Bassem Fawzy

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The most common assumption Canadian expats make about their RRSP is that the holdings can be moved into another structur...
03/09/2026

The most common assumption Canadian expats make about their RRSP is that the holdings can be moved into another structure without triggering tax. They cannot.

This carousel covers what the process actually looks like: the 25% withholding, the disposal requirement, the cash that comes out the other side, and what happens next.

All content drawn directly from our recent cross-border estate planning webinar.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

One of the most common assumptions I hear from Canadian expats about their RRSP: that the holdings inside it can be tran...
01/09/2026

One of the most common assumptions I hear from Canadian expats about their RRSP: that the holdings inside it can be transferred directly into another structure — a portfolio bond, a Cayman holding company — without triggering any tax.

That is not how it works.

To move money out of an RRSP, you must dispose of it. The withdrawal is treated as taxable income, and as a non-resident it is subjected to a 25% withholding tax payable to CRA. The Microsoft shares, the Apple, the ETFs inside the RRSP cannot be rolled in-kind into another structure. You dispose of the RRSP, pay CRA the 25%, receive the remaining cash, and then reinvest in whatever structure you have chosen.

On a $1 million RRSP, that means $250,000 stays with CRA and $750,000 moves forward.

The $750,000 can then be placed into a portfolio bond, an insurance wrapper, or another structure depending on your objectives. That investment decision is straightforward. The tax cost of getting there is the part most people have not yet accounted for.

A LIRA operates similarly — the mechanics differ slightly, but the principle is the same. The registered plan must be disposed of and the tax obligation satisfied before the proceeds can move.

This is education, not advice.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

31/08/2026

Most Canadian expats with an RRSP assume it can simply be moved into another structure when the time comes.

It cannot — not without a cost.

Any withdrawal from an RRSP as a non-resident is treated as taxable income and subjected to a 25% withholding tax. On a $1 million RRSP, that is $250,000 paid to CRA before a dollar leaves Canada.

This clip is from our recent cross-border estate planning webinar. This is education, not advice. Reach out directly for your specific situation.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

When people ask why Cayman specifically — rather than any other offshore jurisdiction — the answer comes down to three t...
28/08/2026

When people ask why Cayman specifically — rather than any other offshore jurisdiction — the answer comes down to three things: stability, familiarity, and integration.

Stability: Cayman is a jurisdiction built around financial services. It operates with no taxes, no history of political instability, and an established legal system with significant case law. Dominic, an independent Cayman structures specialist, noted at our recent webinar: "it's not likely to change its makeup anytime soon."

Familiarity: Banks, custodians, and counterparties globally know how Cayman vehicles work. US financial institutions in particular operate with Cayman vehicles regularly. That familiarity reduces friction — getting assets into a Cayman structure, opening accounts, and executing transactions is straightforward because the infrastructure exists.

Integration: A Cayman holding company does not sit apart from everything else. It works within broader structures — alongside UAE vehicles, DIFC entities, and ADGM structures. Dominic noted: "Cayman is well used, well known, and we see lots of structures, whether it's with Saudi vehicles, UAE, DIFC, ADGM, Bahraini vehicles — they find ways to make Cayman work within their structures."

This combination of stability, familiarity, and integration is why Cayman specifically, rather than another common law jurisdiction, is the vehicle most frequently used for this type of planning.

This is education, not advice.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

We have covered the Cayman structure at a high level. This carousel goes into the mechanics — what it actually does, why...
27/08/2026

We have covered the Cayman structure at a high level. This carousel goes into the mechanics — what it actually does, why Cayman specifically, and how the lifetime dimension works.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

When assets are held personally across multiple jurisdictions, each one triggers its own succession event at death.A UAE...
25/08/2026

When assets are held personally across multiple jurisdictions, each one triggers its own succession event at death.

A UAE bank account enters the UAE succession process. US-listed shares face the IRS. Canadian assets go through their own process. Each jurisdiction runs separately, on its own timeline, under its own rules. The family deals with multiple parallel proceedings at a time when they are least equipped to do so.

A Cayman holding company changes that dynamic. When assets are consolidated inside the company, the company owns those assets — not you personally. At death, only the shares in the company need to transfer. The underlying assets remain in place. The company continues to operate.

