Software developers: what we charge

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We prepare and file the cross-border returns software developers need — both countries handled together, on a fixed fee agreed in writing up front.

+1 (416) 619-0068 See fixed fees
  • 15+Years of cross-border experience
  • 18,000+Clients served
  • 5.0Google rating
  • 4Global offices — India, USA, Canada & UAE
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Secure a fixed quote

Send what you have. We price the engagement from your own documents, in writing, before any work starts.

24-hour helpline: +1 (416) 619-0068
  • 18,000+ clients served
  • 24-hour helpline: +1 (416) 619-0068
  • Offices in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE
In short

A developer working remotely for a foreign employer can create a taxable presence for that employer in the country where the code is written — which turns a personal arrangement into the employer's problem.

On this page: the rule that applies here, the questions we are asked first, two finished files with their numbers, how an engagement runs, and the fee it starts from.

The rule that applies to this group and not the one next to it

A developer working remotely for a foreign employer can create a taxable presence for that employer in the country where the code is written — which turns a personal arrangement into the employer's problem.

Here is the part that decides your answer. An ordinary preparer will get the general position right and miss the specific one, because the specific one is not on the form. It has to be known about, claimed, and supported.

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

Transparent, fixed pricing for software developers what we charge

What we charge a software developer is set by the shape of the file rather than by the hour: one employment income from abroad and one country to credit, or options, a foreign account and a payroll question about the employer's presence here. The scope is settled and written down before preparation starts.

Individual tax filing

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Individual returns where salary, investments or property sit outside the country of residence, prepared so relief is claimed once and in the right place.
See the fee schedule

Corporate cross-border filing

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

Corporate compliance for a group that trades or holds assets in more than one country, prepared on both sides together.
See the fee schedule

Transfer pricing documentation

From $2,500

fixed, quoted before work starts

Intercompany pricing documented before it is questioned — the functional analysis, the benchmarking and the files that support it.
See the fee schedule

Foreign asset & information reporting

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

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

Non-resident & departure filings

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Returns for the year you leave, the year you arrive, and the years you earn rental or pension income from a country you no longer live in.
See the fee schedule

Payroll & mobility setup

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

The employer side of mobility — where to register, what to withhold, and what to report once someone works across a border.
See the fee schedule

Catch-up & voluntary disclosure

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Late and unfiled years, sequenced and filed together, with the relief available for the delay identified before the first return goes in.
See the fee schedule

Estate & trust filing

From $799

fixed, quoted before work starts

Cross-border estates and trusts, from the reporting on the assets to the returns the beneficiaries then have to file.
See the fee schedule

All published fees on one page — every engagement, one list, no ranges hiding surprises.

Three things we hear on the first call

  • My employer has no entity where I live and does not want one.
  • I am paid in a foreign currency into a foreign account and report neither properly.
  • My share options were granted in one country and vested after I moved.

None of those is unusual and none of them is a reason to be embarrassed. They are the normal consequence of a system that asks an individual to reconcile two sets of rules that were never designed to fit together. See also RNOR status — the two-year window.

Worked through with figures

Numbers make this concrete, so here is the same rule applied to a set of figures.

Equity that vests after the move

A grant worth C$108,000 at vest, over a 41-month vesting period, 25 months of which were worked in the first country and 16 in the second.

ItemAmount
Value at vestC$108,000
Vesting period (months)41
Months worked in the first country25
Months worked in the second country16
Apportioned to the first countryC$65,854
Apportioned to the second countryC$42,146

Two countries tax slices of one gain: C$65,854 and C$42,146 on this apportionment. Where their taxing points differ — grant, vest, exercise or sale — the credit can arrive in a year the other country is no longer taxing, which is the mismatch to plan around. That is an illustration of the mechanism, not a prediction about your file — the same computation on your figures is the first thing we do.

An illustration, not a client file. The sums are chosen for legibility and the thresholds are stated for the example alone — nothing reaches a filing until it has been confirmed at source for your own year.

A worked example

It is easier to see with numbers attached.

Credit relief on one stream of income

Take C$121,000 of income taxed in both countries. Assume the other country charged 20% on it and the home country would charge 38% on the same amount.

ItemAmount
Income taxed in both countriesC$121,000
Tax paid abroad (assumed 20%)C$24,200
Home tax on the same income (assumed 38%)C$45,980
Credit available (lesser of the two)C$24,200
Home tax still payableC$21,780

The credit absorbs C$24,200 and leaves C$21,780 payable at home, because the home rate on this income is the higher of the two. The balance is real cash and it is due on the home timetable, which is why instalments get raised in the first meeting. Change any one of those inputs and the answer moves, which is why we run it on your own figures rather than on an illustration.

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.

