Bonsai Tree Tax
Broadway and Arbutus V6K 0B1 Vancouver, BC, Canada

Here are 6 commonly missed tax deductions that you should keep in mind: Medical Costs: All the expenses you paid that the doctor recommends to alleviate your medical condition including exercise equipment, purchasing or maintaining a spa or swimming pool, therapies and others. Moving Expenses: If you change your job and now you need to travel for more than 50 miles to work, and you work at least 39 weeks during the year, these can be used as a deduction in your tax return. Mi...leage Expense: You can deduct your mileage if you are using your vehicle for business. Whether you are an employee or self-employed. Moreover, you can also deduct the cost of your travel between job locations if you work at more than one job. Home office: When you have a business and you are using your home as part of it, you can use all your home expenses to reduce your tax as a proportion to your business use of home i.e. portion of rent, mortgage interest, utilities, depreciations, repairs and maintenance and many others. Job Hunting Expense: Expenses you incur when you are looking for a job may be deducted like resume preparation, postage, travel, meals, counseling, agencies etc. As long as it doesn’t exceed 2% of your income even if you did not change your job. Health Insurance: Amount paid for your health can be used to reduce your tax, this will be included as part of your medical expenses.

Please make sure you have all the receipts and records we will need to help you minimize your taxes. We want to make sure we maximize your refund and claim all the deductions you are entitled to. We want to help you keep more of your money. Here is a checklist for your use: Slips... T3 slips Investment income T4 slips Employment income T4A slips Other income T4AOAS slip Old Age Security T4AP slip Canada Pension Plan T4E slip EI benefits T4RSP slip RRSP withdrawals T5 slips Investment income T5007 slip Social assistance Political contributions RC62 slip Universal Child Care Benefit RRSP contribution slips All other information slips Tax Credits/Deductions Additional dependents Alimony paid Caregiver amount Disability tax credit Extended health and dental premiums First-time homebuyer Northern residents deductions Support for spouse or common-law partner Travel insurance premiums Other income Alimony received Foreign pension income Income received but no slip issued Interest on income tax refund Tips received Other Change in status Address change Other documentation Automobile mileage logbook Business, farm or fishing income and expenses Canada Revenue Agency correspondence Declaration of Conditions of Employment Last year’s income tax return Notice of assessment/reassessment Rental income and expense records Sale of investments or real estate Stocks trading summary Volunteer firefighters certification Receipts Adoption expenses Carrying charges and interest expenses Charitable donations Child care expenses Children’s arts and fitness payments Exams for professional certification Interest paid on student loans Medical expenses Moving expenses Office-in-home expenses Professional or union dues Tool expenses for tradespersons Transit pass receipts Tuition receipts (T2202A)

Pension splitting: The spouse with higher pension income can split his/her pension income, transferring to the other spouse. The advantages are moving income to spouse in lower tax bracket, and avoiding the OAS repayment tax on income over 74,888, in 2018. Age amount credit: This tax credit was $7225 in 2017, but if you earn over 84,597 you do not qualify. Medical expenses: They must exceed 3% of net income or 2,237 in order to be claimable.

Save with the Tax-Free Savings Account. The Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) is a flexible, registered, general-purpose savings vehicle that allows Canadians to earn tax-free investment income to more easily meet lifetime savings needs. The TFSA complements existing registered savings plans like the Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSP) and the Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP). How the Tax-Free Savings Account Works... As of January 1, 2013, Canadian residents, age 18 and older, can contribute up to $5,500 annually to a TFSA. This is an increase from the annual contribution limit of $5,000 for 2009 through 2012 and reflects indexation to inflation. Investment income earned in a TFSA is tax-free. Withdrawals from a TFSA are tax-free. Unused TFSA contribution room is carried forward and accumulates in future years. Full amount of withdrawals can be put back into the TFSA in future years. Re-contributing in the same year may result in an over-contribution amount which would be subject to a penalty tax. Choose from a wide range of investment options such as mutual funds, Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs) and bonds. Contributions are not tax-deductible. Neither income earned within a TFSA nor withdrawals from it affect eligibility for federal income-tested benefits and credits, such as Old Age Security, the Guaranteed Income Supplement, and the Canada Child Tax Benefit. Funds can be given to a spouse or common-law partner for them to invest in their TFSA. TFSA assets can generally be transferred to a spouse or common-law partner upon death.