Dominic, an independent Cayman structures specialist, explained this at our recent webinar: "By contrast, where you consolidate all of the assets into the company, the company will continue to exist despite your passing. So, the underlying structure does not change, only the ownership of the shares in that holding company need to be considered."

He also noted the human dimension: "whilst Cayman companies don't attract any taxes, the practical elements of dealing with all of this during such a time can be very traumatic, but knowing that, actually, the company's going to continue to hold all of the assets and nothing's changed is actually very reassuring."

This is education, not advice. Whether a Cayman holding company is appropriate for your situation depends on your assets, objectives, and tax position.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

24/08/2026

$135,400.

That is the US estate tax bill on a $500,000 portfolio of US-listed investments for a Canadian expat living in Dubai. Not on capital gains. Not on dividends. On the capital itself.

The rate is graduated, reaching 40% at $1.1 million and above. The non-resident alien exemption is $60,000 — not the $15 million available to Canadian residents under the Canada-US Tax Treaty. That treaty protection is lost the moment you become a non-resident.

This clip is from our recent cross-border estate planning webinar. This is education, not advice.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

A Saudi Waseya is an important planning tool. It is also a limited one — and understanding that limitation matters.A Was...
21/08/2026

A Saudi Waseya is an important planning tool. It is also a limited one — and understanding that limitation matters.

A Waseya can only govern up to one-third of the net estate. The remaining two-thirds pass by the prescribed inheritance shares under Sharia law. You cannot use a Waseya to override the mandatory shares for legal heirs.

This came up directly at our recent webinar. The question was whether you could leave everything to a spouse through a Waseya. Jouri Kurdi, Saudi lawyer from Mazin Kurdi Law Office, was clear: "if it was written fully for his spouse, it cannot be applied, because it's only one-third for Waseya."

In practical terms: if you have assets in Saudi Arabia, you can direct up to one-third of them through a Waseya. The remaining two-thirds pass according to the prescribed shares — to the wife, son, and daughters in the proportions set by law.

This does not make a Waseya irrelevant. One-third is meaningful, and directing it deliberately — to specific assets, specific family members, or in a specific sequence — is better than leaving it entirely to the default. But the Waseya alone does not give you full control over your Saudi estate.

For Canadian expats with significant assets in Saudi Arabia, understanding what the Waseya covers and what falls outside it is the starting point for the planning conversation.

This is education, not advice.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

Most Canadian expats in Saudi Arabia know they need a local will. Very few understand what the Saudi Waseya actually cov...
20/08/2026

Most Canadian expats in Saudi Arabia know they need a local will. Very few understand what the Saudi Waseya actually covers, how it is registered, and where it stops.

This carousel covers the process step by step — drawn directly from what Jouri and Bashayer, Saudi lawyers from Mazin Kurdi Law Office, covered at our recent webinar.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

When a Canadian expat asks me about a will in the UAE, the DIFC Wills Service is usually where the conversation starts.T...
18/08/2026

When a Canadian expat asks me about a will in the UAE, the DIFC Wills Service is usually where the conversation starts.

The DIFC Wills Service allows non-Muslims to register a will in the DIFC that governs assets across the UAE. It records your intentions and gives the courts a clear instruction on what to do with your assets. Without it, those assets pass by Sharia-based succession rules — and the outcome may not match what you intended.

What a DIFC will covers: moveable assets in the UAE, including bank accounts and investment portfolios. It can also cover immoveable assets — property — in the UAE when correctly registered. ADGM offers a similar mechanism.

Where it stops: a DIFC will does not automatically extend to assets outside the UAE. It does not cover your Saudi holdings. It does not cover Canadian assets. Each jurisdiction requires its own documentation.

This is the distinction most people miss. Having a DIFC will in place is a significant step — and it is the right step for UAE-held assets. But it is one will for one jurisdiction. For Canadian expats holding assets in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia, two separate instruments are required, each meeting the requirements of its own jurisdiction.

A DIFC will does not need to be complicated to be effective. But it does need to exist — and it needs to be current.

This is education, not advice.

Bassem Fawzy, LL.B., PFP
Fellow, Canadian Securities Institute
Vice President (MENA) Elixir Wealth DIFC

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