From first call to filed

  1. 1A short call to work out what actually applies to you and what does not
  2. 2A written quote against a defined scope, with nothing billed by the hour
  3. 3We prepare, a named reviewer checks it, and you see it before it goes
  4. 4You approve, we file, and only then do you pay
  • A 24-hour helpline, +1 (416) 619-0068, before you commit to anything.
  • Your existing accountant keeps the domestic file; we take the cross-border piece, with the boundary in writing.
  • Authorisation with each authority, so we see the assessments and slips directly rather than asking you for them.

Your next step

One call is usually enough to know whether this is a filing or a project.

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.

International tax accountant, in practice

Readers arrive here searching for international tax accountant, and software developers: what we charge 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.

The four phases of the work

  1. Documents first, questions second

    We read the file before asking anything, so the questions we do ask are the ones that matter.

  2. A quote you can hold us to

    Fixed in writing against a defined scope. No hourly meter, and no revision after the fact.

  3. The order of filing decided deliberately

    Which return goes first can decide whether relief is available at all. That is planned, not discovered.

  4. Nothing filed without your sign-off

    You see the completed work, ask what you need to, and approve it before submission.

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

Virtual digital asset
India's statutory category for crypto and similar assets, taxed under a dedicated regime with a transaction-level deduction at source.
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.
Arrival valuation
Documentation of what property was worth on the day residence began, which sets the cost base and cannot be recreated years later.
Reassessment notice
A notice reopening a closed year. The first response is about the validity of the reopening, not the merits.

Fixed fees around software developers what we charge

The second row prices the pieces that often sit outside a developer's main return: disclosure of a foreign account held since before the move, a year brought current after a late start, or a written treaty position for an employer with no entity in this country. Each of those is quoted separately.

Corporate cross-border filing

$999fixed, before work starts

Covers: Corporate compliance for a group that trades or holds assets in more than one country, prepared on both sides together.

See this fee page

Individual tax filing

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: Individual returns where salary, investments or property sit outside the country of residence, prepared so relief is claimed once and in the right place.

See this fee page

Transfer pricing documentation

$2,500fixed, before work starts

Covers: Intercompany pricing documented before it is questioned — the functional analysis, the benchmarking and the files that support it.

See this fee page

What working with us on software developers what we charge looks like

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.

You deal with the person who did the work

The practitioner who prepared and reviewed your file is the one who answers the question about it.

18,000+ clients served

Individuals, expats and corporations across India, the USA, Canada and the UAE have filed with us — 15+ years of cross-border work.

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.

The team reviewing a file together at a desk

How the engagement runs, phase by phase

Step 1

First conversation

A first call to map the obligations across every country involved

Step 2

Written quote

A single fixed fee covering the whole set, agreed before we begin

Step 3

Preparation and sign-off

Preparation in the order that makes the relief usable, with a reviewer's sign-off

Step 4

Submission

You approve the finished work, and we file it

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

How the work runs — quote first, then the work

  • Step 1: Start with a conversation about the facts – Dates, residence, where the income arose. Fifteen minutes is usually enough to know what applies.
  • Step 2: Scope and price, both written down – You get the scope and the fixed fee together, so there is no question later about what was included.
  • Step 3: Prepared by one team, reviewed by a named practitioner – The same people see both sides of the file, and the reviewer signs their name to it.
  • Step 4: Filed, then followed through – Submission is not the end of the engagement — the queries that arrive afterwards are part of it.

Quoted up front, in writing.

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

Keep reading, sideways

Browse sideways: the pages below answer the neighbouring questions.

Core services for this situation

Form 8833 — treaty-based return position The full guide to form 8833 treaty based return position, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Board & governance for foreign entities Its own page: board & governance for foreign entities — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Form W-8IMY — intermediaries Everything on form w-8imy intermediaries, at the same depth as this page.
Filing an Indian return from Canada or the US Filing an Indian return from Canada or the US — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Form T1213 — request to reduce tax at source The full guide to t1213 request to reduce tax at source, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Form 5472 — foreign-owned US corporation Its own page: form 5472 foreign owned US corporation — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Indian company setting up in the US Everything on Indian company setting up in the US, at the same depth as this page.
Form 3CEFA — safe harbour option (India) Form 3cefa India — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Canada–US estate tax treaty relief The full guide to Canada–US estate tax treaty relief, with the fee fixed before any work starts.

Clients who arrive with this exact page

Touring musicians — what we charge The full guide to touring musicians what we charge, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Software developers — what you owe in each country Its own page: software developers what you owe in each country — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Tax for missionaries & clergy Everything on missionaries & clergy tax, at the same depth as this page.
Touring musicians — relief you're probably missing Touring musicians relief you're probably missing — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Advisors & referral partners cross-border tax The full guide to advisors & referral partners cross border tax, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Franchise owners — relief you're probably missing Its own page: franchise owners relief you're probably missing — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Tax for product & project managers Everything on product & project managers tax, at the same depth as this page.
Technology & SaaS — relief you're probably missing Technology & saas relief you're probably missing — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Tax for djs & electronic artists The full guide to djs & electronic artists tax, with the fee fixed before any work starts.

