Finance Canada: No More Spring Budgets

Finance Canada announced on October 7 that Canada’s federal budgets will be brought down in the fall starting with the November 4, 2025 event; a significant departure from the spring schedule (February, March or April) that has been the cycle for several decades. This is going to affect many other events as we know them, and in the annual government spending approval cycle. There will also be a new budget process for capital vs. operational expenses. Here’s what you need to know:

Join Evelyn Jacks and special guests for a weekly podcast delivering real tax news people need to know.  It’s been quite the journey for taxpayers who own assets like cottages and businesses.  In this first episode of Real Tax News: “Capital Gains Chaos Gets a Reprieve” featuring Geoff Currier, find out the latest PLUS the Definition of True Wealth.

As we all know, it’s been a roller coaster week in tariff news. The Canadian dollar started to sink, although not to its lowest historical level-yet. The 30 day pause in implementation of the U.S. tariffs has provided a wake up call: What effect will such a Black Swan event have on portfolios and, by extension, retirement plans?

The Bank of Canada cut its interest rate by .25% to 3% on January 29, a full two percentage points lower than was the benchmark in 2023.

Statistics Canada data shows that Canadian parents are starting families later in life than previous years. This trend not only affects housing markets but also influences social services, healthcare needs, and community planning.

Knowledge Bureau hosted its first half-day Mini CE Summit which focused on Rookie Tax Training to bring Canada’s Income Tax Fundamentals course to life, and surprisingly, it was well attended by seasoned pros as well.

Last week, it was announced that the capital gains inclusion rate increase would be postponed to January 1, 2026. How can you advise your clients on this now?