A Challenge for New Clients: How to Choose a Trusted Advisor

If you’re in business for yourself, you have a unique opportunity to build wealth in an asset class that others don’t have: equity in a business enterprise that some day may be sold for millions of dollars. In addition, that business can spin off income for family members that can provide significant tax advantages, done well. Understanding how to realize on this asset requires the help of a trusted financial advisory team. Who should be on that team and how do you find them? This is a challenge your next new business clients may wrestle with. Here are some tips on how you can open discussions to help them:

Knowledge Bureau is pleased to announce that TaxCycle will join the January Personal Tax Update Workshop tour as a national sponsor. Founded in January 2010, Calgary-based Trilogy Software Inc. creates tax software for accountants and tax professionals.

Knowledge Bureau wishes all our readers a happy, prosperous and healthy 2016.  We look forward to interpreting and sharing the latest breaking, tax and financial news with you this year. As always, we look forward to your feedback and comments on our articles and poll question.

The Bank of Canada has announced the 2015 average exchange rates for several currencies against the Canadian dollar. While some might be curious about how many Fijian dollars or Panamanian balboas one might get in exchange for a Canadian dollar, the currencies we are most often concerned about are the US dollar (1.2787 for 2015) and the Euro (1.4182 for 2015).

There is lots of news for Canadian taxpayers in receipt of German pensions. Ignoring these developments can result in unnecessarily high levels of taxation, or in punitive penalties for non-compliance, in both Germany and Canada.

Separation and divorce are expensive life events; they can be much more financially damaging when tax rules are not taken into account. The recent case of Blue v. the Queen in the Tax Court of Canada, although successful for the appellant, shows how easily the terms of a well-intentioned separation agreement may be ruled ineligible for tax relief.

Should Canadians top up their TFSA to get a jump on tax free savings in 2016 now that annual contributions have been capped at $5500, or should tax savings with an RRSP contribution be top priority now til the RRSP deadline of February 29, 2016?