Investment Q&A

Q: Re Comments from Richard on Oct27 about proceeds of WPT buyout. From what I read the special dividend is meant for US/foreign holders not canadians. I expected capital gain only. Could you clarify? Thanks.

Q: Hi 5i,
I'm not sure this is an appropriate question to ask but, here goes.
I was considering purchasing AMT for my TFSA and NonReg accounts.
Can you help explain the taxation issues I need to be aware of for each account. (capital gains and losses, distributions, dividends etc.
I understand that the taxation issues for a US REIT may be different from a US stock.
Thanks

Q: Thanks for your answer but I was really looking for the best time to ‘sell’ not buy, as I have capital gains to shelter, and some ‘losers’ to offset them.

Q: Hello,

I have my RRSP, TFSA and non-registered accounts with Interactive Brokers Canada (IBKR). In reading a review about IBKR, I read some comments about “the possibility that holdings within a RRSP held with Interactive Brokers Canada may in fact be taxed by the US IRS in the event of death of the account holder.”

I researched this further and read that the US estate tax regime applies to US situs assets. US situs assets are property located in or having a connection to the US, including the following:
1. Real property located in the US;
2. Shares of US publicly traded companies (even if owned inside a Canadian RRSP);
3. Shares of US private companies;
4. Cash accounts with US brokerage firms;
5. Tangible personal property located in the US with some degree of permanence; and
6. Certain debts owing by a US debtor.
https://altrolaw.com/blog-cross-border-estate-planning/us-situs-asset/

The IRS website indicates “Estate tax treaties between the U.S. and other countries often provide more favorable tax treatment to nonresidents by limiting the type of asset considered situated in the U.S. and subject to U.S. estate taxation.”
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/some-nonresidents-with-us-assets-must-file-estate-tax-returns

I own US stocks and ETFs (ex. AAPL, SPY, QQQ) in my RRSP and TFSAs. I also hold US$ cash in my non-registered account. Considering that there are significant investment opportunities in the US, I am loathe to stay away from investing in the US markets.

My questions are as follows:
1. Is there an estate tax treaty with the US to prevent (double) taxation? I would assume paying the necessary taxes in Canada would absolve the estate from having to pay any further taxes in the US.
2. Would it matter if my RRSP and TFSA are held in a purely Canadian brokerage such as RBC instead of IBKR which has a presence in both US, Canada and other countries?
3. Is a TFSA considered a non-registered account in the eyes of the IRS, specifically from the point of estate taxes.
4. Any other items to consider?

I would really appreciate your views and comments as I am sure this will be of interest to a fair number of your subscribers. Please deduct as many credits as required.

Thank you

Q: Hello,

I am in the process of converting my RRSP into a RRIF.

I also have a USD-SDRSP, would you know how the conversion of a US based account works?

Thanks

Stephen

Q: Hi Peter and team,

In your answer today to Stephen, you suggest TIP for a non-registered account. Would you know what is the tax paid on the dividend? I think it's taxed as interest?
Thank you!

Q: When and who required W-BEN form ? Do you require W-BEN for registered accounts
like TFSA or RRIF and non registered account .
Please elaborate on my question and tell me what happen and when if I do not have
filled W-BEN form.

Q: Hi. I want to buy an ETF for US or International exposure and therefore need to understand the impact of the withholding tax. In doing so, I need to determine the type of ETF they are such as; Canadian equity, Canadian dividend and income, U.S. Equity, International Equity Fund or Can Bon fund. So, wow do I determine what type of fund XAW or QEF fall under such that I can understand the withholding tax implications. Looking at the website/fact sheets/etc is still difficult to determine the "holdings" which has a direct correlation to the with holding tax.

Q: If one has some massive winners (but no offsetting losers) in a non-registered account, do you think it makes any sense to sell such securities this year given the on and off talk about the federal government increasing the capital gains inclusion rate?

Q: I bought EGLX in Margin account on June 8 and my Registered account on June 23. Can I claim a loss if I sell in a margin account only or do I need to sell in both accounts to claim a loss?

Thanks for the great service

Q: Hi Peter, Ryan, and Team,

Portfolio Analytics indicates that we need to increase our Real Estate holdings, but the only place to do so would be in an unregistered account. I’m looking at GRT.UN and TCN. My thinking is that even though GRT.UN has a slightly better chart, the best option would be to go with TCN, and since it’s not a REIT, there would be some tax advantages in this situation. Is my thinking correct? I should add that our only holdings in this sector are FSV and IIP.UN, both recommendations of 5i, but held in our RRIFs. A big thank you for these past recommendations, and for your assistance with my latest query.

Q: I have been holding BIP.UN for several years. Does it make to sell it and buy BIPC to get tax advantage. BIPC is about 3.5% more expensive than BIP.UN, which has narrowed down significantly in the last couple of years. Why did the difference narrow down so much and can it narrow down even further? Thanks.

