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:

Small business forms the backbone of the Canadian economy, yet only a minority of businesses successfully pass to new owners. Sophisticated strategies are needed to ensure greater success in the transition of business ownership.

The World Economic Forum predicts that a dramatic retirement savings shortfall could hurt citizens in several of the top western nations, including the UK and Canada.(1) They suggest that the gap could be as big as US$428 trillion by 2050.

Imagine being part of a 3-day think tank devoted to sharing strategies on how to best navigate this challenging, yet exciting era in the tax and financial services. That is the primary reason why our DAC delegates attend the conference year after year. 

Rick Tomalty: I'm having more meaningful conversations with my clients thanks to Knowledge Bureau

Big changes are coming to CRA’s Voluntary Disclosures Program (VDP) this fall. The proposals on the table will see the program evolve from an opportunity for taxpayers to correct errors and omissions, to an opportunity for government to use the program to generate revenues at a modest cost.

Mid life crisis?  According to Statistics Canada, there are about 71,000 divorces in Canada each year. In fact, over 40% of marriages will end up in divorce, and it can be very expensive - before and after tax!