The Importance of Provincial Budgets: Elbows Up and No Bracket Creep!

Some of the right things are happening in Nova Scotia, from the perspective of improving standards of living in that province.  And that’s important news because according to the Fraser Institute, Canadians have suffered the worst five-year decline in their standard of living over the 2020-to-2024 period since the Great Depression.  It notes, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person decreased by 2.0% (0.4% annually) ; this despite aggregate GDP growth of 1.5% over the period.  Further, all ten provinces are experiencing stagnation, which is unique in our history.  So what’s the good news in Nova Scotia, at this critical juncture?

According to a recent ISPOS survey on behalf of the Institute of Actuaries, 23% of working Canadians say that the pandemic will change the timeline of their planned retirement. They feel they’ll need to work longer to earn enough to retirement, and yet, still only 52% of working Canadians think they’ll be able to live comfortably once they do retire. What needs to be considered in retirement planning to address the new demands of the pandemic, along the increasing life expectancy in Canada, and the increase in workers age 65+ in the workforce?

Although the government has yet to announce the prescribed interest rates for the second quarter, the rate will not change.

Transacting with cryptocurrency can have tax implications. Did you keep track of those transactions and the fair market value of the money when you did? It’s an issue that will become important, and potentially messy, as you get ready to file your return this year. You may also have to correct prior year’s returns.   

It is no secret that CRA service levels have been under stress during the Pandemic. Many tax practitioners can confirm that a phone call that would normally have to wait for three to five minutes to be answered. At the peak of tax season could take one hour or more, not even including the dozens of dropped calls. Lately, response times have slowly decreased; however, it is still at unacceptable levels. As CRA shifts most of its services online through My Account, My Business Accounts, and Represent a Client one could think that there is less demand for phone calls. These services have also been compromised.

The Principal Residence Exemption: The Nuances is part of a three-part series explaining the principal residence exemption under Canadian taxation law. It begins with the tax consequences on the change in use of a principal residence. 

In the last election, the Liberal government promised that, after renovations to a building rent increases fall outside of a normal change in rent or are excessive in their view, they will implement a surtax on landlords.  It is interesting to think about the repercussions of such a proposed policy and to reflect on whether this the economic outcome that is truly desired, when our collective challenge is to invest in improving buildings for reasons of climate change and health care concerns?  Here are the details.