Q: Hello Peter,
Are there any issues with having BEP,UN in a TFSA? Is it similar to investing in any other dividend paying stocks in a TFSA ( in terms of receiving dividends ): there are no extra forms to fill out as it is a limited partnership.. Also, if the company is not profitable, what is the thesis of investing in it: great cash flow, part of BAM, and the right sector such as renewable energy. From a fundamental basis, is it better than investing in AQN or NPI?

Q: I am down on these stocks EGLX (-24%), AT (-28%), BRAG (-24%) and PINS (-23%).
These stocks are in a non-registered account.

I have two questions. First, are these stocks worth holding for a turnaround or just take the loss (and take advantage of the tax loss credit) and move on?

Second, if they are worth holding I might do a tax loss sell and buy after 30 days. I am not sure how to time that. Do it now or at the end of the year?

Thank you for your help and advice as always.

David

Q: Good morning 5i
Another question about the superficial loss rule. I would like to buy Magna in a registered account todau and then sell it in my non registered account for a tax loss in thirty days. But, I believe I remember reading somewhere that you say that I would have to hold it for sixty days before selling. If this is right, I can"t understand why. I would appreciate any clarification.\
thanks

Q: For the last 11 years - I have been investing in Canadian companies with a track record of dividend increases. I have been a 5I member for most of those 11 years and you have always provided very insightful guidance - Many thanks!

The strategy has worked pretty well and is very tax efficient owing to the Dividend Tax Credit. Recently there has been alot of political talk about "taxing the rich" particularly vis a vis the capital gains inclusion rate - with less - but still some talk about elimination of the DTC. ("Rich" of course means anyone with any taxable holdings at all).

Aside from the obvious impact on my tax bill if the DTC were reduced or eliminated - I worry that there would be huge impact on the Canadian market. What are your views on the likelihood of a change to the DTC and would you expect a large impact on the stock price of Canadian dividend payers.

Thanks!

Q: I am up 200% on TOU. With the potential of The liberal Gov’t changing the rules on capital gains, would I be wise to swap TOU for ARX for 30 days to trigger the capital gain and protect my win? I will switch back in December.

Q: My 28yr old son is looking to build a diversified ETF portfolio with 100% equity exposure with a bent towards growth given his long investment horizon.  These will be spread across his TFSA, RRSP and Non-Registered accounts.  Since he will be contributing smaller amounts on a regular basis a zero commission platform such as Wealthsimple is appealing.  However, they charge 1.5% fee for all currency conversions making it only practical to hold Canadian traded ETF's.  As a result he is considering the following:

ZSP 40%
XIC 25%
TEC 20%
VIU 10%
VEE 5%

ZSP + XIC + VIU + VEE together create a mix of ETFs that are globally diversified and very similar to the structure of XEQT/VEQT.  Versus XEQT/VEQT This portfolio has a slightly lower weighted-average MER at 0.16% and also has 20% in TEC (in place of something like QQQ) which is more growth oriented. Here are how the sectors would be weighted with this portfolio:

Info 31%
Financial 15%
Cons Disc 11%
Industrial 9%
Healthcare 8%
Communica 7%
Cons Staples 5%
Energy 5%
Materials 4%
Utilities 2%
Real Estate 2%

These would be the top 10 holdings with this portfolio and these top 10 would account for 24% of holdings in this portfolio:

AAPL5.1% MSFT4.9% AMZN3.2% GOOGL1.8% FB1.7% GOOG1.7% TSLA1.5% SHOP1.4% RY1.2% NVDA1.2%

If this was you at 28, can you please comment on
- are the 5 ETFs he has chosen ones you would go with given his objectives, if not, what changes/substitutes would you make along with recommended % allocations?
- is his % allocation across the 5 appropriate or would you make changes? For example I thought there might be too much overlap between ZSP and TEC as they are both highly invested in AAPL, MSFT, AMZ and FB and he is looking at 60% going into these 2 ETF's. That may well be what you want at his age but  I wonder if he is better served by reducing ZSP to 25% -30% and TEC to 15% and add  the remaining 15-20% to CDZ or VGG (or something else?)
- given he will be making contributions to his TFSA, RRSP and Non-registered, which ETF would be best in which account and why? 

Thanks for all your help, 
Scott

Q: I am a Canadian citizen who resides full-time in the U.S.
Just recently, my Canadian bank (CIBC) restricted my Canadian-domiciled RRSP to only sells, rendering it virtually useless.
I am under the impression trading a non-registered account is not illegal.
I understand this is not in your wheelhouse, but do you know of any financial institutions which allow foreign residents to trade their RRSPs?
You can post this on the public portion of the Q&A in the hopes it helps others in my situation.
Thanks, I really hope you can offer some assistance.

Q: Wondering how to lessen tax on dividend income in a cash account. I gather using a DRIP doesn't do anything in that regard?? If not then is there any holding, individual equity or ETF, that provides a utility, telecom or reit type of relative safety with dividend that somehow lessens the tax one would normally pay on dividend income. Thank you for your help. Ken