Newcomer First Tax Return Checker
Use your Canadian tax-residency start date—not simply your immigration-document date—to map the first return, income period, benefit route and foreign-asset reporting checkpoint.
Your situation
What this checker does
It applies the public CRA newcomer framework to five planning questions: the first resident tax year, the normal filing deadline, which part of the year generally falls into Canadian worldwide-income reporting, whether a pre-first-return benefit route may matter, and the special first-year T1135 exception.
What it does not decide
It does not determine your tax-residency date for you. That date can be fact-specific and treaty rules can change the answer. It also does not calculate tax owing, benefit amounts, foreign-tax credits or whether a particular foreign asset is “specified foreign property.”
Why the T1135 output is different in year one
CRA says an individual does not file Form T1135 for the tax year in which they first become resident in Canada. For later resident years, the normal more-than-$100,000 aggregate cost-amount test can apply. For property already owned when Canadian residency begins, CRA generally uses fair market value at that time as the starting cost amount for future T1135 testing.
Related tax tools and research
Browse newcomer tax rules →
2026 Newcomer Tax & Benefit Rules Reference →
First Canadian tax return guide →
Tax residency for newcomers →
This is a planning tool, not tax advice. Verify current CRA rules and get professional advice for treaty, foreign-corporation or complex cross-border situations.