My readers will have noted that my last post on this site was in February, which is an unusually long hiatus for this blog. I haven’t not posted for such a long period since I began the blog in 2005.…
More tax cases
I presented “Current Tax Cases” at the CRA’s quarterly Tax Practitioner’s Consultation Group meeting at the Royal Botanical Gardens on February 16. Please send an email to me (johnl att simpsonwigle.com) for a copy (our server is acting up and…
159(5) election
The 159(5) election permits an estate to pay “death taxes” (taxes owing as a result of the 70(5) deemed disposition) over ten years. The election must be filed, however, by the due date for the deceased’s terminal return. The election…
55(3)(a) and GAAR
The CRA has said that GAAR might apply to a deemed dividend otherwise exempt under 55(3)(a) where the purpose is to increase the cost of property (55(2.1)(b)(ii)(B)). Is that right? 55(3)(a) was amended to be applicable only in respect of…
Payments on behalf of a corporation avoid 160
In Muir v R, 2020 TCC 8 (informal procedure), a corporation, after selling its dental practice, paid an amount to the controlling shareholder at a time when the corporation owed tax. The Court (Boyle J) found that (1) that the…
The Initiative
The following article appeared in the February, 2011, edition of the Hamilton Law Association Law Journal.
The CRA likes to stir things up every now and then with this project or that initiative to ensure compliance among various groups of taxpayers. The latest stirring relates to trusts and their administration, and it serves as a sharp reminder to lawyers that tax compliance is not only the province of accountants.
Disability crackdown?
In my experience, the CRA has always been pretty careful—some would say overly stingy—about allowing disability tax credits, but, according to a Toronto Star–CBC investigation, that hasn’t stopped abuses of the system. I wonder how many Canadians with real disabilities…
Privilege
The Minister of Finance has apparently responded positively to submissions from the Canadian Bar Association on the effect of the new reporting regime for tax avoidance transactions on solicitor-client privilege. In a letter to the Association dated January 11, 2011,…
Taxman’s Best Friend?
A Swiss village is preparing to kill residents’ pet dogs over a $50.00 tax liability. One wonders what would happen if you fall behind on property tax. http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/01/11/swiss-village-to-dog-owners-pay-your-taxes-or-poochie-dies/
VD Case
A corporation withholds tax from a dividend that it pays to a non-resident and then fails to remit the amount withheld. The CRA later sends a letter to a shareholder of a shareholder of the dividend payor asking for information…