Cost-effective Fixed fee in writing first: how it actually works

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The fee is agreed in writing before any work starts, the work is done and sent to you, you review it, and nothing is filed before you have seen it. Cost-effective fixed fee in writing first: how it actually works with a fixed fee agreed in writing before any work starts. Call the 24-hour helpline on +1 (416) 619-0068, or request a written quote today.

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  • 15+Years of cross-border experience
  • 18,000+Clients served
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  • 4Global offices — India, USA, Canada & UAE
  • Offices in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE
  • Fixed fee agreed before work starts
  • 15+ years of cross-border experience
In short

The fee is agreed in writing before the work starts, the work is then done and sent to you in full, and nothing is filed until you have reviewed it. The number on the invoice is the number you accepted — the sequence exists so you see what you are paying for before it goes anywhere in your name.

The sequence, in order

  1. A call to the 24-hour helpline establishes what is actually due: which returns, which years, which countries.
  2. You get a written scope and a fixed fee, in writing.
  3. You send documents and sign the authorisations that let us deal with the tax authority for you.
  4. We prepare the work and send you the complete package to review — the returns and the forms, not a summary of them.
  5. You approve it. If something is wrong, it is corrected before it goes anywhere.
  6. We file. The number on the invoice is the one agreed in step two — never a different one.
Two of the firm’s advisers at the glass desk in the Delhi office

Why the order matters more in cross-border work

Because a cross-border return contains judgement calls you are entitled to see before they are submitted in your name: which country is treated as taxing first, which treaty article is being relied on, how a foreign figure was converted, which of two available elections was made. On a file that is prepared, filed and invoiced in one motion, you find out about those decisions after they have been made. Here the review step exists so you find out before.

What we ask for up front

Documents and authorisations, not money. The authorisations are the ones the CRA, the IRS or the Indian department require before a representative can act — they take minutes to sign and they are what lets us see your account rather than ask you to read it out. Where an engagement runs across a very long project or a group of entities, staged billing against agreed milestones is sometimes the sensible structure, and if it is, it is written into the scope before the work starts rather than introduced later.

What is fixed before the work, and what is not

Fixed: the fee, the scope, and what you have to provide. Not fixed: how long a tax authority takes to process what we file, or what a foreign authority does with a certificate application. We will tell you the timing we control and the timing we do not, and we will not quote you a date that depends on somebody else's queue as though it were ours.

The jobs this applies to

Every priced engagement on the site works this way. These are five of them; the full schedule is on the pricing index.

Your next step

One call to our 24-hour helpline is usually enough to tell you whether this is a filing or a project, and what each would cost. The call is free, and we will say so if the answer is that you do not need us. We would rather scope it properly than quote it quickly.

Contact us — 24-hour helpline

Checked and signed off for the 2025 and 2026 filing seasons by Udit Gupta, Cross-Border Tax Expert, Legal Quotient Consultants. Published as general information. For a position on your own file, call the 24-hour helpline.

Do American citizens living abroad have to pay taxes — what this page covers

People reach this page searching for do American citizens living abroad have to pay taxes. It is covered here as it applies to fixed fee in writing first: how it actually works — who it applies to, what has to be filed, and what it costs, at a fixed fee agreed before the work starts.

People also search for: do you have to pay taxes · is double taxation legal · foreign earned income credit · exclusion for foreign earned income · taxes for american expats.

From first contact to filed return

  1. Share your documents

    A secure upload link arrives after the first call — send files in any state.

  2. A written fixed fee

    The quote is fixed from what you send; it does not move once accepted.

  3. Preparation, both sides at once

    The returns are drafted together, reconciled line against line.

  4. Approve, then file

    Nothing is filed until you have seen it and approved it.

How fixed fee in writing, how it works is handled here

Factor Legal Quotient Hourly billing model
Pricing A fixed fee, agreed in writing before work starts Hourly, billed as incurred
Experience 15+ years of cross-border work, 18,000+ clients Varies by file
Both sides of the border Prepared together by one team, so relief is claimed exactly once One country at a time, reconciled later
Who reviews it A named practitioner, published on the page Whoever the queue reaches
Where the work happens Our offices in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE Whichever single office you can travel to

The vocabulary this page leans on

Dependent agent
A person who habitually concludes contracts, or plays the principal role leading to them, on behalf of a foreign enterprise — creating a taxable presence without premises.
Economic nexus
A sales-tax connection created by revenue or transaction volume into a state, without any physical presence.
Pipeline planning
A post-mortem strategy addressing the double inclusion that arises when shares are taxed on death and again on distribution, executed inside a defined window.
Forced heirship
Rules in some legal systems reserving part of an estate for particular heirs, which can override a will drafted elsewhere.

