Finally

So my Old Age Pension (OAS) has finally been approved. It will be 26/40 of the full pension and 15% non resident tax taken off that... which comes to $322 Canadian dollars a month. That's 26 years of living in Canada after my 18th birthday before moving to Mexico.
And the silly buggers have sent a check backdated to December... to Mexico. Whoever is doing the paperwork in that office must all be idiots.

Great news. Don't you have direct deposit set up with them?

Great...and Omar Khadr will receive 10.5 million Canadian dollars (US$8 million), unbelievable!

CanuckBob wrote:Great news. Don't you have direct deposit set up with them?

Yes I do and they were directed to do that. And they were given my new street address, my e-mail address and three phone numbers to get in touch with me... all in a SIGNED letter that went with all the other information they requested in March.
I have used capitals to signify "signed" because apparently I could have just done it over the phone. In other words, if someone knows your SIN and has the correct phone number to call, they can just change the address. What a system.

They tax you because you DON'T live there? That's not fair. They should give you 15% more because you aren't using any services.

ferret wrote:So my Old Age Pension (OAS) has finally been approved. It will be 26/40 of the full pension and 15% non resident tax taken off that... which comes to $322 Canadian dollars a month. That's 26 years of living in Canada after my 18th birthday before moving to Mexico.
And the silly buggers have sent a check backdated to December... to Mexico. Whoever is doing the paperwork in that office must all be idiots.

I don't know how they expect anyone to live on that much per month. It's impossible, unless you live rent-free, and have no medical insurance! This would only be enough to cover your food, toiletries and other personal items, and a little entertainment.

Canadians, as everyone knows, have socialized medical care, wear very heavy winter clothing, drive dogsleds, eat snow and only splurge for coffee at Tim Horton locations on their annual migrations to Florida, with a few rare snowbirds deviating to the shores of Lake Chapala in Mexico, where they don black socks with their sandals and shorts, uttering “eh“ to avoid being mistaken for estadounidenses. That OAS will buy 100 lunches in Chapala, with enough tea and sugar to coast through the rest of the day.

Canadians who have officially become non-residents are not entitled to that medical care. I would drive a dogsled (with wheels of course) and weary heavy winter clothing if I could have a Timmy's coffee here. Never been to Florida... but I do use eh a lot... and, interestingly enough, so do a lot of Mexicans.
And, as has been pointed out above, I do resent paying that 15% flat tax when I use no services in Canada BUT there will be no capital gains owed on my estate when I finally get to join my hubby.
Choices. It's all about choices.
The inefficiency of the system is what is truly pissing me off.

Ferret if you live on less than a certain amount you will qualify for a tax refund and get some of that 15% back. It would probably be worth it to file a tax return every year. I still do.

I will look into that Bob. Thank you.

Locally, you can talk with our member DaveP. He does Canadian tax returns. I use an accountant up in Vancouver.

Carry Bean wrote:They tax you because you DON'T live there?  That's not fair.  They should give you 15% more because you aren't using any services.

It actually isn't all about "not living there". All monies earned in Canada (including social securities) is taxable. If you live there you are required to file a tax return. As a non resident you can choose to not file a tax return but they keep that 15% then. In some cases the 15% flat tax is a great deal. In other cases you can get a refund of the taxes that were withheld on earnings from certain investments, etc.

If you live in a country that does not have a tax treaty with Canada (Mexico does) then they withhold 25%.

RVGRINGO wrote:Canadians, as everyone knows, have socialized medical care, wear very heavy winter clothing, drive dogsleds, eat snow and only splurge for coffee at Tim Horton locations on their annual migrations to Florida, with a few rare snowbirds deviating to the shores of Lake Chapala in Mexico, where they don black socks with their sandals and shorts, uttering “eh“ to avoid being mistaken for estadounidenses. That OAS will buy 100 lunches in Chapala, with enough tea and sugar to coast through the rest of the day.

I agree that you buy a lot of lunches in Chapala on that income, but if you have to pay rent, then you have no money left for food and personal items. If you don't have to pay rent (own your house), then you have maintenance on the house, utility bills, and taxes. Or you may choose to buy health insurance down here. Depending on age, the insurance alone would be half of your monthly income. I've lived here for three years, and I know I couldn't survive on that!

Somehow, I don't think RV was being altogether serious about Canadians.
I doubt Canadians would expect to live on only that amount of money, there or elsewhere. Like SS, it wasn't originally meant to be the sole source of retirement income. Sadly, it may be, for some.

Being serious: for those tight on money, Seguro Popular insurance will most likely be free, regardless of your age.

OAS (old age security) is only a portion of what most Canadians receive from the government for retirement. They also receive CPP (Canadian pension plan) which is usually around $900/month for those that wait until they are 65 to apply. Also Ferret was not in Canada long enough to collect 100% of the OAS. Those that were, collect around $600/month. Sooooo.......most Canadians that worked until they are 65 and lived in Canada for 40 years beyond their 18th birthday will collect around $1500 per month from the government along with whatever other company pension they may have. A heck of a lot better than what Mexico pays their retiree's.

gringal wrote:Somehow, I don't think RV was being altogether serious about Canadians.  
I doubt Canadians would expect to live on only that amount of money, there or elsewhere.  Like SS, it wasn't originally meant to be the sole source of retirement income.  Sadly, it may be, for some.

Being serious: for those tight on money, Seguro Popular insurance will most likely be free, regardless of your age.

The main point being missed here is that the Old Age Pension in Canada is NOT like SS. The Canada Pension Plan is like SS. The CPP pays a pension based on work history. The Old Age Pension is not based on work history, only based on length of residence.

Ferret, TioCorp also does Canadian tax returns. Here is a statement from their website.

For many low-income non-residents, such as those receiving CPP, OAS and little else, they can expect to receive a tax refund of all or at least a good portion of what has been withheld. It is worth the effort and low cost of having someone prepare a S217 Tax Return for you if you don't have the skills to do it yourself.

http://www.tiocorpinsurance.com/index.cfm/canadians-in-mexico/mexico-taxation/