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I am a resident of Canada, and am also an Irish citizen. Recently, I've been considering moving to Ireland (for ~6 months, not forever). During this time, I would either try to get hired on by a local company for the 6 months, or do freelance work for a client in Canada, remotely.

My question to you is if there are any tax issues you can think of in this plan? I assume I'll need to file Irish and Canadian income tax forms for the year that I'm there, since I'll have worked in both countries, but is there anything else I would need to know? I've heard of horror stories where someone is a dual citizen and when they move to their second country, they are suddenly informed that they should have been paying taxes there for years. And also, if you can think of any benefits/drawbacks to either of my options above, that would be great.

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  • How does moving to/working in Ireland change the multi-national tax obligations that you may have missed over the past years?
    – DJohnM
    Jul 28, 2014 at 17:27
  • Well, probably not at all, now that I think about it. I've just never officially "used" my citizenship (when I traveled to Ireland, I used a Canadian passport). It's just one of those things that I would want to find out, especially if I was to work there.
    – GoldenBunny
    Jul 28, 2014 at 17:44

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These horror stories are true. It depends on the countries involved and the treaties between them.

You'll have to talk to tax accountants in Canada and in Ireland who are also well-versed in the Irish-Canadian tax treaty (if such exists). You may end up paying taxes in two countries for periods where you only live in one or the other. You may even end up paying double taxes, depends on the agreements between the countries and their tax laws.

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  • Yeah, I sort of figured I'd have to talk to a pro about this. Thanks.
    – GoldenBunny
    Jul 28, 2014 at 17:46
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To my knowledge the US is the only country to tax people according to their citizenship. Canada does not. Ireland??

Yes you will continue to be taxed in Canada. Do your Irish return first. Then on your Cdn return deduct (on Sch 1) the $taxes you have already paid there so you don't double pay.

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