Podcast: Automatic Tax Filing - Will It Work?

Last week Taxpayers' Ombudsperson François Boileau  tabled his annual report:  In Pursuit of Better Service: Taxpayers Deserve More.  once again, it was nothing short of scathing, as CRA received its highest number of complaints in the last three years.  Calling our “completely nuts” Income Tax Act a potential barrier, he is nonetheless pushing for automatic tax filing as a potential solution.  A new episode of Real Tax News with Evelyn Jacks & Friends available next week, will feature guest Gillian Petit, Ph.D. - author of a great report, Welcome News for Lower-Income Canadians, but There’s More to Do - which takes a deeper dive.  Consider the following:

The details behind the Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program (CECRA) were finally announced on Friday, April 24. This new measure will be implemented at the provincial level to provide loans and/or forgivable loans to enable commercial property owners to reduce rent charged to their small business tenants by 75% for the months of April, May and June. But the program won’t be in place until mid-May, unfortunately. 

There are three important income support programs for post-secondary students in Canada today, but sorting them all out could be problematic, especially at tax filing time. Last week, two new measures were introduced: the Canada Emergency Student Benefit and the Canada Student Service Grant.  The third is of course, the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), which is linked to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), which over 10,000 businesses applied for on Monday.  

Notice of Assessments received by many Canadians who have filed their 2019 individual tax returns indicate an incorrect payment date of April 30, 2020. However, the extended deadline of September 1 to pay any balances due does still apply.

We’re excited to announce that Part 1 of the Emergency Pandemic Relief Course went live on Thursday, April 23. Part 2 takes place on May 13 at 9:30 EST. Check out the speaker roster below. The deadline for registration is May 11, but don’t wait. Canada’s only Emergency Pandemic Response Benefits Course and Virtual CE Summit is available now, packed with the information you need to help your clients access income and business recovery support.

Knowledge Bureau is pleased to announce that Advisor’s Edge and Investment Executive will be joining us at DAC Acuity 2020 once again as the exclusive media sponsor for the conference. This year’s event takes place in Niagara Falls, October 28-30.

If you appreciate the information in this special edition of KBR, you definitely don’t want to miss taking the New Emergency Pandemic Response Benefits Course, available as part of a new national online event being held on May 13. Featured as pre-work for the Virtual CE Summit, it’s the perfect way to become certified in providing counsel on the COVID-19 emergency provisions and other financial matters related to the pandemic.  Your sound advice will impact critical tax and financial planning in the months and years to come.