Vine and Partners
1 Hunter Street East, Suite 100 L8N 3W1 Hamilton, ON, Canada

Do you have a digital subscription for a Canadian news outlet? You can claim up to $500 annually for a subscription to a qualifying journalism organization on your tax return.

In preparation for tax season CRA has announced service enhancements for individual taxpayers. They have hired additional call agents to further increase call centre capacity and implemented a new automated call-back service. Leading up to and throughout tax-filing season, the CRA’s Individual enquiries line will be open Monday to Friday from 9am to 9pm local time, and their extended Saturday hours will be 9am to 5pm as of February 27th. The CRA says it is improving information on Canada.ca (https://www.canada.ca/en.html) to ensure as much information as possible is online - such as information on what taxpayers should do if they received TRA/RL-1 slips for COVID-19 emergency benefits.

Do you work in the Real Estate, Finance, or Banking sector or wish to learn more about it? Join us at our upcoming Industry Sector Meeting, next week on Februar...y 16 at 3pm: https://www.hamiltonchamber.ca//hamilton-chamber-industry/ This event will feature panelists from Judy Marsales Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage, Vine and Partners LLP, RBC Wealth Management, RBC, and Judy Lam from the City of Hamilton. Our Industry Sector Meetings bring together companies in similar industries to learn from one another, network, and discuss: Trends impacting the sector Labour sourcing, training and long-term development Policy and regulatory updates Check out the full list of ISMs throughout 2021 and find when your sector will be meeting. We’d love for you to join us: https://www.hamiltonchamber.ca/ev/industry-sector-meetings/

With many businesses in a vulnerable situation due to COVID-19, it may be the time to consider a business transition plan or a redrafting of your existing transition plan. It takes time and well thought out strategies to carefully wind down or transition your business to new owners. Vine has been providing a wide range of financial services to business owners for over 50 years. We are here to help.

Small Business Recovery Dashboard Learn more: https://www.smallbusinesseveryday.ca/dashboard/

The program is set to run from November 2020 to June 2021. However, the subsidy will be available retroactively to cover rent starting with the period running from Sept. 24 to Oct. 24. https://globalnews.ca//canada-emergency-rent-subsidy-what/

Tax Alert for Real Estate Agents! As of October 1, 2020, Personal Real Estate Corporations (PREC) have been permitted in Ontario. This is great news for Ontario Realtors as it will allow those in a higher tax bracket to defer and potentially save thousands of dollars in taxes. Book a complimentary call for more details. Call 905-549-8463 ext 241 or email [email protected] Learn more: http://vine.on.ca/industry-updates/

On September 24, 2020 the Federal Government introduced Bill C-2 to implement plans to replace the Canada Emergency Relief Benefit, with revisions to the benefits originally announced in August.The revisions include increased benefit amounts and broadened eligibility. You can read about in our updated EI Revisions and Canada Recovery Benefits publication here: http://ow.ly/l1XK50BDhay

https://financialpost.com//food-courts-commercial-property

The Federal government has now established a deadline of October 30, 2020 for landlords who have previously applied for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance plan for small businesses to opt-in for additional months up to September 2020.

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The Federal government has announced that the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program (CECRA) has been extended so that it now covers the months of April through September, 2020. The program requires that landlords apply for a subsidy that must be used to reduce the rent of tenants who have suffered a revenue decline of at least 70% for specified periods. With the extension of the CECRA to September, the final due date for applications has been extended to September 30, 2020. You can find more details about the CECRA here: http://vine.on.ca//COVID-19_Credit_Availability_Program.pdf

Extended Filing Deadlines for Corporate SR&ED Tax Credit Claims The Minister of National Revenue recently announced that filing deadlines for some scientific research and experimental development (SR&ED) claims have been extended. Corporations with tax year ends from September 13, 2018, to December 31, 2018, that had an SR&ED reporting deadline from March 13, 2020, to June 30, 2020, have had that deadline extended by six months. Corporations with tax year-ends from January 1,... 2019, and to June 29, 2019, that would usually have an SR&ED reporting deadline from July 1, 2020, to December 29, 2020, have had their deadline extended to December 31, 2020. For more information about SR&ED tax claims, call us at (905) 549-8463.

The CRA recently added a section to their website that should be of interest to taxpayers who mailed in their 2019 T1 personal income tax return even when they could have e-filed. Due to COVID-19 they are experiencing delays in processing paper income tax and benefit returns. If you mailed in your 2019 return and still have not received your Notice of Assessment, you can file it again online using NETFILE certified tax software https://bit.ly/329VkPB. This does not include returns that the software says must be paper-filed or returns that are excluded from electronic filing https://bit.ly/3i5Frix. We at Vine and Partners can help you e-file your return to get your refund faster and avoid interruptions to benefit and credit payments. Call us at 905-549-8463.

The Government of Canada announced yesterday that it has extended the application deadline for the CEBA to October 31, 2020. The previous deadline was August 31. The announcement also indicated that businesses that have, to date, been disqualified because they did not have a business banking account will be eligible soon. Details of how this will work are to follow. More details about the CEBA can be found here: http://vine.on.ca//COVID-19_Credit_Availability_Program.pdf

Now is the time to look for a tax professional if your financial situation is getting more complicated. Don't wait until next tax season, when they are all extremely busy. We are here to help.

If you become a non-resident of Canada, you are allowed to keep your TFSA. ... You can contribute to a TFSA up to the date that you become a non-resident of Canada. Although the investment income earned in a TFSA is tax-free for Canadian tax purposes, this tax free status does not apply to U.S. residents.

On August 20, 2020 the Government of Canada announced new measures in anticipation of the end of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. For details to date on these benefits and the EI changes click here: http://vine.on.ca//COVID-19_EI-Revisions-and-Canada-Recove

All businesses should be assessing their eligibility under the new CEWS rules. Revenue comparison calculations should be done for all methods to verify whether your business qualifies. The CRA released a modified spreadsheet for all calculations. There has been an extension in the CEWS periods to period 9 ending November 21, and is likely to be extended even longer. To estimate your CEWS entitlement, consider visiting https://www.canada.ca///cews-calculate-subsidy-amount.html

Barring an extension by the Federal government, applications for the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) and the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance Program (CECRA) must be filed by AUGUST 31, 2020.

You can use up to $35,000 of your RRSP savings ($70,000 for a couple) to help finance your down payment on a home. To qualify, the RRSP funds you're using must be on deposit for at least 90 days. You must also provide a signed agreement to buy or build a qualifying home. The best part is the withdrawal is not taxable as long as you repay it within a 15-year period.

https://globalnews.ca///cra-hack-accounts-online-services/

You have passwords for everything: your devices, your accounts and the websites you visit. By using pass phrases or strong passwords, you can protect your devices and information. Learn more: https://www.cyber.gc.ca//best-practices-passphrases-and-pa

As of August 9, 2020, the Government has approved 813,570 Canada Emergency Wage Subsidies (CEWS), with a total value exceeding $26 billion.

With so many businesses in a vulnerable situation due to COVID-19, it may be the time to consider a business transition plan or a redrafting of your existing transition plan. It takes time and well thought out strategies to carefully wind down or transition your business to new owners. Vine has been providing a wide range of financial services to business owners for over 50 years. We are here to help.

"The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax." - Albert Einstein