DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

TECHNICAL EXPLANATION OF THE PROTOCOL BETWEEN

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

AND

CANADA 

SIGNED AT OTTAWA ON JULY 29, 1997

AMENDING THE CONVENTION BETWEEN

 THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND CANADA

WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME AND ON CAPITAL

 SIGNED AT WASHINGTON ON SEPTEMBER 26, 1980

 AS AMENDED BY THE PROTOCOLS SIGNED ON JUNE 14, 1983, 

MARCH 28, 1984 AND MARCH 17, 1995 

INTRODUCTION

This document is a technical explanation of the Protocol Between the United States of

America and Canada signed on July 29, 1997 (the “Protocol”) amending the Convention Between

the United States of America and Canada With Respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital 

Signed at Washington on September 26, 1980 as Amended by the Protocols Signed on June 14,

1983, March 28, 1984 and March 17, 1995 (the “Convention”). 

This technical explanation is an official guide to the Protocol. It reflects the policies behind

particular Protocol provisions, as well as understandings reached with respect to the application

and interpretation of the Protocol. References in this technical explanation to “he” or “his” should

be read to mean “he or she” or “his or her.”

Article 1 

Article 1 of the Protocol amends paragraph 3 of Article XIII (Gains) of the Convention.

Paragraph 1 of Article XIII of the Convention provides that gains derived by a resident of a

Contracting State from the alienation of real property situated within the other Contracting State

may be taxed in that other State. The term “real property situated in the other Contracting State”

is defined for this purpose in paragraph 3 of Article XIII of the Convention. 

Under paragraph 3(a) of Article XIII of the Convention, real property situated in the

United States includes real property (as defined in Article VI (Income from Real Property) of the
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Convention) situated in the United States and a United States real property interest. Under section

897(c) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) the term “United States real property interest”

includes shares in a U.S. corporation that owns sufficient U.S. real property interests to satisfy an

asset-ratio test on certain testing dates. 

Under Paragraph 3(b) of Article XIII of the Convention, real property situated in Canada

means real property (as defined in Article VI of the Convention) situated in Canada; shares of

stock of a company, the value of whose shares consists principally of Canadian real property; and

an interest in a partnership, trust or estate, the value of which consists principally of Canadian real

property. The term “principally” means more than 50 percent. 

Under the Code, stock of a foreign corporation is not considered a “United States real

property interest.” Therefore, the United States does not tax a resident of Canada on the sale of

stock of a foreign corporation, regardless of the composition of the corporation’s assets.

Although the Convention permits Canada to tax a U.S. resident on the sale of stock of a company

that is not a resident of Canada if the value of the company’s shares consists principally of

Canadian real property, Canada does not currently impose such a tax. However, on April 26,

1995, amendments were proposed to the Canadian Income Tax Act that would impose Canadian

income tax on gains realized on stock of certain companies that are not residents of Canada if (i)

more than 50 percent of the fair market value of all of the company’s properties consists of any

combination of taxable Canadian property, Canadian resource property, timber resource property

in Canada and income interests in Canadian trusts, and (ii) more than 50 percent of the fair market

value of the shares in question is derived directly or indirectly from any combination of real

property located in Canada, Canadian resource property, and timber resource property in Canada.

This amendment is proposed to be effective as of April 26, 1995 with proration for gains that

accrued before that date. Although the Canadian Parliament was dissolved before these

amendments were passed, they are expected to be re-introduced in the current session with the

same effective date. 

The Protocol amends paragraphs 3(a) and 3(b)(ii) of Article XIII of the Convention to

limit each State’s right to tax the gains of a resident of the other State from the sale of stock of a

real property holding company to cases where the company is resident in that State. Although the

United States does not impose and is not currently considering imposing a tax under the Code on

gains from the sale of stock of non-resident real property holding companies, the Protocol

nevertheless amends the Convention to prohibit the imposition of such a tax on Canadian

residents. Although Canada is considering imposing such a tax on gains from the sale of shares of

companies that are not residents of Canada, this Protocol provision will cause the proposed

amendments to the Canadian Income Tax Act to be inapplicable to U.S. residents who derive

gains from the sale of stock of real property holding companies that are not residents of Canada.

