Hello everyone! 2024 Tax Season has officially begun. Have you received all your tax slips? Do you have all your tax documents? I have lots of tax and money tips for you this month. 

1. First and foremost, there are 2 new filings this year that confuse even tax specialists and tax accountants. They are:
- Underused Housing Tax (UHT)
- New Trust Reporting Requirements
Please be advised that I do not provide any filing of the above. Take time to read CRA pages above and get your own professional advice to determine if you need to file UHT and/or Trust reporting. Let me know if you would like referrals to other professionals who do provide the above services.

2a. Did you know that if your employer has sent your T4 to CRA (Canada Revenue Agency), you can then view your T4 on My Account on CRA website. Here is the login page: CRA My Account 
Your tax representative should be able to view your T4 as well. So don't panic if you can't find your T4 slips. :)

2b. The same applies for other slips such as T3, T4A, T4RSP, T5, T5008, and others. If they were sent to CRA, they would be available online. Note that some slips such as T3 may be issued later (for example end of March). Check with your financial institution. So don't file your taxes too early; wait until you have all your tax slips.

2c. Did you misplace your medical receipts? Did you know that you could ask for duplicate receipts from your medical service providers? You could also request a summary of purchase from pharmacies. If you are covered by extended health care such as Canada Life, Sun Life and others, you may be able to login and generate a summary of claims. You can even dictate the period of time for the report, for example March 1, 2022 to February 28, 2023.
So don't give up if you can't find your receipts. There may be other ways to find them. :)

2d. If you have multiple medical coverages, for example husband and wife both have extended medical coverage, make sure you have tried to claim money back from both insurance companies before claiming it on your tax return. Also, some extended health insurance has a Health Spending Account (HSA). So, if you have any leftover amount that is not paid by your or your spouse's insurance, you can claim the amount from your HSA. If you still have any unpaid amount, then claim it on your tax return. It is better to get full reimbursement back than to claim tax credit. :)

3. Did you know that you could report your RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan) contribution but not deduct it in the same year? You could save it for future deductions, especially if your salary will be higher, or use it to pay back HBP (Home Buyers Plan). Don't let your software automatically claim the RRSP deduction when you have no taxable income. You would be wasting it.
PS: Don't worry, if you accidentally deduct RRSP when you could have saved it for the future, you can still file an adjustment and correct it. :)

4. CRA has a podcast! Search "Taxology" on your favourite platform (Apple podcast, Google podcast, Spotify, etc.). It contains basic information that is good for those who are learning Canadian taxes. 

5. And my final tip: I recently created 2 spreadsheets - one that tracks personal expenses, the other one tracks business expenses. Let me know if you would like a copy. I can send it to you in Excel format, or you can share your Google folder and I will upload them there.

That's all for March. We're gearing up for a busy season. If you're thinking of hiring someone to do your tax return, do the booking now. Many places will be super busy in April.

Have a great month!

PS:  If you would like me to prepare your tax returns by April 30, 2024, I need to have all documents by April 2, 2024.

Hello everyone! 

It's February and there are several days that you may be celebrating or want to take notice of for this month:
- Feb 10: Chinese New Year day
- Feb 14:  Valentine's day
- Feb 19: Family day (BC)
- Feb 19: The first day we can e-file 2023 tax return. CRA's (Canada Revenue Agency) system will open at 8:30am (Eastern Time).
- Feb 29 - RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan) contribution deadline, since 2024 is a leap year.
Which day/s is/are important to you? 

2024 Tax Season is coming up soon. Here are tips for this month.
1. Some other dates to take note of, relating to your 2023 Canadian taxes.
- Apr 30: Deadline to file your 2023 tax return, unless you or your spouse are self-employed.
- June 17: Deadline for self-employed taxpayers and their spouses/common-law partners to file their 2023 tax returns. Normally the deadline is June 15th. However, since June 15th falls on a Saturday this year, the deadline is pushed to the next business day, which is Monday, June 17th. So you have 2 extra days this year. :) 
I don't recommend you wait until the last minute though; file your taxes as soon as you can, especially if you have a refund. If you have balance owing, it is due on April 30th, even if your tax due date is June 17th.

2. Do you have extra money that you don't need until retirement? Are you in a high tax bracket? You can park your extra money in your RRSP. How much can you contribute to your RRSP? Check your latest NOA (Notice of Assessment). If you took out money from your Home Buyers Plan and you have to pay it back for 2023 tax year, don't forget to contribute that minimum amount. Otherwise, it will be considered income (as if you withdrew the amount from your RRSP). If you would like to know how much you should contribute to your RRSP, you can enter your information in a tax software and play around with different RRSP contribution amounts to see how much less in tax payable or how much more refund you'll be getting. You can also book a time with me to do a rough draft of your 2023 taxes to see how much RRSP you need to contribute before the Feb 29th deadline. Here is my calendar: EFFIE'S AVAILABILITY

3. Did you know that in Canada there is no filing jointly? Couples may have their files linked together in a software to maximize deductions and tax credits, but each person must file his/her own taxes. 

4a. If you would like to learn more about your taxes, here is CRA's website: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/educational-programs.html

4b. Did you know that CRA provides free webinars and you can watch past webinars as well? Here is a link for CRA's upcoming events: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/taxes/income-tax/personal-income-tax/help-others/outreach/upcoming-events-products.html

4c. If your tax situation is simple and your income is not high, you may qualify for a free service at your local tax clinics. Book now because they filled up quickly. Here is CRA's website to read more about getting free tax help: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/campaigns/free-tax-help.html

Finally, if you need help with your taxes, I offer:

1. Full tax preparation service // I do your taxes for you. Fee estimate is provided and it usually includes 20 minutes of assistance if you are assessed by CRA. You must let me know when you need my assistance because I do not monitor your account. Fee starts at $85 + GST.
2. Review service // You prepare your taxes, I review it before you submit your return. Fee is $150 + GST with a minimum of 30-minute booking and 15-minute increment afterwards. You may also want to consider using Turbo Tax and purchasing their Assist & Review program where they can check your returns before you file them. Here is their link if you would like to check it out: https://turbotax.intuit.ca/tax/software/assist-review and https://turbotax.intuit.ca/tax/software/online
3. Tutoring service // I teach you how to do your taxes. Fee is $150 + GST with a minimum of 30-minute booking and 15-minute increment afterwards. This service is not available during March and April.

That's all for February. Thank you for reading. If you are on social media, follow me on YouTube   Instagram   Facebook   LinkedIn   X 

Have a great month!