New: Personal Support Workers Tax Credit Coming Soon

Personal support workers will receive billions in increased wages from federal/provincial governments in B.C., Newfoundland and Labrador and the Northwest Territories.  Those workers in other provinces will now get a raise too, but they will have to wait until filing their 2026 returns in the spring of 2027 to cash in, according to an October 27 pre-budget announcement.  Here are the details:

Effective October 1, 2025, important changes will be made to the Voluntary Disclosures Program (VDP) at the CRA in order to make it easier for taxpayers to correct unintentional filing errors or omissions. The details on how the changes will affect your clients are being discussed in the CE Summit held September 17 and this course is now available for online enrolment and CE accreditation, after the virtual event. Here are some highlights of the changes.

Important news for tax and financial advisors: the over 65 demographic may not be as affluent as some might think; yet they still pay a lot of income tax. Canadian seniors sent just over $58 billion to the government in the form of income taxes in 2023, the last year for which statistics are available. It works out to an average of more than $12,000 per person. It leaves the average after tax income for those over 65 in Canada at just over $45,000. 

The Bank of Canada has reduced its target for the overnight rate by 25 basis points to 2.5%, with the Bank Rate at 2.75% and the deposit rate at 2.45%.  This is the first interest rate cut by the Bank since March.  It comes in the wake of higher unemployment, a reduction of 1.5% in Canada’s GDP in the second quarter and indicators that global economic growth is slowing.  With lower inflation risk, the cut was deemed appropriate to “better balance the risks.”  From a planning point of view, this may indicate an emerging income splitting opportunity.

On September 25 at 11 a.m. CT, financial professionals and thought leaders will come together for a powerful Meeting of the Minds session: “ROI or ROL: Redefining What Real Wealth Means to You.” This event will explore a transformative shift in wealth management: moving beyond ROI (Return on Investment) to ROL (Return on Life) — aligning financial strategies with clients’ life purpose and helping them achieve true peace of mind. This 1-hr complimentary virtual event will feature a panel that will tackle 5 key questions, outlined below.

In Canada, pursuing post-secondary education can be expensive, but there are valuable tax relief measures to help ease the financial burden. One of the most important is the Tuition Tax Credit, which remains available even though education and textbook amounts were eliminated for tax years after 2016. For students of all ages, this credit can make education more affordable and help reduce income tax owing.

At Acuity 2025, Tony Mahabir, MBA, CMC, CIM, RRC, RWM, CFP, FDFS™, CEO and Private Wealth Manager, will lead a session titled “Heralding and Embracing Change.” A repeat motivational speaker, Mahabir at the annual conference for Distinguished Advisors, focuses on how financial planning can transform lives—especially in times of uncertainty.