This provision will be retroactively effective to April 26, 1995, the date the previous Canadian

legislation was proposed to be effective. 
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Article 2

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 1 of Article 2 of the Protocol amends paragraph 3 of Article XVIII (Pensions

and Annuities) of the Convention to clarify that social security benefits paid by one Contracting

State in respect of services rendered to that State or a subdivision or authority of that State are

subject to the rules set forth in paragraph 5 of Article XVIII, and are not subject to Article XIX

(Government Service). Thus, all social security benefits paid by a Contracting State will be subject

to the same rules, regardless of whether the services were rendered to a private sector employer,

the government, or both. 

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of the Protocol amends paragraph 5 of Article XVIII of the

Convention, which provides rules for the taxation of social security benefits (including tier 1

railroad retirement benefits but not including unemployment benefits), and reverses changes made

by the third protocol to the Convention, which was signed on March 17, 1995 and generally took

effect as of January 1, 1996 (the “1995 Protocol”). Under the Convention prior to amendment by

the 1995 Protocol, the State of residence of the recipient of social security benefits had the

exclusive right to tax social security benefits paid by the other State on a net basis but exempted 

50 percent of the benefit. This was changed by the 1995 Protocol. Under the 1995 Protocol,

effective January 1, 1996 benefits paid under the U.S. or Canadian social security legislation to a

resident of the other Contracting State (or, in the case of Canadian benefits, paid to a U.S. citizen)

are taxable exclusively in the paying State. 

Canada and the United States impose different source-basis taxing regimes on social

security benefits. Under Code section 871(a)(3), 85 percent of social security benefits paid to a

nonresident alien are includible in gross income. The taxable portion of social security benefits is

subject to the regular 30 percent withholding tax, with the result that the gross social security

benefit is subject to an effective tax rate of 25.5 percent. This is a final payment of tax and

Canadian recipients of U.S. social security benefits, regardless of their level of income, may not

elect to be taxed in the United States on a net basis at graduated rates.

 In Canada, social security benefits paid to nonresidents are subject to a general

withholding tax of 25 percent. However, Canada permits U.S. recipients of Canadian benefits to

file a Canadian tax return and pay tax at regular graduated rates on their net income. As a result,

low-income U.S. recipients of Canadian social security typically pay little or no tax on their

benefits. 

The Protocol returns to a system of residence-based taxation in which social security

benefits are exclusively taxable in the State where the recipient lives. Social security benefits will

generally be taxed as if they were benefits paid under the social security legislation in the
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residence State. Therefore, social security benefits will be taxed on a net basis at graduated rates

and low-income recipients will not pay any tax on these benefits. However, the Protocol modifies

the residence State’s taxation of cross-border benefits in order to take into account how the

benefits would have been taxed in the source State if paid to a resident of that State.

In the case of Canadian recipients of U.S. social security benefits, the Protocol provides

that only 85 percent of these benefits will be subject to tax in Canada. This reflects the fact that,

although in Canada social security benefits are fully includible, a maximum of 85 percent of

United States social security benefits are includible in income for U.S. tax purposes. See Code

section 86. This is also consistent with the taxation of social security benefits under the

Convention prior to the effective date of the 1995 Protocol, since at the time the pre-1996 rule

was adopted the United States included a maximum of 50 percent of the social security benefits in

income.

In the case of U.S. recipients of Canadian social security benefits, the Protocol provides

that the benefits will be taxed as if they were payments under the Social Security Act. Therefore, a

maximum of 85 percent of the Canadian benefits will be included in the gross income of a U.S.

recipient, even though the entire benefit would have been taxed by Canada if received by a

Canadian resident. However, if the Canadian benefit is of a type that is not subject to Canadian

tax when paid to a resident of Canada, it will not be subject to U.S. tax when received by a

resident of the United States. This provision is necessary to take into account certain proposed

changes to Canada’s Old Age Security benefits. At present, Old Age Security benefits paid to

U.S. residents are subject to both ordinary Canadian income tax and an additional “recovery tax”

that has the effect of means-testing the benefit. Canada has proposed to change the Old Age

Security benefit system so that the benefit would be means-tested at source and not subject to the

recovery tax. Because the amount of such future benefits will have already been reduced to take

into account the recipient’s income, it would not be appropriate to subject such benefits to

additional U.S. tax. 

Article 3

Article 3 of the Protocol contains the rules for bringing the Protocol into force and giving

effect to its provisions. 

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 1 provides for the ratification of the Protocol by both Contracting States

according to their constitutional and statutory requirements and instruments of ratification will be

exchanged as soon as possible. 

