Why does everyone tell me to save proof of my stocks' value on landing day?
Because Canadian tax law gives you a one-time gift on the day you arrive — and it only works if you can prove what your assets were worth that day. The instant before you become a Canadian tax resident, the Income Tax Act deems you to have sold all your foreign property at its fair market value and immediately rebought it at that same value (subsection 128.1(1), paragraphs (b) and (c)). That fair market value becomes your new cost base for Canadian tax purposes. Any gain that built up before you landed is never taxed in Canada. But without dated proof of that value, CRA can challenge your claimed cost base when you eventually sell — and a lower accepted cost means a bigger taxable gain.
The rule in plain language
- Deemed disposition (128.1(1)(b)): immediately before you become resident, you are treated as having sold each property you own for proceeds equal to its fair market value.
- Deemed acquisition (128.1(1)(c)): you are treated as having reacquired each of those properties at that same cost.
You did not actually sell anything, no tax is triggered at landing, and no form is filed. The "sale" exists only to reset your cost base at the border.
A worked example
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| What you originally paid for the shares | $20,000 |
| Fair market value on the day you became resident | $60,000 |
| What you sold them for two years later | $75,000 |
| Capital gain for Canadian tax | $75,000 − $60,000 = $15,000 |
| Taxable capital gain (50% inclusion rate) | $7,500 |
Without the step-up, your gain would have been $75,000 − $20,000 = $55,000. The landing-day valuation saved you from paying tax on $40,000 of pre-landing growth. Now imagine you cannot prove the $60,000 figure — CRA could assess using its own valuation or reject your number entirely, pushing the gain (and your tax) much higher.
What proof to keep, by asset type
| Asset | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|
| Listed stocks, ETFs, mutual funds | Brokerage or bank statement showing the closing price or account value dated as close as possible to your landing date |
| Private company shares | A dated valuation report or share-purchase documentation |
| Home-country real estate | A professional appraisal or comparative market analysis dated near landing; keep the report and the invoice showing its date |
| Foreign bank deposits and cash | Account statements dated at or near landing |
| Cryptocurrency | Exchange records showing the market price at your landing date and time |
Store these where you will find them years later — most newcomers sell the home-country property or rebalance the portfolio long after arriving, and by then the records are gone.
"Landing day" really means the day you became a tax resident
The statute keys off the moment you become a resident of Canada. For most immigrants that is the day you land and settle (sign a lease, move your family, start your daily life here). If you land, activate your PR status, and return home for six months before actually settling, your tax-residency date may be later — and your valuation date moves with it. When in doubt, ask a tax professional to pin down your residency date before commissioning a valuation.
Exceptions: what the rule does not cover
The deemed disposition does not apply to taxable Canadian property (for example, Canadian real estate you already owned), property used in a business you carry on in Canada, or excluded rights and interests such as pension rights. Those keep their existing cost base.
Frequently asked questions
Do I file anything with CRA at landing to record these values?
No. There is no tax filing at landing and no form for declaring your landing-day cost base. The values matter when you eventually sell: you report the sale on your tax return and use the landing-day FMV as your cost. Your customs declaration for personal goods (the CBSA form newcomers file at the airport) is a separate process — but a valuation prepared at the same time can serve both purposes.
Does the rule apply to cryptocurrency too?
Generally yes. The deemed acquisition rule covers each property you own except the specific statutory exceptions (taxable Canadian property, Canadian business inventory, excluded rights like pensions). Crypto falls under the general rule, so save an exchange record of the price at your landing date and time.
I became resident years ago and never kept records. Is it too late?
Not necessarily. You can still reconstruct the value with historical data — past closing prices for listed securities, a retrospective appraisal for real estate, archived exchange data for crypto. Reconstruction is weaker than a contemporaneous statement but far better than nothing. Start now, before more time passes.
Sources
- https://bbs.fcgvisa.com/t/topic/55755
- https://lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-3.3/section-128.1-20111215.html
- https://www.cicnews.com/2001/09/taxation-property-owned-landing-09342.html
- https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/taxandtaxplanning/chapter/2-19-what-are-the-main-deemed-acquisition-issues-when-you-become-a-resident-of-canada/
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/information-been-moved/foreign-reporting/questions-answers-about-form-t1135.html