Taking advantage of pension income splitting (February 2020)
Income tax is a big-ticket item for most retired Canadians.
Especially for those who are no longer paying a mortgage, the
annual tax bill may be the single biggest expenditure they are
required to mak...
RRSPs and TFSAs – making the annual choice (February 2020)
If there is one invariable “rule” of financial and retirement
planning of which most Canadians are aware, it is the unquestioned
wisdom of making regular contributions to a registered reti...
Quebec Pension Plan Premiums for 2020 (January 2020)
The Quebec Pension Plan contribution rate for employees and
employers for 2020 is 5.7%, and maximum pensionable earnings are
$58,700. The basic exemption is $3,500....
Tax deadlines and limits for the 2020 tax year (January 2020)
Each new tax year brings with it a listing of tax payment and
filing deadlines, as well as some changes with respect to tax
planning strategies. Some of the more significant dates and changes
for indi...
Tax changes effective January 1, 2020 (January 2020)
Alberta The general corporate income tax rate will decrease from
11% to 10%, effective January 1, 2020. The provincial education and
tuition tax credits are eliminated as of the 2020 taxation year.
...
Claiming a deduction for union or professional dues (December 2019)
Between now and the end of February 2020, Canadians will receive a
variety of receipts for expenditures made during the 2019 taxation
year. Some of those expenditure receipts will support a tax
deduct...
Timing medical expenses for maximum tax credit (December 2019)
While Canadians benefit from a publicly funded health care system,
there are nonetheless a large, and increasing, number of medical
expenses which are not covered by provincial health care plans. As
w...
Year-end planning for RRSPs and TFSAs (December 2019)
For most Canadians, registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs)
don’t become top of mind until near the end of February, as the
annual contribution deadline (which, for 2019 contributions, will
...
The tax costs of holiday gifts and celebrations (December 2019)
During the month of December, it is customary for employers to
provide something “extra” for their employees, by way of a holiday
gift, a year-end bonus or an employer-sponsored social eve...
Looking ahead to 2020 (November 2019)
Planning for – or even thinking about – 2020 taxes when it’s not
even December 2019 may seem more than a little premature. However,
most Canadians will start paying their taxes for 2...
Planning for year-end charitable donations (November 2019)
The start of fall marks a lot of things, among them a number of
runs, walks and other similar events held to raise money for a
broad range of Canadian charities. And, within the next month, as
the hol...
Getting a fix on your retirement income (November 2019)
Most Canadians expend a considerable amount of time and effort in
order to put money aside for retirement. Especially in an era in
which the majority of workers can’t look forward to receiving a...
Taking stock of your TFSA (October 2019)
Tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs) have been around for a full
decade now, having been introduced in 2009, and for most Canadians,
a TFSA (along with a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP)) is
now...
When are legal fees deductible? (October 2019)
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 famil...
Shared-custody parents and the Canada Child Benefit (October 2019)
When parents separate and divorce, it is frequently the case that
they are able to agree on an arrangement to share custody of their
children. Such a shared-custody arrangement is often to the
benefit...
Claiming the Canada Child Benefit (August 2019)
Raising children is expensive and, in recognition of that fact, the
federal government has, for more than half a century, provided
financial assistance to parents to help with those costs. That
assist...
What to do when you can’t pay your tax bill (April 2019)
Most taxpayers sit down to do their annual tax return, or wait to
hear from their tax return preparer, with some degree of
trepidation. In most cases taxpayers don’t know, until their return
is ...
More debt … and more interest (February 2019)
The fact that debt levels of Canadian households have been
increasing over the past decade and a half can’t really be called
news anymore. In particular, the ratio of debt-to-household-income,
w...
Tax deadlines and limits for the 2019 tax year (January 2019)
Each new tax year brings with it a listing of tax payment and
filing deadlines, as well as some changes with respect to tax
planning strategies. Some of the more significant dates and changes
for indi...
Managing a student loan after graduation (November 2018)
Getting a post-secondary education – or professional training –
isn’t inexpensive. Tuition costs can range from as little as $5,000
per year for undergraduate studies to as much as $...
Canadian household debt levels increase – again (November 2018)
Anyone who has ever tried to reduce their overall personal or
household debt knows that doing so, no matter how disciplined one’s
approach, can seem like a one step forward, two steps back propo...
Planning for out-of-country medical costs (October 2018)
As the days get shorter and the temperature drops, many Canadians
start thinking about spending a few days or weeks (or even longer)
of the upcoming winter somewhere warmer. For some, that means
going...
The employee tax perks of working from home (October 2018)
The daily commute to and from work is, generally, everybody’s least
favourite part of the work day. In recent years that commute has
gotten longer and longer as many Canadians, especially those ...
The tax scam that won’t go away (October 2018)
Tax scams have been around, probably, for about as long as Canada
has had a tax system. They also have a tendency to proliferate at
certain times of the year — often during tax return filing and...
Current rules on getting mortgage financing (September 2018)
For all but a very fortunate few, buying a home means having to
obtain financing for the portion of the purchase price not covered
by a down payment. For most buyers, especially first-time buyers,
tha...
Deciphering your Notice of Assessment (June 2018)
By the middle of May 2018, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) had
processed just over 26 million individual income tax returns filed
for the 2017 tax year. Just over 14 million of those returns
resulted ...
Protecting yourself from tax scams (July 2017)
As the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) notes on its website, new tax
scams are devised every single day of the week. And, despite the
cautionary tales which appear frequently in the media and the
warnings...
Deciding whether to dispute your tax assessment (July 2017)
The variety of amounts and kinds of income, deductions taken, and
credits claimed on individual income tax returns filed by Canadians
each spring is almost limitless. Each of those returns, however,
h...
Keeping up with your taxes for 2017 (July 2017)
By now, halfway through the 2017 tax year, almost all Canadian
individual taxpayers will have filed their income tax return for
2016, and most will have received the Notice of Assessment which
summari...
New rules for financing post-secondary education (June 2017)
For many years, post-secondary students have financed their
educations in part through private savings and often in part
through government student loans, which are generally interest-free
while the s...
Understanding the OAS “recovery tax” (May 2017)
Older taxpayers who have recently completed and filed their tax
returns for 2016 may face an unpleasant surprise when that return
is assessed. The unpleasant surprise may come in the form of a
notific...
Flying south for the winter (November 2016)
Once daily weather reports begin to include wind chill factors or
frost warnings, the thoughts of many Canadian turn to the idea of
spending part of the Canadian winter somewhere much warmer – m...
Finance tightens mortgage lending rules - again (November 2016)
During the financial crisis that took place in 2008 and 2009, the
Canadian mortgage and real estate market didn’t experience the kind
of meltdown which occurred south of the border. That result ...
Determining your Canada Pension Plan entitlement (October 2016)
Canada Pension Plan (CPP) retirement benefits are available to
virtually any Canadian who has participated in the work force and
made contributions to the CPP and for most retirees, that monthly
CPP b...
Planning for year-end charitable donations (October 2016)
The start of fall marks a lot of things, among them a number of
runs, walks, and other similar events held to raise money for a
broad range of Canadian charities. And, in a few months, as the
holiday ...
Welcome and thank you for visiting N. S. Retsinas Professional Corporation's Saveutax.com website. In addition to providing you with a profile of my Chartered Accounting firms various income tax and accounting services, Norman's Website was designed to become a helpful reference and resource tool to personal and corporate businesses and individual tax clients by offering ways to Save U Tax. Norman's dedication to superior client service has brought saveutax to the Internet, endeavoring to continue to provide the highest quality professional service at a reasonable price.
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