ARTICLE · 12 JANUARY 2017

Residency – Not A Decision To Be Left On Ice

Crowe Soberman LLP

Explore more from Crowe Soberman LLP

So, you've just signed a contract, and are ready to embark on or continue your career as a professional hockey player.

CanadaTax

Author LinkedIn connections

So, you've just signed a contract, and are ready to embark on or continue your career as a professional hockey player. But then it blindsides you like an open-ice body check – the realization that you must share part of your earnings with the Canadian government, the U.S. government, or both. The questions then become: in which country must you pay income tax, and how much will you pay?

The answers can be surprisingly complex. Let's examine situations in which you would have to file a Canadian personal income tax return.

There are two scenarios in which a professional hockey player is subject to Canadian tax.

If he is a resident of Canada, he pays Canadian tax on his worldwide income, no matter where he plays.

We operate a free-to-view policy, asking only that you register in order to read all of our content. Please login or register to view the rest of this article.

Register for freeORLog in

Related Articles

Do First Nations People Pay Taxes? Understanding The Section 87 Indian Act Tax Exemption

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

Cryptocurrency Held Through A Bare Trustee: Tax Treatment And The 2026 Reporting Obligations

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

Estate Planning For Founders: What To Put In Place At Each Stage Of Growth

Alternative Minimum Tax: An Essential Part Of Your Financial Planning

Canada’s New Alternative Minimum Tax Regime: The Hidden Tax On The Equity Investment For Individual Taxpayers, High-Net-Worth

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

Legal Intelligence Newsletters: sign up for the latest legal and regulatory news on your chosen topics

Read more about

Tax
- Income Tax

Related Comparative Guides

Comparative Guide

Tax

Comparative Guide

Tax Disputes

See more popular content from

Tax

CRA Requirement For Information And Compliance Orders: Why A New Appeals Court Decision Means You Can’t Stall Audits In Canada

If the CRA has served you or your accounting firm with a CRA requirement for information, and you are wondering whether you can refuse it, delay it, or fight it later, the Federal Court of Appeal has now answered that question.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

CRA Releases Updated CRS Guidance: CRS 2.0 And Other Matters

On July 2, 2026, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) published its updated Guidance on the Common Reporting Standard (Updated CRS Guidance).

Borden Ladner Gervais LLP

Approved: $8.7M CRA Data Breach Settlement – How Affected Canadians Can Claim $80, $200, And Up To $5,000 For Verified Claims

The Federal Court has approved an $8.7 million class action settlement in Sweet v. His Majesty the King (2026 FC 590), resolving claims from the 2020 credential-stuffing cyberattacks on Government of Canada online accounts accessed via GCKey, including CRA My Account.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

When Is GST/HST Payable On Vehicle Sales? Guidance From A Canadian Tax Lawyer

When a specified motor vehicle is acquired through a private sale (for instance, from an individual who is not registered for GST/HST purposes), the transaction is generally not subject to GST/HST.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

The GST/HST New Housing Rebate In 2026: A Complete Guide To Eligibility, Ontario's Enhanced Rebate, And How To Avoid Case Law Traps

If you have signed, or are about to sign, an agreement to buy a newly built home in Ontario, the HST you recover could be anything from nothing to $130,000. The difference usually comes down to a signing date, a price threshold, or whose name is on the purchase agreement, and not to whether you are buying your first home.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

The GST/HST New Housing Rebate: A Complete Guide To Eligibility, Amounts, And How To Avoid Case Law Traps

The GST/HST New Housing Rebate lets a purchaser recover part of the GST/HST paid on a newly built or substantially renovated home used as a primary residence.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.

Understanding Canada’s new "Productivity Mega Deduction": Broad-based, immediate, and permanent expensing

Canada's new Productivity Mega Deduction promises to slash the marginal effective tax rate on business investment to just 6.4%, positioning the country as the most competitive G7 nation for capital deployment. This permanent tax incentive extends immediate expensing to roughly 65% of capital assets, fundamentally reshaping the economics of investing in Canadian operations across manufacturing, energy, technology, and resource sectors.

Advance Income Tax Ruling Requests For “major Investments” In Canada To Take Priority

The Canada Revenue Agency has announced a new policy to prioritize advance income tax ruling requests for investments of $1 billion or more in Canada. This initiative aims to provide greater tax certainty and reduce risks for major investors, potentially accelerating large-scale project development and strengthening Canada's economic competitiveness. However, questions remain about implementation timelines and potential impacts on smaller ruling requests.

CRA To Prioritize Advance Ruling Requests For Large Investments

The Canada Revenue Agency has announced a new priority system for advance income tax ruling requests, targeting investments of at least $1 billion in Canada. This initiative aims to accelerate the tax certainty process for major investors by reducing processing times and providing binding guidance on how specific Income Tax Act provisions apply to proposed transactions.

Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

CRA Uses ‘Alternative Methods’ For GST/HST Audits, Including Estimating Business Revenue, Reconstructing Missing Receipts

When the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) concludes that a GST/HST registrant’s books and records do not provide a complete or reliable picture of its taxable sales, it may reconstruct those sales using an alternative or indirect audit method.

Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C.