Here are 6 commonly missed tax deductions that you should keep in mind: Medical Costs: All the expenses you paid that the doctor recommends to alleviate your medical condition including exercise equipment, purchasing or maintaining a spa or swimming pool, therapies and others. Moving Expenses: If you change your job and now you need to travel for more than 50 miles to work, and you work at least 39 weeks during the year, these can be used as a deduction in your tax return. Mi...leage Expense: You can deduct your mileage if you are using your vehicle for business. Whether you are an employee or self-employed. Moreover, you can also deduct the cost of your travel between job locations if you work at more than one job. Home office: When you have a business and you are using your home as part of it, you can use all your home expenses to reduce your tax as a proportion to your business use of home i.e. portion of rent, mortgage interest, utilities, depreciations, repairs and maintenance and many others. Job Hunting Expense: Expenses you incur when you are looking for a job may be deducted like resume preparation, postage, travel, meals, counseling, agencies etc. As long as it doesn’t exceed 2% of your income even if you did not change your job. Health Insurance: Amount paid for your health can be used to reduce your tax, this will be included as part of your medical expenses.

File as soon as you can There is a penalty of 5% of your previous balance owing, plus 1% of your balance owing for the next 12 months if you didn’t file your tax which is why if you forgot to file your tax you should probably file as soon as you can. On the other hand, if you have a refund waiting, there is no penalty. Electronic Filing... You can always file your taxes electronically, which is more convenient. Make Payments You can pay your tax even if you haven’t had your taxes filed, you can pay an estimated amount and if it exceeds your taxes payable amount then you can get a refund.

Generally, the CRA issues your tax refund within 2 weeks after you file your return electronically or within 8 weeks if paper filed. Although sometimes it takes more time than usual due to some reasons like in depth review or some anomaly but there are different ways to check its status, which are as follows: CRA My Account Log in to your account by using whether your CRA ID or sign-in partner login. Sign-in partner login uses different financial institutions like banks and c...redit unions to access your account. When already logged on, the first page will show you if and when your return was received and processed, and when your refund will be issued. Telerefund This is an automated phone service by CRA which provides information about your income tax return, your refund amount and estimated date of receipt of refund. If using this service, you need to prepare your social insurance number, date of birth, and the total income entered on line 150 of your return. CRA provides the phone number 1-800-959-1956 for telerefund.

OVERVIEW Canada Child Benefit is a tax-free monthly payment made to eligible families in order to assist them with expenses incurred with raising a child under the age of 18. To calculate the payments the CRA uses information from your income tax and benefit return; therefore you and your spouse should file returns every year. Benefits are paid over a yearly period, from July to June. Lastly, if any information changes, your CCB could be recalculated. HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE E...LIGIBLE You must live with a child who’s under the age of 18. You must be the primary caregiver of the child. You must a Canadian Resident for tax purposes. You or your Spouse or Common-Law partner must be: a Canadian citizen a Permanent resident a Protected person a Temporary resident for the previous 18 months, and has a valid permit in the 19th month an Indian within the meaning of the Indian Act, if not a Canadian Citizen HOW TO APPLY ON CRA MY ACCOUNT Register with CRA, MyAccount. Log into your account. Confirm information including marital status and citizenship. Add child’s information including name, gender, date, and place of birth. Keep your information updated, because if there is any change the CCB is recalculated. AFTER APPLYING The payments are usually processed within 8 weeks of receiving a digital application and 11 weeks of receiving a paper application. PAYMENTS Payments are on the 20th of each month, but if the total benefit is less than $240 it is paid in full on July 20.

Service includes: GST returns, payroll, deal with CRA, bookkeeping, personal and corporate income tax