Economical Form T2062 — section 116 clearance certificate

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Form T2062 — who files it, when it is due, what late filing costs, and what we charge to prepare it. Canada (CRA). Economical T2062 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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Secure a fixed quote

First we read your documents, then you get the price in writing, and only then does the work begin.

24-hour helpline: +1 (416) 619-0068
  • 15+ years of cross-border experience
  • Google rating 5.0 out of 5
  • Fixed fee agreed before work starts
In 60 words

Form T2062 is a certificate or waiver: The clearance certificate application on a non-resident's disposition of taxable Canadian property. Non-residents selling Canadian real estate, private company shares and other taxable Canadian property, and their purchasers.

Who this applies to

Non-residents selling Canadian real estate, private company shares and other taxable Canadian property, and their purchasers.

Here is the part that decides your answer. Until the certificate issues, the purchaser holds back a share of the price and is personally liable if they release it early. Notification runs on a short clock from closing, and the lawyer's holdback stays put until the CRA responds.

The firm’s founder at his desk in the Delhi office

Fixed fees for T2062 section 116 clearance certificate, agreed up front

A section 116 clearance certificate is priced from the disposition behind it: one non-resident vendor selling one property with a documented cost base is a contained file, while joint owners each needing their own certificate, a cost base to be reconstructed, or a notification already past its deadline is not. Quoted in writing first.

Section 116 clearance certificate — fixed-fee price

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

The clearance application on a disposition of taxable Canadian property, with the cost-base evidence assembled, and the notification filed inside its own clock from closing.
See the full fee page

Section 216 rental return — fixed-fee price

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

The elective Canadian rental return on net income, with the deductions the gross withholding ignored, plus the pre-year undertaking where the timing still allows it.
See the full fee page

Non-resident & departure filings

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

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

Individual tax filing

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Personal returns for individuals, expats and non-residents — foreign income, foreign property and treaty relief handled in one engagement.
See the fee schedule

Corporate cross-border filing

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

Returns for companies with foreign subsidiaries, foreign income or foreign shareholders, and the schedules each of those triggers.
See the fee schedule

Foreign asset & information reporting

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Accounts, property and company interests held outside the country of residence, reported on the schedules that carry penalties whether or not tax is owed.
See the fee schedule

Catch-up & voluntary disclosure

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Bringing an unfiled history current: which years are still open, which programme applies, and what the exposure is before you commit.
See the fee schedule

Payroll & mobility setup

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

What an employer owes when an employee works in another country: the registrations, the withholding and the reporting that follow.
See the fee schedule

All published fees on one page — all of it on a single page, so the number you compare is the number you pay.

What the reporting test actually looks at

What the application establishesLead-time constraint
The obligationThe clearance certificate application on a non-resident's disposition of taxable Canadian property.
Who it bindsNon-residents selling Canadian real estate, private company shares and other taxable Canadian property, and their purchasers.
Jurisdiction and authorityCanada — CRA
Category of filingCertificate or waiver — obtained before the money moves

When it is due

This is a before, not an after: the certificate or waiver has to be in hand before the payment, the closing or the remittance. Applied for afterwards, it usually cannot fix the withholding that has already happened — that becomes a refund claim instead. In practice the binding constraint is usually a document that has to arrive from somewhere else, which is why the timetable is mapped backwards from the deadline.

What late or missed filing costs

There is often no penalty for not applying. The cost is cash: withholding computed on a gross amount rather than a net one, held by a tax authority for a year or more until a return recovers it. On a property sale or a large fee that difference is the whole point of the exercise. The practical response is not speed but order: mapping every affected year before contacting an authority is what keeps relief on the table.

What this looks like with numbers

The arithmetic is more persuasive than the description, so:

Gross withholding against a net-basis return

A non-resident receives C$45,000 in the year. Assume withholding at 27% on the gross amount, and assume deductible costs of C$33,750 against it.

