Late Filing Penalties: Talk About It!

While most T1 returns are in the hands of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) by April 30, we know many are not. In fact, millions of returns were still outstanding as of mid-May. Late-filing clients they need to know about the consequences, especially if they owe. Here’s a rundown to be aware of:

It’s hard to believe that back in 1980, Canadians’ debt to disposable income level was 66%; today it is 164%, which means that households today owe more than $1.64 for every dollar of disposable income. That’s a big problem if job loss is in the future and, therefore, should be a topic of conversation for those working in industries suffering downturns and in retirement planning conversations.

It’s official:  The Distinguished Advisor Conference (DAC) will be held November 6-9, 2016 in San Diego, and Knowledge Bureau’s Annual January Personal Tax Bootcamp is set to begin January 20 to 25, 2016 across Canada.  Registrants are urged to reserve their spots early and take advantage of early bird tuition reductions until December 15, 2015.

Last week, Alberta’s new NDP government brought down their first provincial budget.

On November 2, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced the maximum pensionable earnings under the Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) for 2016 will be $54,900. That is up from $53,600 in 2015.

It’s November and that means Snowbirds are on the move again to Florida, Arizona, California and Texas to name a few of the favorite spots. People who ordinarily reside in Canada but spend part of the year in the United States must take caution to ensure they are not spending too much time in the U.S., which would deem them a U.S. resident for tax purposes and potentially a non-resident of Canada.

Attendees of the 2015 Distinguished Advisor Conference will have the opportunity to claim up to 15 CE credit hours from the following regulators: