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Departure Tax Estimator

When a Canadian resident emigrates, the CRA treats most of your property as if you sold it at fair market value on your departure date — even though you haven't actually sold anything. This estimates that one-time bill. General information only, not tax advice; confirm your numbers with a cross-border accountant before you file.

Guide:Canada's Departure Tax, Explained — the full walkthrough behind this calculator.
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Heads up: the fields below are pre-filled with a made-up example scenario, just so you can see how the departure-tax estimate works before you commit to typing in your own numbers. None of this is your data. Replace each field with your own numbers whenever you're ready — or use the button to reload this example any time.

What's excluded — the good news first

Registered accounts, Canadian real estate, and pension entitlements are exempt from departure tax entirely.
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What's actually taxed

Non-registered investments, foreign real estate, crypto, and private business shares are generally caught by the . Enter fair market value (what it's worth today) and adjusted cost base (what you originally paid) for each.
↺Fair market value below defaults to your current Non-Registered (CAD) balance from the CoastFIRE Calculator — today's balance, not a projection — adjust as needed.
Not sure? Rough starting points: ~20-25% for modest income, ~35-45% for mid-to-upper income, ~50-54% at the very top bracket depending on province.

Quick adjust — drag to see the estimate update live

35%

Estimated departure tax

Canada's capital gains inclusion rate is 50% for 2026 — half of your gain is added to income and taxed at your marginal rate.
Total capital gain
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Taxable amount (50%)
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Estimated tax owing
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Also worth knowing:
ℹ️Only these two properties are netted against each other
A loss on one of the two property fields above offsets a gain on the other, then the net result is floored at zero — this estimate doesn't produce a negative departure tax. It doesn't include any other capital gains or losses you may realize that year from property outside this tool (an actual sale, for instance), which the CRA would also net against these deemed-disposition amounts on your real Schedule 3.
ℹ️60-month short-term resident rule
If you were resident in Canada for less than 60 months in the 10 years before departure, property you owned before becoming a Canadian resident is generally exempt entirely — a common situation for people who moved to Canada as adults and later left.
✅Spousal rollover option
If your spouse or common-law partner remains a Canadian resident, capital property can sometimes be transferred to them at cost base before you leave, deferring the gain until they eventually sell it.
📋Forms to know
T1161 (list of properties, required if total property exceeds $25,000), T1243 (deemed disposition calculation), and T1244 (election to defer the tax) are filed with your final Canadian return in your departure year.

❓ Glossary & how this is calculated
Deemed disposition
Canada's departure-tax rule: when you cease Canadian tax residency, the CRA treats most of your property as sold at fair market value the day before you leave, even though you didn't actually sell it.

Why only 50% is taxable? Canada's capital gains inclusion rate — the same rate that applies to a normal sale — includes half of a capital gain in taxable income; the other half is untaxed.

Why does my marginal rate matter here? The taxable half of your gain is added on top of your other departure-year income and taxed at your marginal rate for that year, not a flat rate — so the number above is only as accurate as the rate you enter.

Next: RRSP Withholding Tax — see what Canada withholds when you eventually draw down what's left in your RRSP.
Figures current as of 2026
  • 2026 — CPP, OAS & Social Security maximums, HSA contribution limits, the capital gains inclusion rate, and moving-back thresholds are all updated for 2026.
  • Jan 2025 — Social Security Fairness Act repeal of WEP/GPO reflected in the Benefit Timing amounts.
  • Last independently verified: August 2026 — CPP/OAS/SS figures, RRSP withholding rates, and the 2026 US tax brackets checked directly against CRA, IRS, and SSA publications.
  • Full sourcing & citations for this page →