Information and tips (guidance) for NRIs in Canada — 2026

Canada has been one of the fastest-growing destinations for Indian migrants over the last decade — more than 1.4 million people of Indian origin live in Canada, with heavy concentrations in Toronto's GTA, the Vancouver Lower Mainland, and Calgary. The Canadian framework for Indian NRIs has a few characteristic features: tax residency is ties-based rather than purely day-counted, leaving Canada triggers a departure tax on most non-Canadian property, and the TFSA / RRSP wrappers do not survive the move back to India unchanged.

Two tax systems, two residency tests

Indians in Canada deal with two parallel tax frameworks.

Canadian tax residency — the CRA's ties test

Canada is unusual in not relying primarily on a day count. The Canada Revenue Agency treats you as a Canadian tax resident if you have significant residential ties to Canada, which include:

A home in Canada available to you.
A spouse / common-law partner or dependants in Canada.
Personal property (car, furniture) and social ties (memberships, driver's licence, health card, bank accounts).

A separate 183-day sojourner rule captures long-term visitors who spend half the year in Canada.

Canadian tax residents are taxed on worldwide income at federal + provincial rates (effective top rates 47% to 54% depending on the province).

Indian tax residency for the same person

Under the Income Tax Act, you are an NRI if you spend less than 182 days in India in a financial year (1 April to 31 March).
A 120-day rule applies if you are an Indian citizen / PIO with ₹15 lakh or more of Indian-source income — staying 120 to 181 days in India can make you Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident (RNOR).

Tip: Cutting Canadian tax residency requires severing the ties, not just leaving for a job abroad. Closing the home, moving the spouse / family, closing or downgrading bank accounts, surrendering the health card, and notifying the CRA via Form NR73 / NR74 (residency determination) is the practical sequence.

The India-Canada DTAA

The double-tax treaty between India and Canada has been in force since 1997 with the 2013 protocol updating several articles. Key points:

Salary income earned in Canada is taxed in Canada; the same person filing in India as an NRI does not pay Indian tax on Canadian salary.
Indian-source income (rent, NRO interest, capital gains on Indian shares) is taxable in India; foreign tax credit is claimed on the Canadian return.
Dividends from Indian companies to Canadian residents are subject to 15% / 25% withholding under the DTAA (depending on shareholding).
Pensions — Article 19 governs pension flows; Canadian CPP / OAS to Indian residents is taxable in India under DTAA tie-breaker rules.

To claim DTAA benefits in India you need a TRC from the CRA and Form 10F filed online on the Indian tax portal.

See the India-Canada DTAA framework.

Departure tax — the deemed disposition trap

When you cease to be a Canadian tax resident, the CRA treats most of your capital property as if you had sold and immediately reacquired it at fair market value. Any unrealised gains on:

Listed shares and ETFs.
Mutual funds.
Foreign property (other than excluded categories).
Most non-registered investments.

become immediately taxable in your final Canadian return. Excluded categories include Canadian real property, RRSP / RRIF, TFSA, and employee stock options in some cases.

Tip: Run the deemed-disposition calculation before setting your departure date. A capital loss in your last Canadian year can be valuable; an unrealised capital gain may be better realised before departure (when offsets are still available) or after (under Indian RNOR if it qualifies). The order matters.

TFSA and RRSP — what survives the move

TFSA (Tax-Free Savings Account): contributions are not tax-deductible; growth and withdrawals are tax-free in Canada. India does not recognise the TFSA wrapper — once you are Indian-resident, gains and income inside a TFSA are taxable in India as ordinary investment income.
RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan): tax- deferred until withdrawal; withdrawals by a non-resident attract 25% Canadian withholding (reduced to 15% under the India-Canada DTAA on periodic pension payments). Lump sums remain at 25%. Indian tax treatment during RNOR window is generally favourable.

Tip: Convert the RRSP into a RRIF with periodic withdrawals after retirement, rather than lump sum, to halve the Canadian withholding rate. Keep the TFSA only if you plan to return to Canada — otherwise the Indian-tax leakage typically outweighs the benefit.

Banking — what to open in India

NRIs in Canada typically run three Indian rupee / foreign-currency accounts:

NRE (Non-Resident External) — fully repatriable, interest tax-free in India.
NRO (Non-Resident Ordinary) — for Indian-source income. Interest is taxable with TDS at 30% unless DTAA relief is claimed via Form 10F + TRC. Repatriation capped at USD 1 million per FY.
FCNR (Foreign Currency Non-Resident) deposit — fixed deposits in CAD, USD, GBP and other major currencies for 1-5 years. Interest is tax-free in India.

Indian banks with Canada presence: ICICI Bank Canada (Schedule II bank in Canada — full Canadian banking licence), State Bank of India (Canada) subsidiary, Bank of Baroda Canada subsidiary. These make the Indian-side onboarding straightforward.

Tip: ICICI Bank Canada and SBI Canada are separate Schedule II Canadian-licensed banks, regulated by OSFI. They are not branches of the Indian parent — they are subsidiaries. Their products, deposit insurance (CDIC), and CRS reporting all follow Canadian rules. To reach NRE / NRO accounts at the Indian parent, you still use the Indian bank's online NRI portal.

See NRI bank accounts in India for the detailed comparison.