ItemAmount
Gross amount receivedC$45,000
Withheld at source (assumed 27% of gross)C$12,150
Deductible costsC$33,750
Net amount actually earnedC$11,250
Tax on the net amount (assumed graduated result)C$3,488
Difference recoverable by filingC$8,662

Filing on a net basis recovers C$8,662 of the C$12,150 withheld. That difference is the entire reason the elective return exists, and it is lost by not filing. The shape of that result holds; the size of it depends entirely on your own numbers and dates.

Treat these numbers as a worked example rather than advice — they exist to make the mechanics visible, and the rates and thresholds are assumed for the illustration. For a real filing, we verify each figure with the authority that publishes it, for your year.

How we prepare and file it, and what it costs

Form T2062 is priced as part of the filing set it travels with, quoted in writing before any work begins. A change in scope is re-quoted rather than added to the invoice. See the non-resident with Canadian dividends or interest for comparable engagements.

From first call to filed

  1. 1Confirm the applicable route and the lead time before the transaction date
  2. 2Prepare the computation the authority needs to reduce the amount
  3. 3File the application and follow it through to issue
  4. 4Hand the certificate to the payer or closing agent before funds move
  • Authorisation with each authority, so we see the assessments and slips directly rather than asking you for them.
  • 18,000+ clients served across 4 global offices: India, the USA, Canada and the UAE.
  • Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars on Google, on a profile open for you to read.

One call now is worth more than a filing season of guessing.

Reviewed against current guidance for the 2025 and 2026 filing seasons by Udit Gupta, Cross-Border Tax Expert, Legal Quotient Consultants. Written as general guidance, not as a recommendation for your situation. Talk it through with us before acting on it.

Corporate tax payment CRA — what this page covers

Readers arrive here searching for corporate tax payment CRA, and T2062 is what the page is about. Below: who it catches, what has to be filed, and what it costs — quoted in writing, before anything is done.

Until the certificate issues, the purchaser holds back a share of the price and is personally liable if they release it early.

From first contact to filed return

  1. Hand over the paperwork in any state

    Sorting it is our job. Send what exists and we identify what is missing from it.

  2. Priced before a single form is opened

    The fee comes from the documents, agreed in writing, and stays where it was agreed.

  3. One position across every return

    The same facts, filed consistently on each side, so nothing contradicts anything else.

  4. Filed after you have read it

    The completed work reaches you before it reaches an authority.

The difference a dedicated cross-border team makes

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

Adjusted cost base
The tax cost of property, from which a gain or loss is computed. It resets on arrival in a country and is deemed on emigration.
Non-resident trust
A trust outside the country that can nonetheless be deemed resident because a resident contributed to it or benefits from it.
Departure tax
The tax on the deemed disposition triggered when residency ends. Which assets are inside it, and which keep their domestic tax hooks instead, is the whole planning question.
Grossing up
Restating a net-of-tax amount to its pre-tax equivalent, needed whenever a foreign payment arrived after withholding and the credit is claimed on the gross figure.
T2062 section 116 clearance certificate: How we read this one

Until the certificate issues, the purchaser holds back a share of the price and is personally liable if they release it early.

Whatever the file turns out to involve, the terms do not move: the scope and the fee are agreed in writing before any work starts, a named practitioner reviews the result, and nothing is filed until you have approved it.

Fixed fees around T2062 section 116 clearance certificate

The other thing to price is what surrounds the certificate. The purchaser's holdback sits with the lawyer until the CRA responds, so that correspondence is part of the engagement; and where Canadian rental income was earned before the sale, unfiled years are brought current before the T2062 can be settled cleanly.

Individual tax filing

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: Personal returns for individuals, expats and non-residents — foreign income, foreign property and treaty relief handled in one engagement.

See this fee page

Non-resident & departure filings

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: Arrival and departure years priced as one engagement, with the part-year residence position and the assets deemed disposed of on exit.

See this fee page

Corporate cross-border filing

$999fixed, before work starts

Covers: Returns for companies with foreign subsidiaries, foreign income or foreign shareholders, and the schedules each of those triggers.