The published fees closest to fixed fee in writing, how it works

All three are published fee pages, each with its scope stated. Your documents set the quote before work begins, and the quote is the invoice.

Non-resident & departure filings

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: For anyone taxed by a country they do not live in — rent, pensions and investment income reaching across a border after the move.

See this fee page

Individual tax filing

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: One engagement for a personal return that touches more than one country: the income, the assets held abroad and the relief claimed against them.

See this fee page

Foreign asset & information reporting

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: The information returns that carry the heaviest penalties — foreign accounts, foreign property, foreign affiliates — prepared from one asset list.

See this fee page

What working with us on fixed fee in writing, how it works looks like

Cross-border is the whole practice

International and cross-border tax is all we do — not a sideline next to domestic work. The edge cases on this page are our ordinary Tuesday.

Both sides prepared together

Two returns built against each other by one team, so relief is claimed exactly once and nothing falls between the two systems.

The order of filing is planned, not improvised

Which return goes first decides whether relief can be claimed at all. That sequence is worked out before anything is submitted.

One team, not two firms billing separately

You are not the go-between for two sets of advisers with two sets of assumptions. One engagement covers each country the file touches.

Two of the firm’s advisers and the team in the open-plan office

Fixed fee in writing, how it works — the four phases

Step 1

The opening call

We establish what happened and when, because every position here is anchored to a date

Step 2

Scope in writing

A written scope and a fixed price, so you know the cost before committing

Step 3

Prepared and checked

The filings are prepared, cross-checked against each other, and reviewed by name

Step 4

Filed, then supported

You see the result, approve it, and we file it

The team at work in the open-plan office

The engagement, start to finish

  • Step 1: Send the documents as they are – No tidying required — forward what you have and we tell you what is missing.
  • Step 2: Get a fixed quote in writing – Priced from your actual documents before any work begins, not estimated after.
  • Step 3: Both countries prepared together – One team builds the filings against each other so the relief lands exactly once.
  • Step 4: Review, then file – You approve the finished work before we file it.

Quoted up front, in writing.

Contact Us 24-hour helpline +1 (416) 619-0068

The rest of this practice

Each of these carries its own guide, pricing pointers and FAQ.

Core services for this situation

Form 3520-A — foreign trust annual return Its own page: form 3520-a foreign trust return — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Graduated rate estates Everything on graduated rate estates, at the same depth as this page.
Intercompany agreements Intercompany agreements — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Setting up a US LLC as a Canadian The full guide to setting up a US LLC as a Canadian, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Interest on NRO deposits — withholding and refunds Its own page: interest on NRO deposits — withholding and refunds — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Form W-8ECI — effectively connected income Everything on form w-8eci effectively connected income, at the same depth as this page.
Secondment agreements and reimbursement Secondment agreements and reimbursement — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Form SS-4 — EIN application The full guide to form ss-4 EIN application, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Form 8991 — BEAT Its own page: form 8991 beat — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.

Clients who arrive with this exact page

Oil & gas rotational workers — relief you're probably missing Its own page: oil & gas rotational workers relief you're probably missing — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Family holding companies cross-border tax Everything on family holding companies cross border tax, at the same depth as this page.
Tax for defence contractors Defence contractors tax — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
IT contractors — what we charge The full guide to it contractors what we charge, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Influencers & content creators — your filing calendar Its own page: influencers & content creators your filing calendar — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Property developers cross-border tax Everything on property developers cross border tax, at the same depth as this page.
Tax for auditors & accountants abroad Auditors & accountants abroad tax — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Management consultants — what you owe in each country The full guide to management consultants what you owe in each country, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Agriculture & agri-tech cross-border tax Its own page: agriculture & agri-tech cross border tax — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.

