Personal Tax Handbook - Investment Income & Expenses

The Personal Tax Handbook is a professional seminar series presented in a number of modules covering all aspects of T1 personal tax preparation. These seminars are intended for those of you who are looking into a career in tax preparation, or sole-practitioner or small firm

Each course takes an in-depth deep dive into the most frequently encountered situations and frequently asked questions in personal tax preparation. The course methodology follows a two-stage teaching approach meant to give practitioners the tools required to file tax returns and advise clients on critical tax reporting and compliance matters. These two stages are:

1. Tax Preparation – In-depth preparation topics including tips, tricks, and traps when dealing with those particular areas covered by the module. Best practices to avoid disputes with both clients and the CRA.

2. Advisory & Problem Solving – A look at CRA policies and guidelines in each area along with relevant court cases that can be used by advisors and professionals to help guide them in their practice, advising clients and disputes with CRA.

All seminars in this series are updated frequently with any changes, new or relevant court cases, and CRA guidance. Once you purchase any module, you will have lifetime access to all updates – you are truly purchasing a module in a handbook, just in digital format.

This module covers tax reporting and advisory in the realm of investment income and reporting. If you have been a practitioner, you soon realize that most automatic reassessments come from the CRA’s matching program. However, did you know that most of the errors in the reporting of investment income is the result of sloppy work by the preparer?

Many clients find themselves with a higher tax bill simply because a practitioner does not understand how the CRA’s download service works in conjunction with the client’s actual T-slips and our software.

This seminar will cover a number of topics, including the following:

• Tips, trips and traps on reporting investment income including a detailed view of CRA’s Auto-Fill My Return (AFR) service and how investment income is downloaded. Many new practitioners fail to understand the process of downloading and reconciling various slips from the system which can result in adverse client tax situations
• Understanding the interaction and information found on tax reporting slips and reports provided by investment advisors for capital gain/loss disclosures. Are you creating a double tax liability for your clients? Do you know how T5008 Securities transaction reports work?
• A review of investment expenses and some of the pitfalls to claiming carrying charges. Also examined are common scenarios with owner-managers of private corporations deducted interest on money lent to their small business corporations to buy shares or non-interest bearing debt. Can you deduct the interest when there is no investment income on these shares?
• A thorough examination and presentation of the conceptual framework behind foreign investment income and the Foreign Tax Credit. This topic is the most misunderstood area of investment income by new practitioners. This course will demystify this reporting and ensure it is being properly disclosed on the T1 return
• Addressing the most frequently asked questions on the filing requirements and reporting rules for the T1135 Foreign Income Verification Statement. Understand what Specified Foreign Property encompasses and figure out whether certain properties need to be reported on the form. Do any of your clients own personal properties in the US that they also rent out? Are you reporting that property accurately on the T1135?
• A discussion on attribution and the pitfalls of reporting income on the lower-income spouse. A legal strategy of spousal loans will be discussed and analyzed as a way to legally split investment income when one spouse earns the majority of the income
• Tax On Split Income (TOSI) – Why are we discussing TOSI in a personal income tax course? If you don’t understand the TOSI rules and reporting framework, you could be giving your client unsound advice and creating other major headaches that may be difficult if not impossible to fix.
• Allowable Business Investment Losses (ABILs) – If you are claiming a business investment loss on a client’s tax return, chances are the CRA will review it and, in most cases, disallow it. Find out how to get your ducks in a row when claiming ABILs and give your client the best chance of success at getting the deduction.

Join us for this in-depth seminar and master the area of employment income and deductions when preparing T1 tax returns for your clients.