Form T1135, the Foreign Income Verification Statement, is the CRA form Canadian residents file when the total cost of their specified foreign property was more than $100,000 at any time in the year, as of October 2026. It's due on the same date as your income tax return, even if you don't otherwise need to file a return, and late filing starts at $25 a day.
This catches more people than you'd think: a U.S. brokerage account, shares of foreign companies held through a Canadian broker, a rental condo abroad. The test is cost, not value, and it's the total across everything you hold. Everything here comes from the CRA's T1135 pages and its penalty table.
The $100,000 test
| Question | CRA answer |
|---|---|
| Is it based on market value? | No. It's the cost amount, generally the adjusted cost base |
| Is it per property? | No. It's the total of all specified foreign property. Shares costing $75,000 plus a U.S. bank account of $35,000 is $110,000, so you file |
| What if I sold during the year? | If the total was over $100,000 at any time, you report everything you held in the year |
| Inherited or gifted property? | Its cost amount is the fair market value when you received it |
All dollar amounts are in Canadian dollars, as of October 2026.
What counts, and what doesn't
- Shares of non-resident corporations count, even when held through a Canadian broker.
- Shares of a Canadian company held by a foreign agent count (as "other property outside Canada").
- The currency doesn't decide it: Canadian company shares priced in U.S. dollars aren't foreign property for this purpose.
- Property held inside an RRSP or TFSA is excluded.
- Personal-use property is excluded, including a vacation home used mainly for yourself and items like art, jewellery, rare books, stamps and coins.
The foreign condo question
The CRA works through a Florida condo with a cost of $120,000. Used only as your vacation home, it isn't reported. Rented for eight months with a reasonable expectation of profit and used yourself for four, it's reported. Rented for part of the year just to recover some costs, with no expectation of profit, it's treated as personal use and isn't reported. The CRA reads "primarily" personal use as more than 50%.
Part A or Part B?
| Total cost during the year | How you report |
|---|---|
| More than $100,000 but under $250,000 throughout the year | Part A, the simplified method (tick the type of property and the top three countries), or Part B if you prefer |
| $250,000 or more at any time | Part B, the detailed method, property by property |
For Part A, add up month-end costs country by country and pick the three countries with the highest. Country codes follow the issuer, not the account: U.S. shares in a UK brokerage account are coded USA, and a U.S. mutual fund trust is coded USA even if it holds European and Asian shares.
Filing and deadlines
- Check your total cost of specified foreign property at every point in the year.
- Choose Part A or Part B.
- File by the due date of your income tax return (or the partnership information return).
- File electronically if you can. Individuals can use EFILE or NETFILE for 2017 and later years; earlier years must be paper filed.
- Keep the confirmation number.
If you left Canada during the year, the CRA only needs information for the period you were resident. And a T1135 reminder on your notice of assessment doesn't mean your form went missing; it appears automatically when your return says your foreign property cost more than $100,000.
Amending or catching up
If you spot a mistake, the CRA accepts an amended form on the same version you originally filed, though it encourages using the current version. Tick the amended-return box and give all the required information, not just the corrected lines. You can also use Part A for an earlier year, or switch to it when amending, as long as your total cost was more than $100,000 but under $250,000 throughout that year. Corporations have been able to EFILE the form since the 2014 tax year and trusts since 2021.
Attached schedules are only accepted if they copy the exact layout of the tables on the form, because the CRA's version has built-in checks. Cross-border families with U.S. accounts should note that the U.S. has its own, separate foreign account report, the FBAR, with different thresholds.
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Penalties
| Situation | Penalty (as of October 2026) |
|---|---|
| Late filing | $25 a day for up to 100 days (minimum $100, maximum $2,500) |
| Knowingly or through gross negligence | $500 a month for up to 24 months (maximum $12,000) |
| Ignoring a demand to file | $1,000 a month for up to 24 months (maximum $24,000) |
| Still not filed after 24 months | 5% of the cost of the foreign property, less penalties already charged |
| False statements or omissions | The greater of $24,000 or 5% of the property's cost |
There's also a hidden cost: if you didn't report income from the property and the T1135 was missing, late or wrong, the CRA gets three extra years to reassess that return. Relief from penalties can be requested in writing, and the Voluntary Disclosures Program may help if you're behind. If your foreign investments pay dividends or interest through a Canadian payer, that income usually shows on a T5 slip, which is separate from this form.
The verdict
Add up the cost of everything you hold abroad outside your RRSP and TFSA, including U.S. shares in your normal brokerage account. If it tipped over $100,000 at any moment, file the T1135 with your return. The form takes minutes in Part A; the penalties for skipping it don't.
Frequently asked questions
Who has to file Form T1135?
Canadian residents whose specified foreign property had a total cost of more than $100,000 at any time in the year.
Do U.S. stocks in a Canadian brokerage account count for T1135?
Yes. Shares of non-resident corporations are specified foreign property even when held through a Canadian broker, unless they're in an RRSP or TFSA.
When is Form T1135 due?
On or before the due date of your income tax return, even if you aren't otherwise required to file a return.
What is the penalty for filing T1135 late?
$25 a day for up to 100 days, with a minimum of $100 and a maximum of $2,500, as of October 2026.