Countries and corridors this work reaches

China tax for expats — country guide The full guide to China tax for expats, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Vietnam tax for expats — country guide Its own page: Vietnam tax for expats — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Germany tax for expats — country guide Everything on Germany tax for expats, at the same depth as this page.
Senegal tax for expats — country guide Senegal 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.
Ghana tax for expats — country guide Its own page: Ghana tax for expats — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Slovenia tax for expats — country guide Everything on slovenia tax for expats, at the same depth as this page.
Latvia tax for expats — country guide Latvia tax for expats — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Finland tax for expats — country guide The full guide to Finland tax for expats, with the fee fixed before any work starts.

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 tax case studies

Case study 1

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 2

Deemed Resident or Factual Resident — Not the Same File

The two statuses attract different returns, different credits and different provincial treatment, and the label is decided by facts rather than chosen. Establishing which applies is the work; the filing follows from it without argument.

Read how this one runs
Case study 3

A US Citizen Settled in India, Filing on Both Sides

Residence in India and citizenship in the United States produce two annual returns for one income. The order decides the credit, and the Indian financial year and the US calendar year have to be reconciled before either is prepared.

Read how this one runs
Case study 4

A Student or Researcher Covered by a Treaty Article

Several treaties carry a dedicated article for students, trainees and visiting researchers that displaces the ordinary employment rules. Whether it applies turns on the purpose of the stay and the source of the funds, both of which are evidenced rather than asserted.

Read how this one runs
Case study 5

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 6

Ten Years of Missed Returns Filed as One Engagement

Filing many years at once is a sequencing problem: carry-forwards, instalments and credits from the earliest year feed the latest. Filing them out of order is what turns a recoverable position into an assessed one.

Read how this one runs
Case study 7

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 8

A Family Trust Abroad With Reporting on Both Sides

A trust settled in one country and a beneficiary living in another produces reporting for the trust, the settlor and the beneficiary, on different forms and different dates. The engagement maps who files what before anything is prepared.

Read how this one runs

All case studies — every published engagement in one place.

Where we deliver this work

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

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

Software revenue crosses borders by default — sourcing rules, withholding on licence-like payments and IP location decide the effective rate.

Software revenue is rarely taxed where the team sits. Licence, subscription and service income are characterised differently by each side, and the answer decides withholding at source, treaty relief and whether a foreign customer creates a taxable presence at all — questions that are cheap to settle before the contract and expensive afterwards.

  • 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

Software developers — what we charge — questions we are asked

What makes software developers different from an ordinary filing?

A developer working remotely for a foreign employer can create a taxable presence for that employer in the country where the code is written — which turns a personal arrangement into the employer's problem. An ordinary preparer applies the general rule and stops there, which is how the relief in the specific provision goes unclaimed.

Can you work with my existing accountant?

That is how most of these engagements run. They keep the domestic file, we take the cross-border piece, and the boundary is agreed in writing so nothing is done twice or missed.

Do NRIs pay tax on money sent to India?

Sending your own funds to India is a transfer of capital, not income, so the remittance itself is not taxed. What is taxable is income the money then earns in India — interest, rent, capital gains — under the rules for the account type it sits in. Sending money out of India is the direction that needs certification before the bank will act. See NRE, NRO and FCNR accounts.

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.

Do you give a written opinion?

Where the position warrants one, yes — with the reasoning, the authority relied on, and what would change the answer. It is quoted as part of the scope rather than added afterwards.

Do you work with trusts and estates as well as returns?

Yes, and they are frequently the same file: a personal position, an entity position and an estate exposure that all move together.

Tax terms explained

First-time penalty abatementForm 15CABenchmarking studySection 217183-day ruleSubstantial presence testTNMMHybrid surplusClubbing of incomePANPillar TwoDeemed dispositionEarnings strippingGAAR Browse the full A–Z glossary

Related pages

Nearby pages

All who we helpPhysicians & surgeons — what we chargeSoftware developers — relief you're probably missingIT contractors — what we chargeTechnology & SaaS — what you owe in each countryTeam-sport athletes — relief you're probably missingNon-resident landlords — relief you're probably missing

Connected engagements

Relocation benefits & taxabilityTax for adult-platform creatorsTax for course creators & coachesRemote work policy — tax exposureTax for actors & film crewSocial security & totalization certificates

What this costs

Reg 105 or 102 waiver application — fixed-fee priceAnnual compliance retainer — fixed-fee price1120-F / 5472 filing — fixed-fee priceFBAR & Form 8938 disclosure — fixed-fee price
A named reviewer on every filing

Get software developers filing handled for a fixed fee

One short call, one fixed quote in writing, and your approval before anything is filed.

Contact Us 24-hour helpline +1 (416) 619-0068 See fixed fees
  • A named reviewer signs off every filing
  • 18,000+ clients served
  • Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars on Google

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