Countries and corridors this work reaches

Seychelles tax for expats — country guide Its own page: seychelles tax for expats — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Croatia tax for expats — country guide Everything on croatia tax for expats, at the same depth as this page.
Bangladesh tax for expats — country guide Bangladesh tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Canada–Philippines tax corridor The full guide to Canada Philippines tax, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
US–Germany tax corridor Its own page: US Germany tax — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Lebanon tax for expats — country guide Everything on lebanon tax for expats, at the same depth as this page.
Uzbekistan tax for expats — country guide Uzbekistan tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Moldova tax for expats — country guide The full guide to moldova tax for expats, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Spain tax for expats — country guide Its own page: Spain tax for expats — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.

The people on your file

Five named practitioners, each with the part of a cross-border file they carry. Every page on this site says who reviewed it, and the reviewer is one of these people rather than an unnamed team.

Udit Gupta

Udit Gupta

Cross-Border Tax Expert

CA (ICAI), In-Depth Tax Trained

Reviews and signs off the practice's cross-border positions, and carries final responsibility for the treaty analysis on every file that leaves the office.

Abhinav Gupta

Abhinav Gupta

Canada Tax / International Tax

Canada Tax, International Tax, Cross-Border Tax, Transfer Pricing

Canadian returns with foreign income, non-resident filings, and the transfer-pricing documentation that runs alongside intercompany work.

Raghav Gupta

Raghav Gupta

International Tax

International Tax, Transfer Pricing Specialist

Benchmarking, method selection and the local-file and master-file sets that support a group's pricing policy under examination.

Anmol Mittal

Anmol Mittal

Canada and US tax

CPA Canada, CPA USA, CA (ICAI)

Files that have to be right on both sides of the border at once — dual filings, streamlined catch-ups, and the foreign tax credit reconciliation between them.

Vinayak Indolia

Vinayak Indolia

CFO advisory

CPA, CA. Fractional CFO and Senior Advisory Specialist

Groups that need the tax position and the finance function to agree: structure reviews, intercompany policy, and the reporting a board can act on.

Meet the whole team

What these engagements turn on

Case study 1

Inheriting Property in India While Living Abroad

India does not tax the inheritance itself, but the later sale and the money leaving the country both have positions of their own. The file establishes the cost base to use on that sale and what the remittance will require.

Read how this one runs
Case study 2

The Year of Leaving India

The departure year carries a transition status with its own treatment of foreign income, and the position for the following years follows from how it is set. Getting the first year right saves arguing about the rest.

Read how this one runs
Case study 3

A Second Opinion on a Return Already Filed

A cross-border return prepared on one side only is usually right in isolation and wrong in combination. The review checks residence, source and relief in that order, and says plainly whether an amendment is worth making.

Read how this one runs
Case study 4

Two Passports, Two Returns, One Income

Dual citizenship does not let you choose which country taxes you. The work is establishing residence, applying the treaty article that governs each income type, and preparing both returns from one set of figures so they agree line for line.

Read how this one runs
Case study 5

Unreported Foreign Income Disclosed Before the CRA Asked

A voluntary disclosure has to be genuinely voluntary — once a letter arrives, the route usually closes. The engagement establishes whether the programme is still available, prepares the years, and puts the relief request in with the filing rather than after it.

Read how this one runs
Case study 6

Indian Rent Collected While Resident Somewhere Else

Rent from Indian property is taxed in India and again where you live, with relief on one side only. The file gets the Indian deduction right first, then claims the credit on the home return against what was actually paid.

Read how this one runs
Case study 7

A TFSA That Costs More Than It Saves

Canadian tax-free accounts are not tax-free to a US person, and some of them carry a reporting form of their own. The file is a review of what is held, what each account triggers on the US side, and whether the account is worth keeping once the reporting is priced in.

Read how this one runs
Case study 8

Branch or Subsidiary, Decided Before Incorporation

The choice changes where profits are taxed, what has to be filed, and whether losses in the early years are usable. It is difficult to reverse once trading has begun, so it is modelled first.

Read how this one runs

All case studies — every published engagement in one place.

How and where the work is delivered

Browse sideways: the pages below answer the neighbouring questions.

Where the work is delivered

More coverage detail

Core International & Cross-Border Tax Services

International Tax Planning & Advisory

Strategy and compliance for income, assets and families spread across borders.

Treaty residency & tie-breaker
FATCA reporting (Form 8938)
Foreign tax credit (Form 1116)
Multi-country filing calendar
Real estate holding structures
International tax planning
Pre-immigration tax planning
Family office structures
One coordinating team: filings on every side of the border are sequenced so treaty relief and foreign tax credits are claimed once — and in the right country.