See this fee page

Why choose Legal Quotient for T2062 section 116 clearance certificate

4 global offices

Meet us in person in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE, or send everything through the secure portal — the same process either way.

Late and missed years are ordinary work

An unfiled history is not a reason to wait longer. We assess what is still open and what relief the delay attracts before the first return goes in.

A named reviewer on every file

Every page on this site and every file we deliver says which practitioner reviewed it — a person, not a team inbox.

Filed with the authority, not just prepared

The engagement runs to submission and to the correspondence that follows it, including the queries that arrive months later.

The team reviewing a file together at a desk

From first call to filed return

Step 1

First conversation

We start with the chronology: dates, countries, and what has already been filed

Step 2

Written quote

You get the scope and the fee in writing before we touch anything

Step 3

Preparation and sign-off

The work is prepared and reviewed by a named person, not a queue

Step 4

Submission

Nothing is filed until you have read it

Two of the firm’s advisers at the glass desk in the Delhi office

A fixed quote first, in writing

  • Step 1: Tell us the dates and we will tell you the position – Arrival, departure, the years in between — the residence question turns on those before anything else.
  • Step 2: Fixed fee, defined scope, in writing – Both agreed before work starts, so the engagement cannot grow into a larger bill.
  • Step 3: Prepared together, not passed between firms – You are not the go-between for two sets of advisers working from two sets of assumptions.
  • Step 4: Reviewed, approved, filed – A named practitioner checks it, you approve it, and then it goes.

Quoted up front, in writing.

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

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

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Canada–India DTAA explained Its own page: Canada India DTAA explained — 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.
Accidental American who never filed US taxes Accidental American never filed taxes — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Form RC267 — US plan contributions (commuters) The full guide to rc267 US plan contributions commuters, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Form 8858 — foreign disregarded entity Its own page: form 8858 foreign disregarded entity — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
CRA foreign income audit Everything on CRA foreign income audit, at the same depth as this page.
Safe harbour rules (India) Safe harbour rules (India) — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

Clients who arrive with this exact page

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Tax for diplomatic & consular staff The full guide to diplomatic & consular staff tax, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
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Technology & SaaS — your filing calendar Everything on technology & saas your filing calendar, at the same depth as this page.
Crypto traders — what we charge Crypto traders what we charge — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
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Franchise owners — what you owe in each country Everything on franchise owners what you owe in each country, at the same depth as this page.
Tax for crypto traders Crypto traders tax — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

Countries and corridors this work reaches

Singapore tax for expats — country guide Singapore tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Taiwan tax for expats — country guide The full guide to Taiwan tax for expats, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Sri Lanka tax for expats — country guide Its own page: Sri Lanka tax for expats — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Canada–Philippines tax corridor Everything on Canada Philippines tax, at the same depth as this page.
Botswana tax for expats — country guide Botswana tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Switzerland tax for expats — country guide The full guide to Switzerland tax for expats, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
US–Spain tax corridor Its own page: US Spain tax — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Cyprus tax for expats — country guide Everything on Cyprus tax for expats, at the same depth as this page.
Poland tax for expats — country guide Poland tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

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

Cross-border situations we are engaged for

Case study 1

A condo sale where the holdback was released on certificate

A vendor living overseas sold a Canadian condominium and instructed us before the closing date. We assembled the purchase documents, established the cost base including the closing costs on acquisition, and filed the application with the supporting statements. The purchaser's solicitor held the agreed amount pending the certificate and released it on production of the document. The engagement produced the certificate, a released holdback, and the vendor's own return for the year computing the disposition after selling costs, which is where the balance of the position was finally settled.

Case study 2

Private company shares sold to a Canadian buyer

A non-resident shareholder agreed to sell shares in a private corporation whose value rested largely on Canadian real property. The purchaser's counsel raised the clearance question during due diligence and the closing was structured around it. We established that the shares fell within taxable Canadian property, supported the price with the corporation's own property valuations, and filed the application. The work produced a certificate, a holdback mechanism written into the purchase agreement, and a valuation file standing behind the figures the application relied on.

