Non-residents and FHSAs

There are some limitations to how you may participate in your FHSA if you become a non-resident of Canada.

If you become a non-resident after opening an FHSA

If you become a non-resident of Canada after you open your FHSA, you can continue to participate normally in your FHSA, with one exception:

• You cannot make a qualifying withdrawal  to build or buy a qualifying home  while you are a non-resident of Canada.

One of the requirements of a qualifying withdrawal is that you must be a resident of Canada throughout the period that begins with the date of the first qualifying withdrawal and ends with the date of acquisition of the qualifying home.

If you are a non-resident of Canada, any taxable withdrawal from your FHSA will be subject to withholding tax in the year of withdrawal. All distributions you receive from a deceased holder’s FHSA as a beneficiary will also be subject to withholding tax. For more information on beneficiary distributions, go to Death and FHSAs.

Your FHSA issuer or the deceased FHSA holder’s issuer will give you an NR4 Statement of Amounts Paid or Credited to Non-Residents of Canada showing the taxable withdrawals from your FHSA in box 74, the distributions you receive from a deceased holder’s FHSA as a beneficiary in box 75, and the amount deemed received on FHSA cessation in box 76. For more information on filing non-resident returns, go to Non-residents of Canada.