Invest Skeptically

I received this helpful reminder from my online brokerage: “The last day to sell Canadian Stock in order to settle in the 2007 calendar year is Monday, December 24. The last day to sell U.S. stock in order to settle in the 2007 calendar year is Wednesday, December 26. ”

The same reminder message also told me to watch out for the superficial loss rules in the Canadian Income Tax Act. After some quick googling, here are two links on the subject by the Canadian Tax Foundation and by Wood Gundy. My understanding (although I’m no tax lawyer) is that the laws are in place to prevent investors from crystallizing a tax loss while maintaining an economic interest in the asset.