Investigative Tax Prep:  Top Ten Changes to Probe

Tax season 2025 has started with a focus on the increased income levels some taxpayers may report due to proposed changes in capital gains tax laws.  But aside from this there are new questions to probe with clients to ensure the family’s tax returns are filed to their very best benefit, given change in their life and financial events as well.  Here are top 10 queries to add to your interview checklist:

According to a report by Toronto- based research firm Strategic Insight, approximately $1Trillion in personal wealth will change hands by 2026, with roughly 70 percent of that in the form of financial assets.  In fact, this is already taking place, as Baby Boomers and Gen X transfer their wealth to Millennials and GenZ. 

Knowledge Bureau’s Advanced T1 Tax Update is more than an incredibly fun and full day of shaking out the cobwebs and learning about the “dark tax horses” with colleagues from coast to coast! This tax update has got you covered for the entire tax season with great online resources: a comprehensive online certificate course featuring over 100 retention questions,  Evergreen Explanatory Notes – a complete tax research library - plus Knowledge Bureau’s Discovery Tools – 16 sophisticated tax planning calculators! 

Old Age Security recipients will receive more on January 27, 2023, due to inflation indexing. But just how much more is more complex these days: it depends on your age – those over age 75 receive 10% more - and whether you have postponed receiving OAS to age 70.  Here are the benefit amounts to watch for:

Advisors should identify clients who have balances owing to the CRA as soon as possible in the new year to ensure they pay off their balance due and if they cannot, to advise on the most tax-efficient way to eliminate this expensive debt.  Interest costs accrue daily at the current prescribed rate plus 4%.  The new rates in effect from January 1, 2023 to March 31, 2023 will increase the cost of a debt to CRA significantly:

Are you renovating your home to make it possible to keep an eye on a senior or disabled adult? Then you’ll be interested to know more about a new refundable tax credit starting in 2023.

Taxpayers need to quickly sharpen financial skills for the challenging times ahead, and a good way to start is to find the right advisor for their future, says Knowledge Bureau Founder and President Evelyn Jacks, best-selling tax financial author and award-winning educator.  It’s also critically important for both parties to invest anew in their financial education, especially tax education, to push back on the economic malaise predicted for 2023.