Wildfires: Apply for Taxpayer Relief Provisions

It may not be the first concern, but Canadians affected by wildfires may worry at some point about the tax consequences of lost records or missed filing deadlines – the next one on June 16 for those filing T1 returns with proprietorship income. Fortunately, the CRA offers Taxpayer Relief Provisions when there are circumstances beyond a taxpayer’s control, including natural disasters, serious illness or death in the family, or errors made by the CRA, which may trigger penalties and interest due to late or incomplete tax filings. Here’s what you need to know.

Did you calculate whether a December 15 instalment remittance was required to top up  tax pre-payments for the 2020 tax year? At this busy pre-Christmas time, it is easy to miss. For these reasons, it is so important to plan to reduce taxes payable.  One way to do that is by making charitable donations before year-end. Here is what you have to know about avoiding expensive CRA interest:

It is in December that millions of people around the world will give to one another and to their favorite charities. Typically, gifts will be in cash; however, you may also give gifts in kind and receive a donation receipt. But, you have to be very careful about the tax consequences before and after the gifting.  Here are some tax tips to consider:

The Grinch just keeps showing up at the doorway of Canada’s ailing small business community.  Due to a lack of clarity on the definition of qualifying income levels for the receipt of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), many now face the prospect of repaying as much as $14,000 along with some unwelcome tax complexity.  Help from a local tax specialist could help.

Over age 65 and still working?  Should you stop contributing to the CPP at age 65 in favour of a TFSA contribution?  It’s a commonly asked question.  In fact, the TFSA has an especially important multi-generational role in 2020. 

The federal government confirmed that a cap will be applied to the preferred tax treatment of certain employee stock options in their November 30 Fall Economic Statement.  A correction has been made to our Special Report in regard to this figure.

Will COVID-19 push you into retirement? It’s a concept for the times as more teachers, health care workers, business owners and others face their exhaustion from the changes forced upon them by the devastating COVID-19 pandemic.  Others have faced job termination before choosing their own retirement date. Fortunately, a new edition of Master Your Retirement by best-selling author Doug Nelson, CFP, CLU, MFA™, RWM™, CIM can help.  We asked Doug why he wrote the book and how it will help with these important deliberations.