Case study 3

A vendor who had already closed before asking

The sale had completed some time earlier, the holdback was sitting with the solicitor, and nothing had been filed. We reconstructed the transaction from the closing documents, prepared the notification and the application together, and set out the position on the late notification in the covering letter rather than waiting to be asked about it. The engagement produced a filed application, a disclosed explanation for the delay, the release of the holdback once the certificate issued, and a realistic account, given at the outset, of what late notification costs.

Case study 4

Co-owners abroad holding unequal shares of a property

A property was held by co-owners living in different countries, in proportions that did not match the appearance of the title. Each of them needed an application of their own, and the purchaser needed to know how to apportion the holdback. We established beneficial ownership from the original funding records, prepared an application for each owner on their own share, and gave the solicitor a single schedule setting out how the price and the holdback divided. The work produced separate certificates and a closing that did not stall on whose share was whose.

Case study 5

A purchaser's solicitor who needed evidence before releasing

We were instructed by the buyer's side rather than the vendor's. The vendor had given assurances about the application but nothing in writing, and the solicitor was being pressed to release funds. We set out what the purchaser's exposure was, which document would discharge it and which would not, and reviewed the material the vendor eventually produced. The engagement produced a written opinion the solicitor could put on file, a release made against the certificate itself, and a purchaser who was not left carrying somebody else's tax.

Case study 6

An inherited property sold by a non-resident estate

A property passed to beneficiaries living abroad and was sold shortly afterwards. The cost base ran from the value at death rather than the original purchase, and no supporting valuation had ever been commissioned. We established the value at death from contemporaneous evidence, identified who was disposing of what, and filed the applications for the estate and the beneficiaries as the facts required. The engagement produced the valuation file, the certificates, and a clear record of which party reported the disposition, which the purchaser's solicitor needed before releasing anything.

Case study 7

A Canadian Property Sale Held Up for a Clearance Certificate

When a non-resident sells Canadian real estate the purchaser must hold back a portion of the price until the seller produces a certificate. The file applies for it on the correct basis and works to the closing date, because the holdback is released against the certificate, not against the sale.

Read how this one runs
Case study 8

Documentation Requested, and the Deadline Is Not Extendable

Contemporaneous documentation has to exist by the filing deadline, not be assembled when it is asked for, and the penalty protection turns on that timing. The engagement produces the analysis for the year in question and puts a repeatable process behind the next one.

Read how this one runs

All case studies — every published engagement in one place.

How and where the work is delivered

Every link below is a full page of its own — the same depth as this one, for its own subject.

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

  • 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

Holding structures live or die on treaty access, beneficial ownership and substance — the MLI's principal-purpose test now sits over every arrangement.

A holding structure is only as good as its reporting. Foreign affiliates, accrued passive income and distributions each carry their own return, and the penalties on those attach to the form rather than to any tax being owed — so a structure that saves tax can still cost money if the information returns are late.

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

Form T2062 — questions we are asked

Do I file Form T2062 even if no tax is owed?

Certificate or waiver obligations of this kind are generally required on the facts rather than on the tax result, so a nil position does not remove one. Non-residents selling Canadian real estate, private company shares and other taxable Canadian property, and their purchasers.

What happens if I have missed Form T2062 for several years?

Missed years are dealt with as a package rather than one at a time, because the route chosen for the first year affects the relief available for the rest. We map the years and the obligations before anything is filed.

Is Form T2062 the same as the other reports I already file?

No. The clearance certificate application on a non-resident's disposition of taxable Canadian property. Satisfying a different obligation, even one covering the same accounts or entity, does nothing for this one.

I live abroad and am selling my Canadian condo — what now?

A disposition of taxable Canadian property by a non-resident brings the clearance procedure into play. The purchaser is required to protect the tax by holding back a share of the price, and their solicitor will do so as a matter of course. The application tells the tax authority what is being sold, what it cost and what it is selling for, and asks for a certificate covering the disposition. Until that certificate issues, the holdback stays with the solicitor. The practical order is: notify, apply, wait for the certificate, then release.

