Snowbirds US Expats Radio Podcast

About Snowbirds US Expats Radio Podcast

Whether you're a Canadian snowbird spending winters in the USA, or an American looking to move to Canada, the Snowbirds Expats Radio Podcast is loaded with useful information to guide you. Gerry Scott is the host of this podcast, Monday to Friday, Gerry works with Canadian and US clients as a cross border advisor with one of Canada’s largest and most respected wealth management firms.. The Snowbirds Expats Radio Podcast is brought to you by the Snowbirds US Day Tracker and the Canada Physical Presence Tracker apps. The Snowbirds US Day Tracker app helps you track the number of days you’re spending in the USA, which is essential to avoid being classified by the IRS as a US resident for tax purposes. The Canada Physical Presence Tracker is the easiest and most reliable way to track your physical permanent days for the purpose of renewing your permanent residence card (maple card). Simply enter the days into the calculator and track the progress as you get closer and closer to becoming a full time resident of Canada. Both apps offer a wide variety of services that include, USD exchange, tax and legal services, Real Estate, Medical Tourism, and more. Download them today on your iPhone or Android.

Publisher

Gerry Scott

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

19 Jan 2023

Latest episode

20 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

101 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   20 Oct 2026

   Episode 97: The Great Return, Chapter 3: Why Your Money Needs Its Own Immigration Plan

   Moving back to Canada: what happens to your 401(k) and IRA? Gerry Scott, host of Snowbirds Expat Radio, swaps seats for this episode and becomes the guest. His friend ,Toronto Mike, steps into the interviewer role and walks him through Chapter 3 of The Great Return, a guide for Canadians moving home from the US that doubles as a first look at Canada for Americans heading north. The book review series was meant to feature a rotating cast of cross-border specialists, but schedules kept getting in the way, so the author took the chair himself. Chapter 3 is about what happens to your money when you cross the border. Gerry explains why a move home feels simple on paper but carries serious tax and regulatory consequences when the wrong people are advising. He covers the most common mistakes, what happens to 401(k)s, IRAs, and regular US investment accounts once you hold a Canadian address, why timing matters, and what a realistic checklist looks like. He also previews the healthcare coverage gap that returning Canadians can fall into, which gets its own deep dive in Chapter 7. The conversation opens with a short tribute to Canadian rocker Sass Jordan, and Gerry closes by explaining why the show has never been a do it yourself podcast: the right team in front of you matters more than any shortcut. What You’ll Learn Why a move home needs a plan for your money as well as your belongings Why so many people skip planning, and why the instinct to save on professional fees costs more later The most common mistake: taking free advice from friends, family, or an advisor licensed in only one country How RRSPs and TFSAs compare to IRAs and Roth IRAs, why they are not interchangeable, and why the tax treaty has not kept pace with the TFSA Why a US advisor generally cannot keep managing your IRA, 401(k), Roth, or non-registered accounts once your statements show a Canadian address Why borrowing a relative’s US address to get around this backfires How forced cash outs create tax consequences on both sides of the border, and why worldwide income must be reported once you are a Canadian resident How mismatched tax slips and residency records create headaches at filing time Why Gerry suggests planning up to five years ahead, and the three professionals to put on your team: a cross-border advisor, an immigration professional, and a cross-border accountant The healthcare gap, including Medicare Parts A and B, provincial waiting periods in Canada, and why the in-between period needs a strategy Resources The Great Return: Canadian’s Guide to Moving Home from the US, available on Amazon. Book page: letsmovetocanada.ca (https://letsmovetocanada.ca) Canadians Heading South for the Winters: What You Don’t Know Will Hurt You, Gerry’s first book. Book page: snowbirdsheadingsouth.com (https://snowbirdsheadingsouth.com) Snowbirds US DayTracker, the travel app for tracking your days across the border: snowbirdsusdaytracker.com (https://snowbirdsusdaytracker.com) Snowbirds Expat Radio, the podcast, with more episodes featuring cross-border accountants, immigration lawyers, and advisors Mike’s podcast: [add link to host’s show]

2. 

   6 Oct 2026

   Replay Episode 83: When Snowbirds Fall in Love: Cross-Border Tax Traps Canadians Moving to the U.S.

