CRA’s Callback Service for Tax Pros Pilot

Are you a tax professional with years of experience? Have you ever felt frustrated after calling the CRA, having spent hours on hold, wasting your client’s or employer’s time, only to speak to CRA agents who aren’t qualified to answer your questions? The Auditor General of Canada was equally displeased in a scathing report last fall on wait times and accuracy levels at the CRA. Now a new CRA callback service may come to the rescue this tax season. Here is my experience with the pilot project so far:

It’s an issue that made devastating headlines for months: the suffering and death of vulnerable seniors before our very eyes.  All the worse for the raw fact that they lived in deplorable conditions of neglect.  According to Karen Henderson, Founder of the Long-Term Care Planning Network, planning for our own aging is a critical element of tax and financial planning discussions with advisors.  But it should also be a key issue in today’s national discussions to enable responsible change.  Her passionate story is Knowledge Bureau’s Special Guest Report this week:

Do you have clients who are recipients of German social security pensions?  If so, many of them may be very elderly.  Unfortunately, they and their heirs may be experiencing a new stressor:   the tax department in Germany, Finanzamt Neubrandenburg, is clamping down on taxes they think are owing by delinquent German pension recipients living in Canada and charging interest and penalties. The issue is:  can they?

We have heard a lot about inflation in the last few weeks as the economy gets up and running again, and many people have been feeling stress about this.  This should be a big concern to employers, too, according to the Financial Consumer Association of Canada.    The issue will also be addressed at Virtual DAC Acuity 2021, October 17-19 with special guest speaker Dr. Brian Shaw, a well-known sports psychologist for the Blue Jays and author who has written about stress management for top financial professionals.  Financial advisors can help; here’s what you should be thinking about:

Join Knowledge Bureau President Evelyn Jacks, and guest speakers for a full professional training experience at the next Virtual CE Summit on September 23, 2021. Early-bird registration ends Sept 15.

It was such a hit last month, we’re doing it again:  Speed Networking so save the date: September 8th at 3:30 pm CT.  The Society of Real Wealth Managers’™ invites you to Meet a Real Wealth Manager (RWM™) to discuss ways to collaborate to bring high value care in the best interests of your clients.

The government has promised to increase Old Age Security by 10% for seniors over age 74, but that increase won’t kick in until the July 2022 payments.  However, this month, a one-time payment of $500 (with zero withholding)  will be made to seniors who meet the following criteria: