Business
What unique financial planning challenges do individuals face when they live full- or part-time in the US but have Canadian citizenship (or vice versa?) How can you help clients who straddle two countries? And more to the point – should you always be the one to help them? Today’s guest is diving in deep to help you understand the pertinent issues around cross-border financial advising. Terry Ritchie is a Partner and Director of Cross-Border Wealth Services for Cardinal Point, with offices in Toronto, Calgary, Irvine, Phoenix, and Boca Raton. He is a Registered Financial Planner in Canada and is enrolled to practice before the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as an Enrolled Agent. Terry is also a Trust and Estate Practitioner affiliated with the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. He has been practicing cross-border financial, investment, tax and estate planning for more than 30 years. What You’ll Learn in This Episode: What actually drives people to move between Canada and the United States (6:45) Why cross-border work matters to Terry (10:10) What advisors need to know about visas and green cards (13:40) Important elements of U.S. income tax (23:50) Investment limitations of Canadians in the US (28:10) How cross-border living affects estate planning (37:10) The biggest cross-border planning mistake you can make (43:45) Terry’s #1 tip for growing a career you really love (53:20) Links and Resources: Cardinal Point Email Terry Quotes by Terry Ritchie: “I can quantify the numbers that you might be better off from a tax perspective in that jurisdiction or country versus this one. But really at the end of the day, it’s truly around lifestyle. Where are they going to be happiest?” “It’s just the nature of the business. Markets go up and down... Tax laws change. Family dynamics change.” “Advisors have a right to say no,” he says. “There has to be a fit – on both sides.” Terry’s firm, Cardinal Point, offers a total solution to individuals who have Canadian and American financial matters – snowbirds, those who have dependants in one country while living in the other, and those who move between the two countries. And as someone who has financial matters in both countries himself, he has unique insights into what it takes to plan for people like him. Below, we’re sharing three key ideas from this episode: What actually drives peo