Cashed out Canadian RRSPs.
Jumped through hoops and completed comically complex forms.
Took an automatic 25% tax hit as a non-resident.
Got mangled on exchange rate to USD.
One less clown world connection. Worth it.
Discussion
20 years from now, Canada will either be the 51st state or a 2nd world nation.
Best feeling in the world is when you successfully eliminate another cord with the system , be it big or small , Worth it , Congrats
It may be different for you as a US citizen (I think you are) but I was looking at living in the states a number of years back and I read (as I recall) that via the tax treaty you could unwind RRSP essentially tax free. You likely had to put into a 401k or ROTH, etc.
Thankfully I don’t own RRSPs.
There’s no such cross-border treatment for retirement funds that I’m aware. The withholding tax does “enjoy” tax treaty status.
Enjoyable indeed lol.
25 is straight dirty.