   What happens to your RRSP, your home, and your retirement savings the moment you follow your heart across the border? Of all the emails Gerry gets, the ones that worry him most come from snowbirds who have fallen in love with an American and are making a permanent move south with their hearts fully invested and their tax plans nowhere near ready. If you missed it the first time, this conversation with Calgary-based U.S. tax specialist Peter Blomfield of Blomfield Tax is the one to catch. Peter walks Gerry through the most common and costly mistakes Canadians make when going from snowbird to U.S. resident, from departure tax to state-level RRSP exposure, from LLC pitfalls to the principal residence trap. What You'll Learn Reporting requirements: Why the IRS's reporting rules catch most Canadians completely off guard, and what the penalties look like when you miss them Two kinds of residency: The difference between immigration residency and tax residency, and why confusing the two can cost you State tax surprises: How state rules vary dramatically, and why Hawaii and California are two states where RRSP holders face a nasty surprise Crystallizing RRSP gains: Why locking in gains inside your RRSP before you leave Canada may be one of the smartest moves you can make The principal residence trap: How the Canadian exemption differs from the U.S. version, and how a tax-free sale in Canada can become a taxable event the moment you cross the border The LLC warning: What every Canadian investor or entrepreneur needs to hear before setting up a U.S. business structure Who builds your structure: Why having a U.S. lawyer set up your investment structure without a cross-border accountant in the room is a recipe for penalties Foreign tax credit: How rental income from a Canadian property gets reported once you are a U.S. resident A real-world scenario: Bruce and Susan have $2M in assets, an RRSP, cash, and a principal residence. What does departure planning actually look like? Resources and Links Peter Blomfield, Blomfield Tax: blomfieldtax.com (https://blomfieldtax.com/) Email Peter: peter.blomfield@blomfieldtax.com (https://mailto:peter.blomfield@blomfieldtax.com/) Snowbirds US Day Tracker app: https://snowbirdsusdaytracker.com (https://snowbirdsusdaytracker.com/) Gerry's book, Canadians Heading South for the Winters: What You Don't Know Will Hurt You: snowbirdsheadingsouth.com (https://snowbirdsheadingsouth.com/)

3. 

   22 Sept 2026

   Episode 96: The Great Return: The Tax Traps Waiting for Canadians Moving Back Home

   Guest: Pat Fournier, JPS Accounting Services (Port Coquitlam, BC) You've decided to move back to Canada. You think the hard part is over. Gerry sits down with cross-border accountant Pat Fournier of JPS Accounting Services to walk through Chapter 2 of The Great Return, and the message is clear: leaving the US isn't something that just happens when you cross the border. It's something you have to prove, on paper, to two different tax authorities that don't talk to each other and won't figure it out for you. Pat has seen the mistakes up close, from Canadians who used a BC mailing address to open an investment account while still living full-time in the US, to returning residents who assumed their first year back gave them a free pass on foreign reporting. She and Gerry cover what actually triggers IRS and CRA recognition of a move, what happens to IRAs, 401(k)s, and Roth accounts when you cross the border, and why the T1135 form catches so many people off guard. What You'll Learn There's no punch card for leaving the US. The IRS doesn't automatically know you've gone. Green card holders who surrender their card need to file the appropriate form, and until it's filed, you're still considered a resident with ongoing filing obligations. CRA looks at the facts, not a date you pick. Car insurance, family location, a house purchase, where you're really living, all of it factors into when CRA decides your Canadian residency actually started. The Canadian address mistake. Using a Canadian mailing address to open an investment account while still living in the US can trigger CRA to treat you as a resident and tax your full worldwide income, long before you meant to make that move. The Roth IRA election most people miss. A Roth is tax-free in the US, but that status doesn't carry over automatically. Without filing an election letter with CRA in your first year back, Canada will tax the account's growth. Late elections are possible but not guaranteed. The IRA-to-RRSP "rollover" isn't really a rollover. Moving IRA or 401(k) funds into an RRSP means cashing out and facing US tax first. Pat explains why you need liquid cash on hand to cover the gap, and why some Canadian advisors push this move without fully weighing the cost. Social Security gets taxed differently than people expect. Once you're a Canadian resident, Canada taxes your US Social Security, not the IRS, per the treaty. Pat's advice: stop any voluntary US withholding before you move. The T1135 trap for returning Canadians. New immigrants to Canada get a one-year exemption from this foreign reporting form. Returning Canadians do not. It also covers more than the US equivalent (FBAR), including rental properties, and its reporting threshold is based on cost, not current value. RRSP contribution room doesn't show up on day one. Room is based on the prior year's Canadian earned income, so most people have zero room their first year back unless they're using carryforward room from before they left. Give yourself at least three months. Pat's rule of thumb for how much lead time to build into your planning before an actual move date. Resources & Links Guest: Pat Fournier, JPS Accounting Services (https://www.jpsaccountingservices.com/ ), Port Coquitlam, BC Book: The Great Return: Canadians' Guide to Moving Home from the US — Chapter 2 sample now available on Amazon Snowbirds US Day Tracker (https://snowbirdsusdaytracker.com/) letsmovetocanada.ca (http://letsmovetocanada.ca)

Who has been a guest on Snowbirds US Expats Radio Podcast

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Andrew Iacobelli
• Alexey Manasuev
• Steven Flynn

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

34,592

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 65 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

72

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

68