Navigating Auto Expense Deduction at Year End: What Clients Need to Know

Doubtless you’ve had clients ask whether they can write off any portion of their vehicle for work or business purposes. And your answer, as always, is: “It depends.” The rules are worth reviewing at year end as they can vary significantly depending on how the client earns their income—employee, self-employed, or incorporated – and this is a deduction that’s often audited. Here’s a practical primer to guide that conversation.

It’s unclear whether Canadians are really getting more from their Canada Child Benefit in 2016 over the Universal Child Care Benefit and family income splitting. That’s the subject of our October poll. However, at this time of the year there is lots a tax specialist can do to make sure your family maximizes the credit.

The 27th Actuarial Report on the Canada Pension Plan provides some fascinating reading about Canada’s demographics and economy over the next 75 years, to 2090.

Year-end tax planning is important in 2016, especially in light of Finance Canada’s release of its Annual Financial Report of the Government of Canada for Fiscal Year 2015–16 on October 7, 2016.

A Notice of Ways and Means Motion to Amend the Income Tax Act was introduced to enact changes to the Canada Pension Plan on October 6, 2016. 

There are lots of changes coming to retirement income planning, together with a whole new focus on how much is enough. . . a question being asked by all generations in the family.  That’s why retirement planning is really about multi-generational planning.

There are so many tax planning changes being introduced for 2016 – 2017 that tax, bookkeeping or financial services professionals may have trouble keeping up with answers to their clients’ complex questions this year.