Ca Ab Departure Tax T1244 Security Election Defer

---
name: ca-ab-departure-tax-t1244-security-election-defer
description: "How an emigrant from Alberta elects under subsection 220(4.5) on Form T1244 to defer payment of departure tax, and what the CRA pages say (and do not say) about the security that must back the deferral."
license: "AGPL-3.0-or-later (code) / OpenAccountants Guide License v1.0 (content)"
metadata:
  source: openaccountants
  openaccountants_url: "https://www.openaccountants.com/skills/ca-ab-departure-tax-t1244-security-election-defer"
  jurisdiction: "CA-AB"
  tax_year: "2026"
  last_updated: "2026-09-03"
---

# Deferring departure tax with Form T1244 and providing security in Alberta

## Deferring departure tax with Form T1244 and providing security in Alberta

When an individual ceases to be a resident of Canada, the CRA treats certain property as sold at fair market value and immediately reacquired, and the resulting capital gain is commonly called departure tax. An individual who does not want to pay that tax in the year of departure can elect under subsection 220(4.5) of the Income Tax Act, on Form T1244, to defer payment until the property is actually sold or otherwise disposed of; above the federal tax amount in the table below, the election must be backed by adequate security acceptable to the CRA. This Guide covers the election and the security requirement for a person who emigrated from Alberta, for the return covering the year of departure. Figures are for tax year 2026, except that the CRA pages read here are written for the 2025 return year; the amounts below are quoted exactly as those pages state them, and where a year is attached to a statement it is the CRA page's own year (2025).

## Who this is for

Individuals who ceased to be a resident of Canada for income tax purposes while living in Alberta, who have reported a deemed disposition of property on Form T1243, and who want to defer payment of the tax on that deemed-disposition income rather than pay it with the return for the year of emigration. The CRA states that the election can be made regardless of the amount of tax involved, and that the deferred tax is paid later, without interest, when the property is sold or otherwise disposed of. It is not for the deemed disposition of an employee benefit plan, which the CRA states the election does not apply to. It is not for corporations or trusts, and it does not decide whether the person is in fact a non-resident.

## Rates, thresholds and deadlines

**Rates, thresholds and deadlines — dispositions of property page**  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_

| What | Value | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Source | all figures below | https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html |
| Amount of departure tax that may be deferred by election | "regardless of the amount" | The CRA states you can elect to defer the payment of tax on income relating to the deemed disposition of property (departure tax), regardless of the amount |
| Interest charged on the deferred tax | "without interest" | You would then pay the tax later, without interest, when you sell (or otherwise dispose of) the property |
| Deadline to make the T1244 election | April 30 of the year after you emigrate from Canada | "You must make this election by April 30 of the year after you emigrate from Canada" |
| Federal tax owing on deemed-disposition income above which security is required | more than $16,500 | If you make this election and the amount of federal tax owing on income from the deemed disposition of property is more than this amount, you have to provide adequate security to cover the amount |
| Same threshold for former residents of Quebec | more than $13,777.50 | The CRA states the Quebec figure in brackets alongside the federal figure |
| Provincial or territorial tax | security may also be required | "You may also be required to provide security to cover any applicable provincial or territorial tax payable" |
| Deadline for the election to unwind a previous deemed disposition on returning to Canada | on or before your filing due date for the year that you re-establish Canadian residency for income tax purposes | Request must be sent in writing; some or all of the security previously provided may be returned to you |
| Acceptable types of security (for example a charge or mortgage on Alberta real estate) | not stated on this page | The page requires "adequate security" but does not list the forms of security the CRA will accept, and does not mention pledging real property |

**Rates, thresholds and deadlines — emigrants page**  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/leaving-canada-emigrants.html)_

| What | Value | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Source | all figures below | https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/leaving-canada-emigrants.html |
| Total FMV of property owned on leaving Canada above which Form T1161 is required | more than $25,000 | "If the total FMV of all the property you owned when you left Canada was more than $25,000, complete Form T1161, List of Properties by an Emigrant of Canada" |

**Rates, thresholds and deadlines — disposing/acquiring Canadian property page**  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/information-been-moved/disposing-acquiring-certain-canadian-property.html)_

| What | Value | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Source | all figures below | https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/information-been-moved/disposing-acquiring-certain-canadian-property.html |
| Where to get information on acceptable security | contact the Revenue Collections Division of the applicable Tax Services Office | The CRA states that as an alternative to the immediate payment of tax it may accept adequate security as an interim arrangement, and directs anyone needing more information about acceptable security to that division; this wording appears on the CRA's page about dispositions of Canadian property by non-residents, not on the emigrant election page |

