Objecting to your 2019 Notice of Assessment (June 2020)
Although the filing deadline for individual income tax returns for
the 2019 tax year has been extended to June 1, 2020, millions of
Canadians have nonetheless already filed those returns.
Specifically...
What to do when you can’t pay your tax bill (June 2020)
Although we’re not even halfway through the calendar, 2020 has
already been a year of significant financial upheaval and stress
for millions of Canadians. The number of employed Canadians fell
b...
Ins and outs of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (June 2020)
Since mid-March, the federal and provincial governments have
announced the creation of numerous programs to help both
individuals and Canadian businesses with the financial fallout of
the current pand...
The tax benefits of working from home (June 2020)
Working from home isn’t really a new phenomenon — employees have
been doing so for more than 25 years, ever since changes in
technology made such remote work arrangements feasible. Over th...
Planning for 2019 charitable donation tax credit claims (May 2020)
By the time most Canadians sit down to organize their various tax
slips and receipts and undertake to complete their tax return for
2019, the most significant opportunities to minimize the tax bill
fo...
Changes to RRIF withdrawal requirements for 2020 (May 2020)
The past few months have been an almost perfect storm of bad
financial news for Canadian retirees. The historic stock market
downturn which occurred in mid-March resulted in a significant loss
of valu...
Making sense of the new tax filing and payment deadlines (May 2020)
There have been so many announcements over the past couple of
months with respect to temporary changes to individual and business
tax obligations that keeping up with all of the new rules and
altered ...
Administrative measures - COVID-19 (April 2020)
Suspension of review, audit and collection activities The Canada
Revenue Agency regularly carries out review activities in which
taxpayers are asked to provide documentation or other information
with...
Business measures - COVID-19 (April 2020)
Wage subsidy program for employers The federal government will be
providing eligible employers who have experienced a significant
decline in revenues with a wage subsidy. For purposes of the
subsidy,...
Individual tax measures - COVID-19 (April 2020)
Changes to filing and payment deadlines for 2019 returns Individual
Canadians are generally required to file their tax returns for the
2019 tax year on or before April 30, 2020. Self-employed Canadia...
COVID-19 tax measures - overview (April 2020)
The current pandemic has changed the lives of Canadians in
innumerable ways, and the tax system has not been exempt from those
changes. In fact, since we are currently in what would in normal
circumst...
What to do when you can’t pay your tax bill (March 2020)
Most taxpayers sit down to do their annual tax return, or wait to
hear from their tax return preparer, with some degree of
trepidation. In most cases taxpayers don’t know, until their return
is ...
Claiming medical expenses for 2019 (March 2020)
The Canadian tax system provides individual taxpayers with a tax
credit for out-of-pocket medical and para-medical expenses incurred
during the year. Given that such expenses must be incurred at some
...
Filing your tax return for 2019 – when and how (March 2020)
Between now and June 15, more than 26 million income tax returns
for the 2019 tax year will be filed by individual Canadian
taxpayers. The vast majority of those returns will be filed by
electronic me...
What’s new on the 2019 tax return? (March 2020)
The one constant in income tax is change and consequently, while
Canadian taxpayers must prepare and file the same form – the T1
Income Tax and Benefit Return – every spring, that return f...
New Quarterly Newsletters (Q1 2020)
Two quarterly newsletters have been added—one dealing with personal
issues, and one dealing with corporate issues....
Taking advantage of pension income splitting (February 2020)
Income tax is a big-ticket item for most retired Canadians.
Especially for those who are no longer paying a mortgage, the
annual tax bill may be the single biggest expenditure they are
required to mak...
RRSPs and TFSAs – making the annual choice (February 2020)
If there is one invariable “rule” of financial and retirement
planning of which most Canadians are aware, it is the unquestioned
wisdom of making regular contributions to a registered reti...
Quebec Pension Plan Premiums for 2020 (January 2020)
The Quebec Pension Plan contribution rate for employees and
employers for 2020 is 5.7%, and maximum pensionable earnings are
$58,700. The basic exemption is $3,500....
Tax deadlines and limits for the 2020 tax year (January 2020)
Each new tax year brings with it a listing of tax payment and
filing deadlines, as well as some changes with respect to tax
planning strategies. Some of the more significant dates and changes
for indi...
Tax changes effective January 1, 2020 (January 2020)
Alberta The general corporate income tax rate will decrease from
11% to 10%, effective January 1, 2020. The provincial education and
tuition tax credits are eliminated as of the 2020 taxation year.
...
Claiming a deduction for union or professional dues (December 2019)
Between now and the end of February 2020, Canadians will receive a
variety of receipts for expenditures made during the 2019 taxation
year. Some of those expenditure receipts will support a tax
deduct...
Timing medical expenses for maximum tax credit (December 2019)
While Canadians benefit from a publicly funded health care system,
there are nonetheless a large, and increasing, number of medical
expenses which are not covered by provincial health care plans. As
w...
Year-end planning for RRSPs and TFSAs (December 2019)
For most Canadians, registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs)
don’t become top of mind until near the end of February, as the
annual contribution deadline (which, for 2019 contributions, will
...
The tax costs of holiday gifts and celebrations (December 2019)
During the month of December, it is customary for employers to
provide something “extra” for their employees, by way of a holiday
gift, a year-end bonus or an employer-sponsored social eve...
Looking ahead to 2020 (November 2019)
Planning for – or even thinking about – 2020 taxes when it’s not
even December 2019 may seem more than a little premature. However,
most Canadians will start paying their taxes for 2...
Planning for year-end charitable donations (November 2019)
The start of fall marks a lot of things, among them a number of
runs, walks and other similar events held to raise money for a
broad range of Canadian charities. And, within the next month, as
the hol...
Getting a fix on your retirement income (November 2019)
Most Canadians expend a considerable amount of time and effort in
order to put money aside for retirement. Especially in an era in
which the majority of workers can’t look forward to receiving a...
Taking stock of your TFSA (October 2019)
Tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs) have been around for a full
decade now, having been introduced in 2009, and for most Canadians,
a TFSA (along with a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP)) is
now...
When are legal fees deductible? (October 2019)
In most cases, the need to seek out and obtain legal services (and
to pay for them) is associated with life’s more unwelcome
occurrences and experiences — a divorce, a dispute over a famil...
Shared-custody parents and the Canada Child Benefit (October 2019)
When parents separate and divorce, it is frequently the case that
they are able to agree on an arrangement to share custody of their
children. Such a shared-custody arrangement is often to the
benefit...
CQK Chartered Accountants LLP is a full service CA firm catering to the needs of both small/medium size businesses and individuals in the local community. At CQK, we pride ourselves on "listening" to our clients. We provide business, tax and accounting services as well as meaningful feedback about compliance, new tax laws, and cash flow problems that will enhance your business, minimize your taxes, and help you reap the fruits of your labor.
We invite you to visit our office and sit with one of our experienced professionals who can tailor our accounting and consulting services to fit your business.
Member: Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants and Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario.