CAD-to-INR — the remittance corridor

CAD-to-INR is a high-volume corridor with strong competition. The realistic options in 2026:

Wise — transparent mid-market FX with a small upfront fee. Default for most under-CAD 50,000 transfers.
Remitly — competitive promotional rates, large Indian-bank network.
ICICI Money2India and SBI Express Remit (FX-Out) — Indian-bank corridors.
RBC / TD / Scotiabank International Money Transfer — bank wires, fine for very large transfers, otherwise more expensive on FX margin.
Western Union / MoneyGram — high street option; generally worse rates than the apps.

Tip: The CAD-INR rate swings with the broader USD-CAD market. If you have flexibility on timing, a two-week watch on the rate is worth doing for transfers above CAD 10,000.

See transferring money to India and transferring money abroad.

Investing in India from Canada

Canadian-resident NRIs can hold:

Indian listed equities through a PIS account — capital gains taxed in India at applicable rates.
Indian mutual funds — most AMCs accept Canadian- resident NRI subscriptions; a small number exclude Canadians for compliance reasons but most do not. Canadian tax treatment of foreign mutual funds is less punitive than the US PFIC regime but they are still reported as foreign investment property on T1135 above CAD 100,000 cost.
NPS — open to NRIs.
Real estate (residential / commercial; not agricultural).

Buying property in India from Canada

Same rules as elsewhere — residential and commercial only, funds via NRE / NRO / FCNR, USD 1 million repatriation cap. Home loans from Indian banks are widely available to Canadian-based NRIs through their Canadian subsidiaries (ICICI Bank Canada, SBI Canada).

See property tax for NRIs and transferring funds for property.

OCI for Canadian citizens of Indian origin

If you (or your parent / grandparent / great-grandparent) held an Indian passport, you are eligible for an OCI card.

Canadian-specific points:

The Canadian pipeline runs through BLS International. Centres in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa and Montreal act on behalf of the High Commission of India, Ottawa and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver.
Apply online at ociservices.gov.in, then submit documents physically at the BLS centre serving your consular jurisdiction.
Spouse-category OCI requires two years of registered marriage.
OCI re-issue required only on the under-20 and first-passport-after-50 milestones.
A Surrender Certificate is required for former Indian citizens who took Canadian citizenship on or after 1 June 2010, before they can apply for OCI.

See the OCI application guide and Canadian citizenship for NRIs.

FATCA, CRS and Canada-India information sharing

Both Canada (CRA) and India (CBDT) are signatories to the OECD Common Reporting Standard, and an intergovernmental FATCA-style agreement exists between the two. Canadian banks file annually to the CRA on accounts held by non-residents and persons with foreign tax residency; the CRA exchanges that data with India. The reverse is also true.

Practical implications:

Declare Canadian accounts in the Indian ITR's Schedule FA if and when you become an Indian tax resident again.
File T1135 with the CRA for foreign property (including Indian assets) above CAD 100,000 in cost while a Canadian tax resident.

Returning to India — the Canada-specific timing trap

The single most common error among Canada-based NRIs returning to India long-term:

Triggering the departure tax / deemed disposition on a high-value portfolio, then also liquidating Canadian assets again in the same Indian financial year when Indian tax residency resumes — paying twice.

Plan the timing so:

The deemed disposition is netted against any available capital losses in the final Canadian year.
The CRA Form NR73 / NR74 is filed if there is any doubt over residency status.
The TFSA is closed or run down before becoming Indian-resident — Indian tax on TFSA growth is ordinary-income rates.
RRSP withdrawals are paced through the RNOR window and as periodic payments where possible.

The RNOR window typically gives 2 to 3 years of foreign-income exemption after return — see returning to India for the framework.

Quick-reference checklist

Topic	What to do
Canadian tax residency	Sever residential ties, file NR73 / NR74 if needed, document the date.
Departure tax	Run the deemed disposition before setting the departure date.
TFSA / RRSP	TFSA does not survive the move; convert RRSP to RRIF for lower DTAA withholding on withdrawals.
DTAA	TRC from CRA + Form 10F for India-side withholding relief.
Bank accounts	NRE for Canada-source money; NRO for Indian-source; FCNR for CAD / USD deposits.
Remittance	Wise / Remitly for under CAD 50,000; bank wire for larger.
Investments	Direct Indian equity via PIS; mutual funds OK but T1135 reportable.
Property	Residential / commercial only; funds via NRE / NRO; USD 1 M / FY repatriation cap.
OCI	Apply through BLS Toronto / Vancouver / Calgary / Ottawa / Montreal.
Returning	Pace the move so departure tax, TFSA closure, RRSP withdrawals and Indian residency align.

A note on what this article is — and is not

General guidance, not professional advice. This page is a practical orientation hub for NRIs in Canada; it is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Canadian tax rules — particularly the departure-tax / deemed-disposition mechanics, TFSA / RRSP treatment after Indian residency resumes, and the CRA's ties-based residency determination — turn on facts that vary case by case. Verify the current position with a qualified Indian Chartered Accountant and a Canadian CPA familiar with India-Canada cross-border issues before acting on anything material.

Where to go next

NRI bank accounts in India — NRE vs NRO vs FCNR.
Transferring money to India.
India-Canada DTAA.
NRI tax residential status.
OCI application guide.
Canadian citizenship for NRIs.
Returning to India — the RNOR framework.
Property tax for NRIs.
NRIs in USA, NRIs in Singapore, NRIs in UAE — sister hubs.