Ask HN: Does Screwy SEC 174 tax reg make Canada a better place to bootstrap?

6 points by brutus1213 1 year ago | 3 comments

Was thinking about US vs. Canada as a place to do a tech startup. Historically, it has been a no-contest. While Canada offers free healthcare and some better social services (quality has reduced significantly in recent years due to chronic underfunding and increase in population .. lets ignore that for a bit), the US enjoyed an array of advantages .. better tax incentives, better VC funding, better labor pool. But given how badly screwed up Sec 174 is, is Canada a better place to bootstrap?

paulcole 1 year ago |

> better VC funding, better labor pool

Did these 2 go away?

And isnt cost of living in Vancouver and Toronto both quite high? And are either as appealing a place to live as big cities in the US?

brutus1213 1 year ago | |

For VC funded startups, I would imagine sec 174 is less bad. For bootstrapping, I just can't imagine how to make it work. A Canadian company can hire globally without the craziness of this amortization too.

paulcole 1 year ago | | |

> A Canadian company can hire globally without the craziness of this amortization too.

Do you mean legitimately or in a wink-wink sense?

Because the issue dealing with the foreign country not your own country, right? That’s why so many US companies go the contract route with international talent right?