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:

It’s really surprising how many people don’t know when the tax filing deadline is. CRA often mentions two dates: April 30 and June 15. Which is it for you? Unless you or your spouse are reporting income from an unincorporated small business, the answer will usually be April 30.  That’s not true this year, though.

New Year’s Resolutions often involve the purging of winter weight, weighty closets or weights on the mind, including the guilt of understating income or overstating expenses or credits on the tax return. 

Canadian taxpayers are a compliant lot: according to CRA, in 2012–13, 92% of Canadians filed their taxes on time and 95% paid their reported taxes in full. This is a remarkable record for a tax system based on self-assessment and voluntary compliance. Yet, there is another side to the story.

Precise tax knowledge counts:  accurate tax preparation is the goal of every professional tax specialist and it is a tremendous value add for financial advisors and their staff who will field hundreds of calls from their clients this tax season.

If you are in the tax preparation business or work in bookkeeping but want to get a certificate or designation under your belt, now is a good time to dive in and take an online course from Knowledge Bureau.

“While taking my MFA–Succession & Estate Planning Specialist program, I created our Business Navigator Process… these courses were practical and applicable to my current wealth management practice with transitioning business owners.” David Allard, MBA, CFA, CFP, MFA, B. C.