When a company moves its head office, most people read it as a business-page story about that one company. For a cross-border family, it is something else. It is a preview of the questions you might face yourself.

This week gave us a clear example, and it sits right on top of the same tariff pressures making headlines.

What happened

Interfor, one of Canada’s largest lumber producers, confirmed it is shifting corporate and back-office functions from its Burnaby, B.C. headquarters to Peachtree City, Georgia, which it now calls its “primary hub for corporate and functional support.” The logic is simply where the business lives: the US accounts for roughly 84% of Interfor’s lumber sales, while B.C. is down to about 17% of capacity. Years of softwood lumber duties and a 10% Section 232 levy did the rest.

Interfor was not alone in the week’s notes. Algonquin Power was flagged as moving some corporate functions south as well, and a union leader described the shift as part of a broader trend. When the customers, the capacity, and the tariff relief are all on one side of the border, the head office often follows.

Why companies drift south

This is not about patriotism, and it is rarely one dramatic decision. It is a slow gravitational pull. Tariffs raise the cost of serving the US market from Canada, integrated supply chains make a US footprint more convenient, and once the majority of revenue and staff sit in one country, centralizing there starts to look like common sense to a board. The August 19 tariff talks are the loud version of this pressure. Corporate migration is the quiet version.

The questions that follow, for real people

Here is where it stops being abstract. When corporate functions move, people sometimes move with them, and that is when the intricacies show up. An executive offered a US relocation suddenly faces questions about tax residency and Canada’s departure tax, what happens to an RRSP or a 401(k), how a TFSA is treated once they are a US taxpayer, and how equity compensation is taxed on each side. Employees who stay may find their employer, and their currency of pay, has changed. Shareholders hold a company whose footprint now straddles the border differently than before.

None of these have tidy, one-country answers. A departure tax bill can be triggered simply by ceasing to be a Canadian resident. A TFSA that is beautifully tax-free in Canada can become a reporting headache in the US. These are exactly the seams where a plan built for one country quietly springs a leak.

What we would actually do

If a US relocation ever lands on your desk, the worst time to figure out the tax and residency consequences is after you have signed. The right sequence is to map the residency change, the departure-tax exposure, and the treatment of each registered account before you commit, so the move is a decision and not a surprise.

This is precisely the work a cross-border specialist exists to do. To be clear, as a dual-registered firm we do not prepare tax returns. What we do is coordinate the planning, hold the Canadian and US sides in the same view, and make sure the pieces line up, so that a corporate migration, or your own, does not quietly cost you more than it should.

Frequently asked questions

Why are some Canadian companies moving functions to the US?

Often because the majority of their revenue, customers, and capacity already sit in the US, and tariffs make serving that market from Canada more expensive. Interfor, for example, makes about 84% of its lumber sales in the US.

What is a departure tax in Canada?

When you stop being a Canadian tax resident, Canada generally treats you as having sold certain assets at fair market value, which can trigger tax on the accrued gains. It is a key consideration before any cross-border relocation.

If my employer relocates me to the US, what happens to my RRSP?

An RRSP can generally continue to grow tax-deferred, and a treaty election can help preserve that treatment for US tax purposes, but the details matter and should be planned before you move rather than after.

Does moving to the US affect my TFSA?

Yes. A TFSA is tax-free in Canada but is generally not recognized as tax-free by the US, and it can create additional US reporting. Many cross-border movers reconsider how they hold a TFSA before relocating.

Do I need a cross-border specialist, or is an accountant enough?

You often need both. An accountant handles the returns; a cross-border planning specialist coordinates residency, registered accounts, investments, and timing across both countries so the pieces fit together. The two roles are complementary.

Is this article investment advice?

No. This is general information to help you ask better questions. See the disclaimer below, and speak with an advisor about your specific situation.

Sources: Raymond James, “the Open” (subscription client newsletter, no public URL) | Yahoo Finance Canada https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/lumber-giant-interfor-confirms-plans-185555331.html | Business in Vancouver https://www.biv.com/news/report-of-interfors-corporate-headquarter-shift-to-the-us-part-of-broader-trend-union-leader-12608603 | Business Examiner https://businessexaminer.ca/victoria-articles/item/interfor-moves-corporate-functions-bc-to-us-georgia/

This article is for general informational purposes only and reflects market conditions as of August 17, 2026. It is not investment, tax, or legal advice, and it does not account for your personal circumstances. Sartorial Wealth specializes in cross-border financial planning between Canada and the United States, and as a dual-registered firm we do not prepare tax returns. Markets and currency levels move quickly, and the figures cited may have changed since publication. Please speak with a qualified advisor before acting on anything here.