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CSA TRAVEL INFORMATION GUIDE
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Total number of days spent in the U.S. in 2010
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1/3 of the total number of days spent in the U.S. in 2009
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1/6 of the total number of days spent in the U.S. in 2008
If you were present in the U.S. for at least 30 days in 2010 and the total of these three numbers is
less than 183, then completing and submitting the form to the IRS is optional. If the total of these
three numbers is equal to or greater than 183 and you were present in the U.S. for at least 30 days in
the year 2010 then the form (a separate copy for each spouse) must be submitted to the IRS by the
published deadline (typically June 15
th
) to avoid having to file a U.S. income tax return.
As this is a mathematical calculation based on travel over three consecutive years, it is acceptable in
this case to have a total score greater than 182 provided that you did not spend more than 182 days
in the United States in any of those three years.
Canadians should be proactive and complete and file a new 8840 form each year with the U.S.
Internal Revenue Service. This is a positive acknowledgment that you are entering the U.S. each year
as a “temporary visitor for pleasure” and are complying with U.S. tax laws. A photocopy of each year’s
completed form should also be carried, when crossing the border into the U.S. the following year, to
indicate that you are entering the U.S. as a temporary visitor from Canada.
A copy of the current year’s 8840 form can be downloaded from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service
website by logging onto your computer and visiting the CSA website
www.snowbirds.org
. Click
on the “8840 andW*-BEN” link under the “Lifestyle” heading at the left side of the page, which will
direct you to the IRS web page dealing with international taxpayers. You can also request forms be
sent via regular mail by calling the IRS at 1-800-829-3676 to place your order.
Can I Acquire a U.S. State Driver’s Licence or Identification Card?
Many members inquire about the availability of U.S. state driver’s licences and identification cards
for the time they are in the United States. Such identification is often found useful when purchasing
goods and services locally.
It is important to recognize that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers may construe
the possession of U.S. government-issued ID cards and driver’s licences as an attempt to establish
residency or overstay your allowed visit time in the United States by trying to pass yourself off as a
local full-time resident. It is, therefore, important to carry documentation to prove that you have an
active ongoing principal residence in Canada that you have not “abandoned”.
Following 9/11 and as part of the United States’ attempt to tighten the availability of government-
issued ID to individuals who are neither U.S. citizens, U.S. lawful permanent residents (i.e. green
card holders) or aliens (foreigners) who have been admitted with special longer-term visas (such as
students studying full-time at a U.S. college or university), a number of individual states have since
revised their laws and regulations. Many snowbirds who currently have a U.S. state-only driver’s
licence or ID card may find that they will not be renewed when they expire.