## The method, step by step

- **Step 1 — Fix the date of emigration** — Fix the date of emigration and record it on the return. Enter the date of departure from Canada on page 1 of the return in the "Residence Information" area, as set out on the CRA's emigrants page.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/leaving-canada-emigrants.html)_
- **Step 2 — List the property owned on departure** — List the property owned on departure. If the total fair market value of all property owned on leaving Canada exceeds the amount in the second table above, complete Form T1161, List of Properties by an Emigrant of Canada.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/leaving-canada-emigrants.html)_
- **Step 3 — Identify which property is subject to the deemed disposition** — Identify which property is actually subject to the deemed disposition. The CRA's dispositions page sets out the property that is and is not treated as disposed of on emigration; work from that list rather than assuming that every Canadian asset, including Alberta real estate, is caught.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_
- **Step 4 — Compute and report the deemed disposition** — Compute and report the deemed disposition. Complete Form T1243, Deemed Disposition of Property by an Emigrant of Canada, and include the resulting capital gains or losses on Schedule 3, Capital Gains (or Losses), of the return for the year of departure.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_
- **Step 5 — Make the deferral election** — Make the deferral election. Complete Form T1244, Election, under Subsection 220(4.5) of the Income Tax Act, to Defer the Payment of Tax on Income Relating to the Deemed Disposition of Property. The CRA states this form is completed by a person who ceased to be a resident of Canada for income tax purposes in the year and is electing to defer payment of tax on income relating to the deemed disposition of a property indicated on Form T1243.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/forms/t1244.html)_
- **Step 6 — Meet the election deadline** — Meet the election deadline in the first table above.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_
- **Step 7 — Provide adequate security** — Provide adequate security if the federal tax owing on the deemed-disposition income exceeds the threshold in the first table, and be ready to provide security for applicable provincial tax as well.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_
- **Step 8 — Settle the form of the security with the CRA** — Settle the form of the security with the CRA before relying on it. The emigrant pages read here do not state which kinds of security the CRA accepts and are silent on offering a charge or mortgage over Canadian real estate; the CRA's related non-resident disposition page directs taxpayers and representatives who need information about acceptable security to the Revenue Collections Division of the applicable Tax Services Office.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/information-been-moved/disposing-acquiring-certain-canadian-property.html)_
- **Step 9 — Pay the deferred tax when property is disposed of** — Pay the deferred tax when the property is sold or otherwise disposed of, as the CRA describes in the first table above.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_
- **Step 10 — Consider unwind election on returning to Canada** — If the client later re-establishes Canadian residency, consider the election to unwind the earlier deemed disposition, made in writing by the deadline in the first table and including a list of the properties owned and the fair market value of each property the election applies to; the CRA states some or all of the security provided may be returned.  _(https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html)_

## Ask the client first

- On what date were Canadian residential ties severed, and does the client accept non-resident status from that date, or is residency still in question?
- Which properties appear on Form T1243, and is the Alberta real estate among the property the CRA's dispositions page treats as deemed disposed, or among the property it does not?
- What is the federal tax owing on the deemed-disposition income, so we can tell whether it exceeds the security threshold in the first table above?
- Was the client a resident of Quebec immediately before leaving Canada, which changes the threshold figure that applies?
- What is the client's unencumbered equity in the Alberta property, who else is registered on title, and are there existing mortgages, caveats or matrimonial-property claims against it?
- Does the client expect to return to Canada, which would bring the unwind election and the return of security into play?

## When to refuse or refer

- Whether the CRA will accept a charge, mortgage or pledge over Alberta real estate as adequate security, and on what loan-to-value or documentation terms: the CRA pages read here do not state this, so the point must be settled directly with the CRA's Revenue Collections Division and not answered from this Guide.
- Determining residency status itself, including treaty tie-breaker analysis and Form NR73 requests.
- Valuing the Alberta property or any other asset for the deemed disposition; this needs a qualified valuator or appraiser.
- Drafting, registering or discharging a mortgage, caveat or other charge at Alberta Land Titles; that is legal work for an Alberta lawyer.
- The deemed disposition of an employee benefit plan, which the CRA states the deferral election does not apply to.
- Emigration of corporations, trusts, or estates, and deemed dispositions arising other than on an individual's emigration.
- Later actual sale of Canadian property by the non-resident, including section 116 notification and clearance certificate procedures.
- Tax consequences in the destination country, and any foreign step-up, exit or credit rules.
- Quebec provincial filings and security for a former Quebec resident, which are administered by Revenu Québec and are outside the allowed sources for this Guide.

## Sources

- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/dispositions-property.html (first table)
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/individuals-leaving-entering-canada-non-residents/leaving-canada-emigrants.html (second table)
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/international-non-residents/information-been-moved/disposing-acquiring-certain-canadian-property.html (third table)
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/forms/t1244.html (Form T1244)

Drafted by OpenAccountants. Not yet reviewed or approved by a named accountant.

## Today's figures and who stands behind this skill

This file is an AI skill (tax rules your AI follows) from OpenAccountants, copied on 2026-09-03. Rates, thresholds and deadlines change. For the current version of this skill, its official sources and the named accountant (if any) who stands behind it, call `get_skill` with slug `ca-ab-departure-tax-t1244-security-election-defer` on the OpenAccountants connector (https://www.openaccountants.com/connect), or read https://www.openaccountants.com/skills/ca-ab-departure-tax-t1244-security-election-defer. If neither is available, confirm every figure against the official source pages cited above before relying on it.