In general, U.S. shareholders were required to pay a transition tax on the untaxed foreign earnings of certain specified foreign corporations as if those earnings had been repatriated to the United States. This tax could apply to a U.S. citizen, resident or Green Card holders who own an interest in a private Canadian corporation. This… Read more »

Directors can be personally liable for employee source deductions (both the employer and employee’s portion of CPP and EI, and income tax withheld) and GST/HST unless they exercise due diligence to prevent failure of the corporation to remit these amounts on a timely basis. As many businesses are struggling with cashflow, it may be attractive… Read more »

In a June 10, 2020 French Court of Quebec case, the taxpayer had been assessed with unreported income of $68,162, $66,192 and $31,540 for 2004, 2005 and 2006, respectively, all beyond the normal reassessment period (generally 3 years). The amounts were computed using the cash flow analysis method, meaning that cash received was considered taxable… Read more »

In a July 23, 2020 Tax Court of Canada case, at issue were a number of expenses claimed by the taxpayers (a corporation and its sole individual shareholder) in respect of the business of selling financial products and providing financial planning advice. CRA denied various expenses spanning 2007 and 2008 and assessed many of them… Read more »

On September 3, 2020, CRA announced that, effective January 1, 2020, the rates allowable under the simplified method related to travel for medical expenses, moving expenses, and the northern residents deduction, as well as meal claims for transport employees, increased to $23 from $17 per meal, for a total of $69/day. This is also the… Read more »

-In 2021, four special payments to recipients of the Canada Child Benefit, totaling up to $1,200 per child under age six, will be made. -The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy has been extended to June 2021. Details are still pending for periods after March 2021. – CRA has required Coinsquare, a cryptocurrency trading platform, to provide… Read more »

While the normal age to begin receiving regular CPP is 65, individuals can apply to start receiving earlier at a cost, or later for a greater benefit: – If the individual starts before age 65, payments will decrease by 0.6% each month (or by 7.2% per year), up to a maximum reduction of 36% if… Read more »

– CRA has opined that U.S. Economic Impact payments received by residents of Canada are not taxable in Canada. – 1,252,830 Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) applications have been approved for a total value of $41.12 billion (as of October 4, 2020). – On October 9, 2020, the Government announced that the CEWS program will… Read more »

In an April 29, 2020 CPA Canada article, the author provided a variety of tips for professional meetings conducted by online video conference, which has become much more common during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the tips discussed, the author recommended the following: – having a meeting host to own the meeting, set the agenda, and… Read more »

The purpose of a SUB plan is to allow an employer to make supplemental payments to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits, without eroding those EI benefits. As payments under a registered SUB plan are not insurable earnings, EI premiums are not deducted. In order to be eligible, SUB plans must be registered with Service Canada before… Read more »