How to Fill Out and Submit Form NR74: Residency Ties, Days, and Filing

To fill out Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada), download the PDF from Canada.ca, complete the sections on your personal identification, your residential ties to Canada, and your remaining ties to your previous country, attach documents that back up what you have written, and mail or fax the package to the Canada Revenue Agency’s tax centre in Sudbury, Ontario. There is no fee, and submission is voluntary.1Canada Revenue Agency. NR74 Determination of Residency Status (entering Canada)

What Form NR74 Does

Form NR74 asks the CRA for a written opinion on whether you are a factual resident, deemed resident, non-resident, or deemed non-resident of Canada for income tax purposes. The classification decides what you report: residents pay Canadian tax on worldwide income, while non-residents pay tax only on Canadian-source income.2Canada.ca. Determining Your Residency Status

The form is aimed at people who have entered or briefly stayed in Canada and are not certain where they stand. That includes workers relocating for a job while keeping a home abroad, international students, cross-border commuters and snowbirds, and retirees settling in Canada with foreign pensions or investments. If you are leaving Canada rather than entering, the equivalent form is NR73, not NR74.3Canada.ca. NR73 Determination of Residency Status (leaving Canada)

Before You Start

The form is a PDF you can complete on screen using Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher, or print and fill in by hand.1Canada Revenue Agency. NR74 Determination of Residency Status (entering Canada) The CRA’s answer will only be as accurate as the facts you give it, so gather your information before you open the form. You will need:

  • Your Social Insurance Number, or your Individual Tax Number if you are not eligible for a SIN. If you have neither, apply for an ITN using Form T1261.
  • Your exact date of entry into Canada. This date marks when your Canadian tax obligations may begin, and it needs to match the date you later report on page 1 of your tax return.
  • Addresses of any home you have available to you in Canada and any home you kept abroad.
  • Names and locations of your spouse or common-law partner and any dependants.
  • Details of Canadian and foreign bank accounts, credit cards, investments, memberships, and employment.
  • Your immigration status and any work or study permits.

Filling Out the Form Section by Section

Personal Identification

Enter your full legal name, date of birth, and your SIN or ITN. Provide your date of entry into Canada. Include a mailing address the CRA can use to send its opinion.

Residential Ties With Canada

This is the heart of the form. The CRA weighs your ties in a specific order set out in Income Tax Folio S5-F1-C1, and three ties count the most: a dwelling in Canada available for your year-round use, a spouse or common-law partner in Canada, and dependants in Canada. Any one of these, on its own, will often be enough to make you a resident.4Canada Revenue Agency. Income Tax Folio S5-F1-C1, Determining an Individual’s Residence Status

Answer each question with specifics. For a dwelling, give the address and say whether you own or rent. For family, list names and confirm they live with you in Canada or remain here when you travel. Vague answers invite follow-up questions and slow the review down.

The form then moves through secondary ties. No single item on this list is usually decisive, but the more you have, the stronger the case for residency. Report what applies:

  • Personal property in Canada such as furniture, vehicles, or clothing
  • Memberships in Canadian recreational, religious, or professional organizations
  • Canadian bank accounts, credit cards, retirement savings plans, and a Canadian employer
  • A Canadian driver’s license or a vehicle registered in a province
  • Provincial or territorial health insurance coverage
  • Landed immigrant status, work permits, or a Canadian passport

The form also asks about the length, purpose, and continuity of your stay. A two-year lease and a permanent job read very differently from a three-month contract, so describe your intent plainly.

Ties With Your Previous Country

This section carries as much weight as your Canadian ties. The CRA wants to see whether you made a clean break from your former country or still hold significant connections there. Report whether you kept a home abroad, whether family members remain, and whether you still hold foreign bank accounts, investments, or memberships. Actions that show you severed ties help your case: selling a home, closing bank accounts, cancelling a foreign driver’s license, resigning from clubs. Say what you did and when.

If a tax treaty between Canada and your previous country is relevant to your situation, mention it here. The treaty may point the CRA toward classifying you as a deemed non-resident even if your Canadian ties would otherwise make you a resident.5Canada Revenue Agency. Factual Residents – Temporarily Outside of Canada

Days Present in Canada

Even without significant residential ties, staying in Canada for 183 days or more in a tax year can make you a deemed resident, generally taxed on worldwide income. Every day or part of a day you are physically present counts, including weekend trips. The one exception is commuting days for people who live in the United States and cross the border to work in Canada.6Canada.ca. Deemed Residents of Canada Report your days honestly; understating them is one of the easier things for the CRA to check.

Supporting Documents

The form does not always require attachments, but including them speeds up processing and gives the CRA less reason to write back with questions. Useful documents to send with your submission:

  • A copy of your lease or home purchase agreement in Canada
  • Your employment contract showing the expected duration of work
  • Proof you disposed of ties abroad, such as a sale of property or bank closure letters
  • Utility bills or bank statements showing a Canadian address
  • Immigration documents such as a work permit or confirmation of permanent residence

Where to Send It

There is no online submission option. Mail or fax the completed form and your supporting documents to the CRA’s tax centre in Sudbury:

Neither the submission nor the CRA’s opinion carries a fee.

What Happens After You Submit

The CRA reviews what you sent and issues a written opinion classifying you as a factual resident, deemed resident, non-resident, or deemed non-resident. In most cases the agency can decide based on the form alone, though it may write back asking for additional documents if something is unclear.4Canada Revenue Agency. Income Tax Folio S5-F1-C1, Determining an Individual’s Residence Status

The opinion is not legally binding. It reflects the CRA’s position on the facts you provided and can be revisited during a later audit if new information comes to light or if your original submission was incomplete. Even so, a written determination is far better than nothing: it shows a good-faith effort to comply and gives you a clear basis for how you filed your returns. Keep a copy of the form you sent and the CRA’s response letter with your tax records.

Why Accuracy on the Form Matters

The point of filing NR74 is to sort out your status before you file a return, not after. If you treat yourself as a non-resident and the CRA later decides you were a resident, you will owe tax on all the worldwide income you did not report, plus interest and penalties. The late-filing penalty under section 162 of the Income Tax Act is 5% of unpaid tax plus 1% per full month the return is late, up to 12 months, and it doubles for repeat offenders.8Department of Justice Canada. Income Tax Act – Section 162 A separate penalty applies for failing to report income of $500 or more.9Canada Revenue Agency. False Reporting or Repeated Failure to Report Income Filling out NR74 carefully, with supporting documents, is the cheapest way to avoid guessing wrong.