Canadian taxation of non-resident trusts: A critical review of Section 94 of the Income Tax Act (Canada)

This thesis provides a critical review of recent amendments to the rules in section 94 of the Income Tax Act (Canada) governing the taxation of non-resident trusts. Under these provisions, if a Canadian resident contributes property to a non-resident trust, the contributor, the non-resident trust and certain Canadian resident beneficiaries of the trust may become jointly and severally liable to pay Canadian tax on the worldwide income of the trust, which will be deemed to be a resident of Canada for income tax purposes. These amendments are considered on the basis of fundamental domestic and international legal and tax policy principles, and the structural approach adopted in the legislation is assessed on the basis of a comparative analysis of the provisions with the U.S. foreign grantor trust rules in section 679 of the Internal Revenue Code and the treasury regulations thereunder, which have served as a precedent for legislation concerning the taxation of non-resident trusts enacted by a number of jurisdictions. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)