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Claiming the Canada Carbon Rebate Residents of the eight Canadian provinces in which the federal fuel charge (more commonly known as the federal carbon tax) is levied are entitled to claim and receive the federal Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR). That rebate (formerly known as the Climate Action Incentive Payment) is a non-taxable payment made four […]

Deciding when to begin receiving Old Age Security benefits The Old Age Security (OAS) program is one of the two major federal benefit programs available to older Canadians – the other being the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). While both programs provide taxable monthly payments to Canadians, there are significant differences between the two.    The

Tax planning for year-end charitable donations While the need for charitable donations for any number of causes is a year-round reality, appeals for such donations tend to increase as the holiday season and the end of the calendar year approach. And generally, those appeals are met, as Canadians have a well-deserved reputation for supporting charitable

Finance Announces Additional Changes To Mortgage Lending Rules In the 2024-25 Federal Budget released earlier this year, the federal government announced changes to the rules which govern mortgage lending in Canada. Those changes had two goals: making it easier for first-time home buyers to qualify for a mortgage and providing an incentive to encourage the

Year-end planning for medical expense claims While the current state of the Canadian healthcare system is far from perfect, Canadians are nonetheless fortunate to have a publicly funded healthcare system, in which most major medical expenses are covered by provincial healthcare plans. Notwithstanding, there is a large (and growing) number of medical and para-medical costs

Claiming the Canada Child Benefit (September 2024) Canada’s tax system is a self-assessing one, meaning that the onus rests on individual taxpayers to file their annual return each spring and to pay any amounts owed. The compliance rate in Canada is high – most Canadian taxpayers comply with those tax obligations, filing returns and making

When help is available under the CRA’s Taxpayer Relief Provisions Canada’s tax system is a self-assessing one, meaning that the onus rests on individual taxpayers to file their annual return each spring and to pay any amounts owed. The compliance rate in Canada is high – most Canadian taxpayers comply with those tax obligations, filing

Deciding when to begin receiving Old Age Security benefits The past five years have been a tough financial slog for most Canadian families, as they struggled to cope with the pandemic, followed by inflation which tripled from under 2% in mid-2020 to over 6% by the end of 2022, and, finally, interest rate increases which

When are legal fees deductible? In most cases, the need to seek out and obtain legal services (and to pay for them) is associated with life’s more unwelcome occurrences and experiences – a divorce, a dispute over a family estate, or a job loss. The only thing that mitigates the pain of paying legal fees

Some Tax Breaks For The Upcoming Post-Secondary School Year By the middle of August, most students who are beginning post-secondary education this fall have hopefully received an offer of admission from their college or university of choice and are in the final stages of planning the move away from the family home for the first