Question for Canadians

[$ideline]

Okay, I have looked high and low and I need some advice from Canadians.

I conduct business in Canada. I use a Canadian bank. BUT, I have a US Funds Credit Card and a US Funds Bank account which I use for domaining. I used my credit card to reg some domains and the credit card will be paid off by the US Funds Bank account. BTW, I have a registered company so everything is nice and clean when it comes tax time.

First off, PayPal does not allow a US Funds Bank account through a Canadian bank so I would have to register one of my Canadian Funds accounts. Will this cause an issue with income, taxes, etc with having to convert funds? (I don't even like PayPal as I had a fraud issue with them before)

Second, if I have a larger transaction I know it is wise to use a more secure payment method. Would it be discouraged to use a secure payment method regardless of the sale price?

Sorry it's a little long but any and all information from Canadians that deal in US Funds is appreciated as it would be best if I could keep everything between the accounts I mentioned at the top.

Feel free to PM me or email me anything you got!

Thanks all,
-$ideline

[RazorNF]

If dealing with other Canadians, you can use Interac email money transfer, but only if both parties bank online with one of Canada's big 5 banks.

For smaller USD transactions, I'm stuck with Paypal. I'm in the same boat as you - although I also have a USD account, Paypal insists on converting the amount to CAD for all withdrawals to Canada. Their exchange rate is always lower than the going rate, so you do end up losing out a little - keep this in mind in addition to paying the Paypal processing charges to accept payment in the first place. I've had reversals on my Paypal account in the past as well, so I just use this for smaller transactions.

For larger transactions and to give more security to both parties, I've used escrow.com and have not had any issues. Wire transfer is also another alternative for large transactions.

Hope this helps!

[RatherGood]

Cross the border and get a US Bank account at a US bank. Then you can withdrawl from paypal in US funds and keep it safe. Prepare for major patriot act hassles when opening the account.

Worth it in the long run considering the kind of exchange rate rip off schemes run by the Canadian banking system and companies like paypal.

[Gerry]

And be sure to have your passport up to date! It think that goes into effect this November.

Or else, you're an illegal, we'll need to dispatch National Guard troops to that border and set up another "vitual" fence, our country will be bankrupt, the Canadian dollar will be worth $1.56 USD.

So just stay put. It will catch up with you. We'll be illegally crossing into Canada. Okay, eh?

[$ideline]

Thanks everyone for the advice.

RazorNF, when you used Escrow.com, did you get a cheque in USD? If so, was there any charge at your bank when you deposited into your USD account and did they hold it for a long time? I am with one of the larger Canadian banks.

[DNP]

Thanks everyone for the advice.

RazorNF, when you used Escrow.com, did you get a cheque in USD? If so, was there any charge at your bank when you deposited into your USD account and did they hold it for a long time? I am with one of the larger Canadian banks.

I have an US $ "Borderless" account with TD (free). They also have USD VISA (credit) if you want.
Escrow check (USD) deposit: free
Check clearance time: ~ 3 weeks
Alternative: Crossing the border end deposit large Escrow checks in US bank.

Feel free to PM me if you have any further question.

-DNP-

[$ideline]

Awesome DNP, that helps. I am with Royal so I am assuming it will be a similar wait time for the cheque to clear.

[cyber_deeze]

Good Day EH from snowy Calgary,

Just to let you know that within the last week as I logged into my Ebay account, I was hit with a popup survey that was asking questions about just the subject in question.

Basically all the questions were about being able to transfer US dollars to a Canadian Bank account and Vice Versa, It seems that Ebay and Paypal are looking at possibly doing something about this in the future, How long ... who knows, (It Ebay took a long time to make a deal with Canada Post) but this subject seems to be on their radar.

Thanks

Cyber_deeze

[$ideline]

Awesome! Probably a long time away but still good to know they are looking at making life a little more convenient for us!

[roseau]

1. You won't have a problem with your taxes if you report your legitimate income - legitimate income being the amount of income you earned with the exchange included.

So if you earned for instance 10% in the exchange rate, you would add that to your income. But conversely, if there are any fees, you can do the same to deduct the real amt.

2. With paypal, try to open a US bank acct as paypal will withdraw money to either US or CDN. It is alot easier if you live in a border town. In fact, the patriot act will not be an issue at all. Most border town banks on both sides have US and CDN customers as regular business. But they will expect to see your business papers even if it is just a DBA. Also, they will have you sign a paper acknowledging that you understand they report to both Revenue Canada and the IRS.

hope this helps you a little.

[$ideline]

It does help, unfortunately to get to the border it would be a good 4 hours at least...

Maybe one day...

Thanks for the info!
-$ideline