The taxpayer, who was a U.S. citizen resident in Canada, did not claim treaty benefits when filing his U.S. return, with the result that his U.S.-source pension income was subject to U.S. income tax at graduated rates rather than the treaty-reduced rate of 15%.
In finding that competent authority relief was not available to the taxpayer, Hershfield J. noted that "in self-assessing systems, it is incumbent on taxpayers to file on the basis prescribed by their circumstances".