Hi, I’m Andrew. Sovereign Canadian started years ago as a self-sufficiency and personal-liberty blog — gardening, homesteading, and the plain conviction that a person ought to be able to stand on their own two feet without asking anyone’s permission. That thread hasn’t changed. What’s changed is where I point it.
These days most of what I write about is money — how higher-earning Canadians can build wealth, keep more of it, and diversify across borders instead of betting everything on one country, one currency, and one tax authority. But I’ve come to think of sovereignty as having two roads. One is financial and jurisdictional: RRSPs, dividends, capital gains, benefit clawbacks, and arranging your affairs across borders so no single government has you cornered. The other is physical: a garden, a few chickens, the skills to feed and fix things yourself. Either road buys you real independence. Work both, if you can swing it, and you’re about as self-reliant as a person gets — that combination is the whole point. The blog leans financial right now because that’s where my own energy is, but I haven’t traded one road for the other, and I don’t think you should have to either.
A few things about me, so you know where I’m coming from:
- I’m Canadian, based in Ontario, married with kids.
- I’m not a financial advisor, and nothing here is advice. I write in the first person about what I’m actually doing.
- I put my own money where my writing is: a self-directed RRSP, a co-owned rental property, and a cottage I rent out on Lake Huron.
- I’m skeptical of anyone selling a course, a passport, or a “one weird trick.” If a strategy only works in the brochure, I’ll say so.
- I still keep a vegetable garden. The homesteading road is one I respect and work at, not one I’ve written off — just currently smaller in scale than the financial side.
Topics I write about
Canadian tax & government benefits — CPP, OAS, the Canada Child Benefit, GIS, and the clawback mechanics that quietly punish higher earners. What the rules actually say, not what the pamphlet implies.
RRSPs, TFSAs & wealth-building strategies — including the Smith Manoeuvre, salary-versus-dividend timing, and leverage done with your eyes open.
Flag theory & jurisdictional diversification — planting your citizenship, residency, business, and assets in the places that treat each best. Canadians have a structural edge here that most Americans don’t, and I think it’s badly underused.
International real estate — country-by-country breakdowns of buying, owning, financing, and renting abroad, from Mexico and Central America through the Balkans and the Mediterranean.
Expat & family life abroad — what it actually looks like to spend a year overseas with kids in tow.
Estate planning — wills, structures, and the unglamorous paperwork that decides where your money goes when you’re no longer around to argue about it.
Self-sufficiency & homesteading — the other road to sovereignty: growing your own food, raising your own animals, and building the practical skills to depend less on systems you don’t control. Smaller-scale in my life than the financial side at the moment, but a permanent part of the picture — and the strongest position of all is having both.
Personal liberty — the constant. I’m not political, but I’ll happily criticize politicians of every stripe.
Where to start
New here? A few posts that cover the core ideas:
- The Smith Manoeuvre: A Deep Dive for Canadians Who’ve Already Read the Hype
- Canada Pension Plan: The 2026 Owner’s Manual
- Introduction to Flag Theory
- Medical Tourism for Canadians
Say hello
- Follow me on X: @SovereignCanuck
- See my pictures on Pinterest
- Interact with me on Facebook
- See my videos and playlists on YouTube
- Or email me: SovereignCanadian AT gmail DOT com
Nothing on this site is financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. I’m a practitioner sharing my own research and experience, not a licensed advisor. Rules and figures change — verify anything important against current CRA guidance or a qualified professional before acting on it.
As sovereign human beings, don’t we have the God given right to buy and own firearms without a man made license? This is assuming that we only use the weapons for self defence. Why should I need some authority’s permission to buy something with MY money as long as I am not initiating violence? I came here hoping to find a way to assert our sovereignty and purchase guns without a license.
Hi Julian,
Thanks for commenting. I would agree that we do have a “right” to purchase, own or otherwise acquire a firearm if we so desire. Be it for self defense or hunting. Many others would agree with you, especially 2A supporters south of the 49th parallel, many Canadians as well. However, as you probably have found…Canada is heavy on gun control.
My question to you is…where are you from? I’m only trying to get a sense of what your background might be. In Canada, you cannot expect to own or acquire a firearm legally without any government interference. This is the standard of most “Commonwealth” countries (ie: England, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, Canada)
However, there are still many states south of the line in the good ol’ USofA, where you can purchase firearms quite easily as long as you have the cash. I do believe that Washington State, Oregon and Arizona for example all have very few if any restrictions concerning guns and long guns in particular are easy to acquire. I do believe all three of those states allow both open and concealed carry of handguns (not sure on permits for that though).
However, if you like residing in Canada then I would invite you to lend your voice to the thousands of other gun owners/supporters in telling Ottawa what we, as citizens of this nation want.
Cal
Well said Cal. As much as we consider it a right, the fact remains that there are laws in effect here. Supporting the CSSA, NFA, and even NRA are steps in the right direction.
Being safe, well trained, and introducing the shooting sports to others can also do nothing but help.
Hi Julian, you are totally 100% correct; we do have a God given right to buy and own firearms: for protection, for hunting, for training, for target shooting, for collecting, and even for fun. As long as no harm comes of others through this ownership, then there should be no restrictions. Of course, felons and the unfortunate mentally challenged probably ought not to own these tools.
But that doesn’t mean the I have any intention of owning a firearm without the proper licences – nor do I recommend that for others. Having your guns confiscated, being fined, and possibly jailed is not a good way to enjoy this God given right.
The same words above can be said of hunting, fishing, driving, construction of buildings, operating a business, etc. Though I feel that there is too much regulation and restriction, we are still far better off participating under the rules and protesting, rather than either abstaining or doing so against the law. The “Free Man of the Land” movement makes those of us striving towards personal sovereignty all look bad and marginally crazy.
Continuing our use of firearms in a legal fashion, as well as having an immaculate safety record, along with promoting the shooting sports in non-gun owners is how we can slowly chip away at the excessive regulations. Being professional, well-trained shooters – rather than cowboys – is the only way to win over the general public.
Thank you for visiting the site and making your voice heard.