin.gc.ca or to the address below. The closing date for comments is March 10, 2014.

Tax Policy Branch: Department of Finance 140 O’Connor Street Ottawa, ON K1A 0G5

The media, mostly Canadian at first, has taken notice of the agreement and many are commenting on the privacy concerns as well as the reciprocity and scope of the deal:

Patrick Cain explains the agreement and its implications;

James Fitz-Morris explains how the pact takes some heat off Canadian banks but leaves several problems unresolved;

Louise Egan and Patrick Temple-West discuss the agreement and challenges that remain;

Robert Wood discusses the shrewdness of using the CRA to bypass privacy protections;

Windsor Star Editorial discusses enduring privacy concerns;

Theresa Tedesco at the Financial Post comments on the scope of FATCA and what reciprocity really means.

More to come as things unfold in the coming weeks.

 

Allison Christians is H. Heward Stikeman Chair in Tax Law at McGill University

19 thoughts on “Allison Christians on New Canadian-US IGA”

  3. Thank you for cross posting this. It is a great read. As usual Allison has done a fine job. It will be interesting to see how Murray Rankin’s questions are answered.

  7. Great pictures Animal. We really need to focus on getting the word out to ALL immigrants to Canada who should now be fearing their countries of origin. Showing the US attack on Canada, and yet, it was an attack. We neeed them to see how Canada handled this by giving them their demands. All immigrants are now at risk and the charter is just useless paper. The world is turning into Hell for money and this sure shows it. The US is Ruthless and what will stop another attack on Canada. Immigrants need to know!

  8. It is going to take me some time to try to digest Ms Christians post, I am so happy that she is involved and taking an interest in this debate.

  10. Hello Trishia,

    I have just finished writing a 7-page rebuttal of the IGA to the Finance Department and was double-checking some facts on their website. While I was on the website I thought I’d have a look for the official invitation to send submissions about the IGA. I did not find anything about sending submissions and I couldn’t find the email address “IGA-AIG@fin.gc.ca” anywhere on the site either even after doing a search for it.

    I am very disturbed that an invitation to make submissions is not advertised on the very site where it should be! It looks as though it is as secret as the IGA negotiations! Maybe I am looking in the wrong place. Before I write a note to the Finance Department blasting them for not making this better known could you tell me where you found this email address?

    While I’m at it, I’m a new participant here although I have been reading Isaac Brock daily for over two years. Of course, I am unable to make my own posts so I wonder if you could post a general call for submissions again and perhaps have it headlined at the top of the postings every day until March 10. This is our last chance to fight this particular battle. There will be further battles on other fronts to be sure but this is our chance to directly rebut this document and we mustn’t lose it. A general “call to arms” would be a great thing!

  12. Hi Bubblebustin,

    I just clicked the link you posted and it’s the one for the solicitation of submissions in November 2012. I’m looking for the email address referred to in Trishia’s post specifically about responses to the signing of the IGA. I wonder where that one came from. I can’t find it anywhere on the Department of Finance’s website. I don’t doubt it’s correct but I am mystified as to why it’s not posted separately with an announcement similar to the link that you sent. To cover all the bases I’ll send my “epistle” to Kevin Shoom, Minister Flaherty *and* to IGA-AIG@fin.gc.ca. My “dossier” is about to get thicker! I hope that we’re all in the process of drowning them in electronic paper!

    I will also send it to my MP who replied to the email I sent him last week with a form letter saying he passed it along to the Finance Minister (the second time he’s done that). That’s fine. The more Flaherty hears from me the better, but my email to my MP was specifically asking (telling) *him* to vote against the ratification of the IGA. He can’t pass the buck the day of the vote.

  16. @MuzzledNoMore: It’s intentional that it is hidden and almost impossible to find. That is exactly what Finance Canada did in 2012 when they requested submissions.

    They hid the information on a site hoping few people would see it and respond. Then, they could say they consulted the public. They’re doing the same this time.

    I don’t think they will listen any more now than they did previously, but we have to persist.

  18. Thanks, Trishia, for that link to where people can submit their comments to Dept of Finance regarding proposed legislative changes for the IGA. I’ve put a link to it in the “Take Action!” sidebar box.

  19. Thanks, for the link, Trishia! I’ve had a look. Thanks also for putting it in the sidebar, Pacifica! I think it would be even better to get a “call for submissions” as a permanent post at the top of the headlines until Mar. 10. I know that many of us are already busily preparing our submissions but we don’t want anyone just checking in here to miss this opportunity. It’s a long scroll down to this post where this was originally mentioned. The Department of Finance may have managed to hide their invitation for comments on a page few of us were looking at, as Blaze points out, but we can bring it to light here and get the word out.

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