As the Canadian voters prepare to go to the polls, we at Advotax Law traditionally share a summary of political rumours/quotes/documents/video clips and some fact checking surrounding the very important tax issue: the Liberals' alleged plan to tax gain on principal residence. We published a similar summary before the last Federal election in September 2019. Here is this year's election campaign summary in a True or False/Decide for Yourself format: True or False? The Liberals

There are nearly 40,000 real estate agents in Toronto; that is one agent for every 140 Torontonians! In Vancouver, the numbers are even more staggering - one agent for every 61 Vancouverites. It helps, of course, that the market is sizzling hot, but across Canada, the competition among realtors is fierce. In order to stand out from their competitors and attract potential buyers, some agents offer so-called commission rebates (a.k.a. “kickbacks”). This is how it works: an agen

Sharing a copy of the presentation tax lawyer Anna Malazhavaya with the help of articling student Alexandra Ilchuk made on April 27, 2021 to the members of the Taxation Section of the Ontario Bar Association. Unlike most posts on our blog, this presentation uses technical language (not plain language) and will be helpful to tax practitioners: tax accountants and tax lawyers. We discuss dispute resolution and CRA audit measures introduced in the 2021 Federal Budget, including:

I never met anyone who said they enjoyed being interviewed by an auditor with the Canada Revenue Agency. For sure, CRA audits can be stressful and disruptive to a business, but this is the price we pay to maintain the integrity of our tax system. The CRA’s audit powers are already quite broad and now they are about to expand even further. Anyone who must file a tax return in Canada (and, therefore, can be audited) should pay attention. The 2021 Federal Budget announced on Ap

While I avoided detailed case commentaries on my blog to date, the recent Tax Court of Canada's decision in Hansen is too interesting to miss. In this case commentary, we will discuss: - when (how far back) the CRA has a right to reassess a taxpayer; - what facts the courts may consider when determining a taxpayer's intention when buying real estate; - when bad professional advice is better than no professional advice; and - how the CRA can discredit your testimony by calling