U.S. & Cross-Border Tax Returns

Form 1040 from abroad
US state non-resident returns
FBAR (FinCEN 114) filing
Form 5472 — foreign-owned US corp
FIRPTA withholding (Form 8288)
US estate tax exposure
IRS streamlined foreign offshore
PFIC reporting (Form 8621)
Dual filers: U.S. citizens in Canada and Canadians with U.S. income run two parallel systems — we prepare both, in the right order, every year.

Expat & Emigration Tax

Departure tax leaving Canada
T1161 properties on emigration
Residency planning
Step-up in cost base on arrival
Split-year residency
Employment income under a treaty
Social security totalization
Returning to Canada after years abroad
The move year is its own project: the elections and valuations filed that year decide the next decade of both countries’ returns.

Non-Resident Canadian Tax

Section 216 rental return
NR4 & NR6 withholding
Section 217 pension return
Section 116 clearance certificate
Regulation 105 waiver
Non-resident employment income
Taxable Canadian property
Part XIII withholding review
Default withholding is 25% of gross: elective returns routinely turn over-withheld rent and pensions into refunds.

Transfer Pricing & BEPS

s.247 contemporaneous documentation
Functional & risk analysis
Benchmarking study
Intercompany agreements
Country-by-country report
BEPS & Pillar Two
Permanent establishment risk
TP audit defence file
Documentation prepared with the return is the cheapest insurance in international tax; reconstructing it during an audit is the most expensive.

Cross-Border Estates & Trusts

Cross-border wills
US estate tax for non-resident aliens
Terminal return & clearance certificate
Non-resident trusts (s.94)
T1141 & T1142 trust reporting
Inheriting property abroad
Graduated rate estates
Post-mortem planning & pipeline
Wills drafted for one country routinely misfire in the other — deemed disposition here, estate tax there, credits in between.

Cross-Border Corporate Tax

Entity selection across borders
Business profits & PE
Intercompany loans & thin cap
Paying dividends to a foreign parent
Global mobility & day tracking
Debt vs equity funding
Branch or subsidiary
Cross-border M&A due diligence
Expansion raises the same four questions every time — entity, PE, repatriation, payroll. We answer them before the tax authorities do.

India Tax for NRIs & Returning Residents

NRI residency day tests
NRE, NRO & FCNR accounts
TDS on property (s.195)
Lower or nil TDS certificate
Repatriating sale proceeds
Capital gains on Indian shares
India–Canada DTAA
ITR-2 for NRIs
The deduction is taken on the sale price, not the gain — which is why an NRI property sale strands cash unless the certificate is applied for before closing.

Canadian Tax with a Foreign Element

T1135 foreign property
T1134 foreign affiliates
Departure tax
Newcomer's first return
Returning to Canada
Split-year residency
US citizens in Canada
Canada–US corridor
Residency is decided on facts, not on a form — and the year you arrive or leave is the one where the largest amounts turn on the smallest details.

UAE Tax for Expats & Their Home Country

Expat tax in the UAE
Moving to the UAE
Moving back from the UAE
UAE property purchases
Retiring in the UAE
Canada–UAE corridor
India–UAE DTAA
US–UAE corridor
A zero-tax country is only half the answer — the question that decides the bill is whether the country you came from still treats you as resident.

Industries & Client Types We Serve Worldwide

Global E-commerce & Marketplaces
Technology & SaaS
Professional Services Firms
Cross-Border Real Estate
Importers, Exporters & Manufacturers
Athletes, Artists & Entertainers
Remote Workers & Digital Nomads
Investment Funds & Holding Companies

Global E-commerce & Marketplaces

Cross-border tax for sellers shipping worldwide: marketplace withholding, foreign registrations and inventory nexus handled before they become audits.

Marketplaces withhold, remit and report in their own right, so the tax position of a single sale is decided by where the stock sat, where the buyer was and which platform collected — not by where the company is registered. We reconcile the platform's own filings against the returns before either is submitted.

