What You Need to Know: Passive Foreign Investment Company (PFIC)

Many Americans living in Canada or Canadian expats living in the U.S. unknowingly hold Canadian-traded mutual funds, money market funds and ETFs in their taxable or non-registered accounts that qualify as a PFIC.

What is a Passive Foreign Investment Company?

A passive foreign investment company (PFIC) is a foreign-based corporation that has one of the following attributes:

1. At least 75% of the corporation’s income is considered “passive”, which is based on investments rather than standard operating business.
2. At least 50% of the company’s assets are investments that produce interest, dividends and/or capital gains

PFICs include foreign-based mutual funds, partnerships and other pooled investment vehicles that have at least one U.S. shareholder. Most investors in PFICs must pay income tax on all distributions and appreciated share values, regardless of whether capital gains tax rates would normally apply.

Download your free white paper and get up-to-date on what you need to know about PFICs.

Our white paper explains the following concepts and offers solutions:

• What qualifies as a PFIC investment?
• What types of accounts should a PFIC investment not be held in?
• What are the adverse tax effects of holdings a PFIC investment?
• What are the tax reporting requirements if you hold a PFIC investment?
• How can Cardinal Point make your investment portfolio PFIC compliant?