In the United States, the process leading to ratification and entry into force is as follows: 

Once a protocol has been signed by authorized representatives of the two Contracting States, the

Department of State sends the protocol to the President who formally transmits it to the Senate
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for its advice and consent to ratification, which requires approval by two-thirds of the Senators

present and voting. Prior to this vote, however, it generally has been the practice for the Senate

Committee on Foreign Relations to hold hearings on the protocol and make a recommendation

regarding its approval to the full Senate. Both Government and private sector witnesses may

testify at these hearings. After receiving the advice and consent of the Senate to ratification, the

protocol is returned to the President for his signature on the ratification document. The

President's signature on the document completes the process in the United States. 

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 2 of Article 3 provides that the Protocol will enter into force on the date on

which the instruments of ratification are exchanged. However, the date on which the Protocol

enters into force will not be the date on which its provisions will take effect. Paragraph 2,

therefore, also contains rules that determine when the provisions of the Protocol will have effect. 

Under paragraph 2(a), Article 1 of the Protocol will have effect as of April 26, 1995. As

discussed above, this is the date on which certain proposed amendments to Canadian law would

be effective.

Under paragraph 2(b), Article 2 of the Protocol will have effect as of January 1, 1996,

which is the date as of which the changes to the taxation of social security benefits that were

implemented by the 1995 Protocol became effective. Consequently, the source-basis taxation of

social security benefits that was implemented by the 1995 Protocol will be retroactively eliminated

and recipients of cross-border social security benefits will be entitled to a refund of any sourceState tax withheld on their benefits for 1996 and later years. This return to residence-basis

taxation of social security benefits means that some high-income recipients of cross-border

benefits may be required to pay additional taxes to their State of residence if their average tax rate

on these benefits in their State of residence is higher than the current rate of source-State

withholding tax. It is only for future years, however, that such high-income recipients of benefits

will be subject to a higher rate of tax. No one will be subject to a higher rate of tax for the

retroactive period. If, as a result of the change, the residence-State tax would exceed the amount

of the refund otherwise due, there will be neither a refund of source-State tax nor the imposition

of additional residence-State tax.

Subparagraphs (b)(i) and (ii) provide rules that determine how the retroactive effect of the

Protocol will generally be implemented for the year in which the Protocol enters into effect. As

discussed below, these rules are required as a result of administrative limitations on the ability of

the relevant Government organizations to effect the payment of refunds. Withholding taxes

imposed by the United States on cross-border social security benefits are collected and

administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA), not the Internal Revenue Service

(IRS). However, any refunds of withholding tax improperly collected on social security benefits

are ordinarily paid by the IRS. If the Protocol enters into force prior to September 1 of a calendar

year, it is possible for the SSA to pay refunds of the tax withheld for the entire year directly to the
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individual Canadian recipient. If the Protocol enters into force after August 31 of a calendar year,

it will not be possible for SSA to pay refunds of tax withheld for that year and refunds must be

paid through the IRS.

Paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of Article 3 establish administrative procedures to govern the

payment of refunds through the IRS, including rules to ensure that benefits will not be subject to a

higher rate of tax in the residence State for the retroactive period. The taxes withheld on social

security benefits paid for years after 1995 and prior to the calendar year in which the Protocol

enters into force (referred to in the Protocol as “source-taxed benefits”) will be subject to the

refund procedures set forth in paragraphs 3, 4, and 5, regardless of when the Protocol enters into

force. Social security benefits paid for calendar years beginning after the Protocol enters into

force will not be subject to the refund procedures set forth in paragraphs 3, 4, and 5 because

source State tax will not be withheld. 

If the Protocol enters into force after August 31 of a calendar year, subparagraph (b)(i)

provides that social security benefits paid during such calendar year will be treated as benefits paid

for calendar years ending before the year in which the Protocol enters into force (and thus will be

treated as “source-taxed benefits”). In this case, the taxes withheld on these benefits will be

subject to the refund procedures set forth in paragraphs 3, 4, and 5 of Article 3 and these benefits

will not be subject to a higher rate of residence-State tax. If the Protocol enters into force before

September 1 of a calendar year, subparagraph (b)(ii) provides that social security benefits paid

during such calendar year will be treated as benefits paid for calendar years beginning after the

year in which the Protocol enters into force. In this case, the taxes withheld on these benefits will

be directly and automatically refunded by the source State and the potentially higher rate of

residence-State tax will apply. 

