Time’s Up: CRA’s 100 Day Mandate for Improvement

After years of frustration on the part of tax professionals and taxpayers alike, the Finance Minister ordered the Canada Revenue Agency to clean up its act in 100 days. Specifically, the improvement plan was to run from September 2 through December 11. Finance Minister and Minister of National Revenue, Francoise-Phillippe Champagne instructed CRA to fix “unacceptable wait times and service delays.” Time’s up this week and CRA has released an update on progress. What gets measured, gets done. Let’s see what CRA’s metrics show. 

CRA has made a mistake on its calculations regarding eligibility for the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program (THRP), and as a result, has added modifications to its website .  Be sure your clients who may have missed filed for support, or were previously under the impression they did not qualify, are apprised of the full list of eligible businesses, which appears below:

Assessing risk tolerance and portfolio suitability is one of the most important roles of a portfolio manager.  There are many factors that play into risk tolerance: net worth, time horizon, experience, and comfort with volatility to name a few.

It was close, in fact, a dead heat throughout the month as tax and financial professionals across Canada weighed in on the question “Should the tax filing deadline be extended for all taxpayers to June 15?” And the conclusion is a 50/50 split! Here are some of the reasons from those who participated in one of our most divisive poll questions to date.

Join Kim G.C. Moody, FCPA, FCA, TEP will be taking the live stage at DAC Acuity 2022 to discuss The Speed of Tax Change and what it means for financial professionals and their clients.  In his entertaining style, Kim will discuss the  very complex and pervasive changes that continue be proposed at mach speed.  How do you keep up-to-date to ensure your practice responds appropriately for the benefit of clients?  This session will give straight-forward suggestions to help you navigate this important topic.

After decades saving for retirement, transitioning to spending down savings can be a huge shift in mentality for retirees.  Additionally, one of the biggest surprises that new retirees often face is how their taxes change upon leaving the workforce. For the average worker who has spent his or her adult life paying ordinary income tax via payroll withholdings, the shift to flat withholding rates combined with differing rules depending on the source of their income can leave many clients with an unexpected tax bill after they retire.

Were you born before July 1, 1947?  It’s an important question to ask all your senior clients because they are in for a raise in their OAS benefits this year.  The government announced an increase to Old Age Security by 10% for seniors over age 74, starting with the July 2022 benefit year.  Eligibility is based on several criteria including individual net income on the 2021 tax return.   Here are some additional details about the program, excerpted from Knowledge Bureau’s Advanced Retirement and Estate Planning Course, now available.