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First year

The money tasks that actually come first.

Six steps, in the order they usually matter. Each one points at a government page. Benefit dollar amounts are left on those pages so this checklist cannot go stale.

Educational only, not financial or tax advice. Not affiliated with CRA.

  1. Step 1

    Get a social insurance number

    You need a SIN to work, to file a tax return, and to open a TFSA, RRSP, or FHSA. Service Canada issues it. Do not use it as a piece of identification at a store, and do not email it around.

  2. Step 2

    Open a bank account in your name

    A Canadian account is where a paycheque lands and where rent usually leaves. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada explains what identification a bank may ask for. Several banks publish their own newcomer packages. Two official examples are linked below. They are not recommendations, and this site is not paid to show them.

  3. Step 3

    Start a credit file without inventing a history

    Canadian lenders usually cannot see a credit history from another country. A file here is built by borrowing a small amount and paying it back on time, or by a credit-builder product you understand. Order your own report from the credit bureaus; the consumer agency explains how, including the free options. Nothing on this page is a card offer.

  4. Step 4

    File the first tax return, including your date of entry

    The newcomers pages at the CRA cover the date you became a resident and what world income a resident reports from that date. Keep immigration papers, T4 slips, and foreign income records for the part of the year you were a resident. Filing can matter even when an employer already withheld tax, because it is how benefits start and how the CRA records your RRSP room for next year.

  5. Step 5

    Apply for the GST/HST credit and, if you have children, the Canada child benefit

    The GST/HST credit and the Canada child benefit are federal payments. Newcomers generally need a filed return, and families use Form RC66, Canada Child Benefits Application. Payment amounts depend on income, province, and the number of children. Those amounts are not repeated here, because quoting a stale figure is worse than sending you to the page that CRA keeps current.

  6. Step 6

    Learn the three registered accounts before you fund one

    A TFSA can start in the year you are a resident and 18 or older. An RRSP usually has no new room until the year after you have Canadian earned income. An FHSA starts in the year you open it, if you qualify, and the first-time buyer test is on CRA's opening page. Use the calculators for the arithmetic, then read the CRA page before you contribute.

Keep a small folder

Date you arrived, the document that shows it, your SIN confirmation, T4s, and any foreign income from the part of the year you were a resident. You will want those for the first return and, later, if a bank or the CRA asks how long you have been here.

Questions

Do I file a Canadian tax return in the year I arrive?

Often yes, and sometimes even when you had little income. Filing is how several benefits get started. CRA's page 'Do you have to file a return?' is the list of situations. This checklist does not decide whether you must file.

Do I report income from before I moved?

Your residency start date matters. CRA's newcomers page explains how residents report world income and why the date you became a resident is part of the return. Read that page for your dates. This site does not decide if you are a resident.

How do the GST/HST credit and the Canada child benefit start?

Both are administered by the CRA and generally begin from information on a tax return. Newcomers with children use Form RC66 as well. Amounts change with income and family situation, so this page does not quote a payment. The linked CRA pages have the current rules.

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