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 3 of Article 3 of the Protocol provides rules governing the payment of refunds

of source-State tax with respect to “source-taxed benefits.” In general, all applications for refund

must be made to the competent authority of the source State within three years of entry into force

of the Protocol. 

Except as set forth in subparagraph (b) of paragraph 2, the retroactive effect of the

Protocol is elective and applies only if a recipient of benefits applies for a refund of the tax paid or

withheld. Consequently, if a recipient of benefits does not apply for a refund of the tax paid or

withheld, the Protocol will not be given retroactive effect, except as set forth in subparagraph (b)

of paragraph 2. If the residence-State tax that would be imposed on such source-taxed benefits is

greater than the source-State tax imposed on such benefits, it is assumed that the recipient will not

apply for a refund of the source-State tax and such benefits will not be subject to the retroactive

effect of the Protocol. Because the application for refund may be made on a year-by-year basis,

the recipient may elect the most beneficial treatment for each year. Therefore, social security
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benefits will not be subject to a higher rate of tax for the retroactive period, except as set forth in

subparagraph (b) of paragraph 2.

The refund procedure depends on the recipient’s State of residence. In the case of U.S.

residents who received Canadian social security benefits that were subject to Canadian tax, a U.S.

resident who elects to have the Protocol apply retroactively will apply directly to the Canadian

competent authority for the refund of any Canadian tax not previously refunded. On the receipt of

such refund, the Canadian social security benefits will be includible in the U.S. resident’s gross

income for the years with respect to which the refund was paid. Consequently, the U.S. recipient 

may be required to file an amended U.S. income tax return for such years and pay U.S. tax on

such benefits. Pursuant to Article XXVII (Exchange of Information) of the Convention, the

Canadian competent authority will provide the U.S. competent authority with information

regarding the payment of refunds.

In the case of Canadian residents who received U.S. social security benefits, the Canadian

competent authority shall be the only person entitled to apply for a refund of the U.S. taxes

withheld on such benefits. Individual residents of Canada will not apply directly to the IRS for

refunds. However, the Canadian competent authority may base its applications on information

received from individual Canadians, as well as on information to be provided by the United State

competent authority. The Protocol provides that the Canadian competent authority shall apply for

and receive all such refunds on behalf of individual residents of Canada and shall remit such

refunds to individual residents of Canada after deducting any additional Canadian tax that may

imposed as a result of such social security benefits being subject to tax in Canada. The Canadian

competent authority shall make such application for refund on behalf of an individual resident of

Canada only if the additional Canadian tax that would be imposed is less than the amount of the

U.S. tax to be refunded. If, with respect to an individual resident of Canada, the additional

Canadian tax that would be imposed on the individual’s social security benefits is equal to or

greater than the U.S. tax withheld, the Canadian competent authority shall not apply for a refund

of the U.S. tax withheld on the individual’s benefits. This provision ensures that refunds of U.S.

tax will be paid only when the refund will benefit an individual resident of Canada. A refund of

U.S. tax will not be paid if it would simply result in a payment from the U.S. Treasury to the

Government of Canada without any portion of the refund being paid to an individual resident of

Canada. 

Paragraph 4

Paragraph 4 provides that all taxes refunded as a result of the Protocol will be refunded

without interest. Correspondingly, any additional taxes assessed as a result of the Protocol will be

assessed without interest provided that the additional taxes are paid in a timely manner. However,

interest and penalties on underpayments may be assessed for periods beginning after December 31

of the year following the year in which the Protocol enters into force.
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Paragraph 5

Paragraph 5 provides that the competent authorities shall establish procedures for making

or revoking the application for refund provided for in paragraph 3 and such other procedures as

are necessary to ensure the appropriate implementation of the Protocol. It will be necessary to

establish procedures for a taxpayer to revoke his application for refund because a taxpayer may

apply for a refund and then determine that the residence-State tax imposed on his social security

benefits pursuant to Article 2 of the Protocol exceeds the amount of source-State tax refunded.

Such a taxpayer (or, in the case of a Canadian resident, the Canadian competent authority acting

on behalf of such taxpayer) will be permitted to revoke his application for refund provided that

the taxpayer returns the source-State refund and the three-year period established in paragraph 3

has not expired as of the date on which the revocation is filed. The competent authorities will also

establish procedures to ensure that duplicate refunds are not paid.