  • Foreign VAT / GST / sales tax registrations
  • Marketplace withholding reviews
  • Inventory nexus & PE analysis
  • Multi-currency books reconciled
Explore E-commerce & Marketplaces

Technology & SaaS

  • Cross-border revenue sourcing & withholding
  • IP structuring with real substance
  • Equity for cross-border teams
  • U.S. expansion: entity & PE setup
Explore Technology & SaaS

Importers, Exporters & Manufacturers

  • Transfer pricing documentation (s.247)
  • Customs value vs transfer price
  • Foreign affiliate reporting (T1134)
  • Country-by-country reporting
Explore Trade & Manufacturing

Athletes, Artists & Entertainers

  • Reg 105 & U.S. CWA agreements
  • Multi-state & country calendars
  • Touring income allocation
  • Royalty & image-rights withholding
Explore Athletes & Entertainers

Remote Workers & Digital Nomads

  • Residency analysis before moving
  • Employer payroll exposure
  • Totalization & social security
  • Foreign tax credits
Explore Remote Workers

Investment Funds & Holding Companies

  • Treaty access & PPT reviews
  • FAPI & surplus computations
  • Withholding-efficient routing
  • Governance & substance
Explore Funds & Holdcos

Fixed fee in writing first: how it actually works — questions we are asked

What do you need before you start?

The fee agreed in writing, the documents, and the signed authorisations that let us act with the tax authority on your behalf. Nothing is prepared until all three are in place.

What does "approve" actually mean — am I signing off on the tax positions?

You are confirming that the facts are right and that you have seen the work. The technical positions are ours, they are explained to you in plain terms before you approve, and the review exists precisely so you can ask why something was done that way while it can still be changed.

What if I do not approve the work?

Then it is not filed, and we deal with whatever the objection is. In practice the review step catches factual corrections — a missing slip, a figure from the wrong account — and those are fixed and re-sent. Approval is the checkpoint, and the engagement is not finished until the result is right.

How does a remittance actually work, and is it taxed?

A remittance is a transfer of money, not a category of income, and moving your own funds between your own accounts is not what creates tax. What can create tax is the income behind the money and the rules of the country it leaves. India, for instance, collects tax at source when a resident individual remits abroad under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, and requires certification before certain payments leave. The transfer is the trigger for paperwork rather than for tax. See the LRS and tax collected at source.

I have not filed for several years while living abroad — what are my options?

Both countries have routes back, and using one before they contact you is what preserves the relief. On the US side there are procedures aimed at taxpayers whose failure was not wilful, including one designed for people living outside the country, and separate procedures for late account reports and information returns alone. Canada has its voluntary disclosures programme and taxpayer relief for penalties and interest. Filing quietly and hoping is the one approach with no protection attached to it. See catch-up filing.

Is double taxation legal?

Yes. Nothing prevents two countries from taxing the same income under their own domestic law — each is exercising its own jurisdiction. What treaties and credit systems do is relieve the outcome rather than prohibit the charge, and relief is generally something you must claim on a return or a form, not something applied automatically. Miss the claim and the double charge stands. Double taxation explains the mechanism.

Tax terms explained

Form 5471Controlled foreign affiliateForm 1040-NRTie-breaker ruleSection 216Advance pricing arrangementFATCAChange of useWithholding certificateWash saleJoint partner trustT1135Chapter 4 withholdingT1134 Browse the full A–Z glossary

Pricing, terms and the work itself

Nearby pages

All pricingWhat moves an engagement up a fee tierWhat we never charge forRush work and late filings — how we price themPaying from abroad — currency and methodFixed fee against hourly, stage by stageFee terms: scope, re-quotes and corrections

Connected engagements

1040-NR non-resident return — fixed-fee priceEstate & trust returns — fixed-fee priceT106 information return — fixed-fee priceCanadian return with foreign income — fixed-fee priceTransfer pricing — local file — fixed-fee priceNRI Indian return (ITR-2) — fixed-fee price

Fixed fees

GST/HST non-resident registration — fixed-fee priceForm 3CEB certification (India) — fixed-fee priceDeparture (emigration) return — fixed-fee priceEstate & trust returns — fixed-fee price
No hourly billing, ever

Get your engagement handled for a fixed fee

Send us the facts. You will get a scope and a fixed fee in writing, and nothing starts until you agree to both.

Contact Us 24-hour helpline +1 (416) 619-0068 See fixed fees
  • A named reviewer signs off every filing
  • 18,000+ clients served
  • Re-quoted, never silently invoiced

Our practitioners are alumni of leading accounting and tax institutions

Where our partners studied — CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program), AICPA, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and the Malaysian Institute of Accountants.

Request a Quote +1 (416) 619-0068