Do filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission prove the United States "owns" Canada? No, that's not true: The filings are standard procedure when a foreign country wants to sell securities in the United States. The Form 18-K is specifically "for Foreign Governments and Political Subdivisions." The United States has filed similar paperwork in the United Kingdom.
The claim originated in a post and video on TikTok (archived here) on January 1, 2025. Text on the post said:
In case you were wondering, the corporation of Canada is owned by the United States Corporation. So all this talk of the 51st State has already been the case for decades. President Trump is likely aware of this.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Jan 9 16:28:24 2025 UTC)
The post on TikTok includes a 1:23-minute audio recording of an unidentified person saying that the posted document proves that the "corporation of Canada" is owned by the "United States Corporation." But the document only shows that Canada is registered in the United States to sell securities. The post provides no evidence that Canada is owned by the United States.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) archived here) is a federal entity created to "protect investors; maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets; and facilitate capital formation."
Electronic records reviewed by Lead Stories show that Canada registered with the SEC as far back as November 1, 2002 (archived here). The country's most recent annual report filing (archived here) was on December 19, 2024, with Canada submitting Form 18-K, a document reserved for "Foreign Governments and Political Subdivisions."
(Source: Securities and Exchange Commission screenshot taken on Thu Jan 9 17:05:24 2025 UTC)
According to other SEC filings (archived here), Canada plans to sell up to $8 billion in securities in the United States.
The United States must follow similar rules in other countries. On January 18, 2023, the United States applied to register as an overseas entity (archived here) in the United Kingdom.
On January 6, 2025, on his Truth Social page, President-elect Donald Trump referred to Canada as "the 51st State" and suggested the countries merge (archived here).
Lead Stories investigated similar claims involving Israel and the United Kingdom. You can read that fact check here.
Other Lead Stories fact checks involving claims about Canada can be found here.
