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.

Here’s a quick overview of the pandemic response provisions and their costs.

It doesn’t come as a shock: but a new survey from Ipsos and MNP Ltd show just how significantly Canadians are struggling financially as a result of the pandemic. Scarier still, many aren’t sure what their next steps are to regain their financial footing once the extended CERB period finally runs out if their job situation hasn’t changed.

The government responded quickly to get money to Canadians affected financially by the pandemic, with new and updated measures and benefits occurring regularly throughout March and April. What was implemented? Learn more as we consider the cost with the release of the Federal Government’s July 8 Economic Snapshot.

The pandemic has had a significant economic impact. Here’s a summary of the major pandemic response benefits extended by the federal government to help businesses weather the storm.

Today the federal government’s “Fiscal Snapshot” provided insight into the costs of the Emergency Pandemic Benefits designed to provide financial relief to individuals and businesses struggling during these tough times. One of them was the extension of personal income tax filing deadlines, and the waived T1 late filing penalties until September 1, despite maintaining a formal deadline of June 1. What did tax pros think about this when we asked them in our June poll?

It’s a good news/bad news story.  First the bad news:  On June 24, international credit ratings agency Fitch, one of three big credit rating firms based in the U.S., downgraded Canada’s pristine Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating rating from triple A to AA+ because of our greatly increased government debt.  It expects that debt will rise to 115.1% of gross domestic product (GDP); an increase of 88.3%  in 2020 over 2019 results.  So, what’s the good news?