Why is my lawyer holding back part of the sale price?

Because a purchaser who pays a non-resident vendor in full without a certificate can be made personally liable for the vendor's Canadian tax on the sale. It is not a lack of trust, and it is not something the two of you can agree away between yourselves: the exposure sits with the buyer, and their solicitor is protecting the buyer rather than you. The holdback is released when the certificate issues, or when the amount the certificate calls for has been remitted. How long that takes is the reason to start before closing rather than after it.

What happens if I never apply for a clearance certificate?

Two things, running in parallel. The purchaser's holdback is not released, so a share of your sale proceeds simply sits with a solicitor, sometimes for a very long time. And the notification obligation is not satisfied, which carries its own consequence quite separate from the tax on the gain. Neither improves by waiting. The application can still be made after closing — a good many are — but it is then made with the clock already running and the money already held, so the position is worse than if it had been started before the sale completed.

Can the buyer be liable for my Canadian tax?

Yes, and that is the whole reason the procedure exists. Where a non-resident disposes of taxable Canadian property, the purchaser is exposed for the vendor's tax unless a certificate has been obtained or the required amount remitted. The purchaser discharges that exposure by holding back and, once the certificate arrives, releasing against it. This is why a buyer's solicitor asks about residence at the outset and holds firm on the holdback afterwards: the person carrying the risk is the buyer, not the vendor, and the vendor's reassurance is not worth anything to them.

Do I still file a Canadian return after the certificate?

The certificate is not the final tax computation. It addresses the amount the purchaser has to protect; the actual liability on the disposition is settled on a return for the year, where the gain is computed properly and outlays such as commission and legal fees are taken into account. That return is where an over-held amount is recovered. Treating the certificate as the end of the matter is how non-resident vendors leave money sitting with the tax authority, and it is the single most common thing we are asked to put right after the event.

Does section 116 apply to private company shares as well?

It can. Taxable Canadian property is wider than real estate: shares of a private corporation can fall within it, particularly where the corporation's value derives from Canadian real property. The procedure is the same — notification, application, a purchaser holding back until a certificate issues — but the valuation work is heavier, because there is no closing statement to point at. The price has to be supported, and where it was negotiated between related parties the support matters more still. Establish whether the shares are within the definition before the agreement is signed, not after.

What happens when a non-resident sells Canadian property?

The buyer or their solicitor is obliged to withhold on the purchase price unless you obtain a clearance certificate, so the practical work happens before closing rather than after. The certificate application reports the disposition and the gain and fixes the amount the authority requires to be held. Apply late and the withholding is computed on the gross price, tying up cash until a return recovers it. See the section 116 clearance certificate.

How do I report the sale of a foreign property?

On your residence-country return, as a disposition, with proceeds and cost base converted at the rates for their own dates. Separately, the country where the property sits may require its own return and may hold back tax at closing until a clearance or certificate is issued — Canada does this for a non-resident vendor, and the United States withholds on a foreign seller of US real property. Those steps have their own deadlines, often before closing. See clearance certificates on a property sale.

Tax terms explained

Marketplace facilitatorReassessment periodPart-year residentResident contributorGreen card testForm 5471Terminal returnVirtual digital assetPortabilityDeemed dividendVoluntary Disclosures ProgramConstruction PEEconomic substanceForeign affiliate Browse the full A–Z glossary

Forms and situations related to Form T2062

The rest of this section

All Canadian (CRA) formsForm T2036 — provincial foreign tax creditForm RC268 — US plan contributions (cross-border)Form T1255 — principal residence (deceased)GST/HST simplified registration — for non-residentsForm T1243 — deemed dispositionForm RC269 — foreign plan contributions

Where this leads next

Competent authority / MAP requestCanada–India DTAA explainedDeemed resident vs factual residentIndian resident with foreign assets (Schedule FA)Inheriting property abroadPart XIII withholding review

Common questions here

Who files Form T2062?What is the late filing penalty for Form T2062?
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