COVID-19

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has extended the deadline to file Individual income tax returns for 2020 in the U.S. The new deadline is now May 17, 2021 (the usual deadline is April 15 every year). Deadline is extended for both filing and payment of taxes, and applicable to individual taxpayers only. This includes the individuals who pay self-employment taxes as well. There is no...

Tax season is in full swing! Millions of Canadians and Residents are looking to file their taxes. Traditionally, taxpayers with simple tax situations tend to visit drop-off locations of various tax service providers. With Covid-19, many individual income tax preparers are offering online/remote services. Along with tax preparers and tax professionals, fraudsters and cybercriminals are working...

Many businesses in Canada have taken advantage of Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA). The initial program offered $40,000 with 1/4 i.e. $10,000 is forgivable if certain conditions are met. Later on, the program expanded and offered an additional $60,000 with an additional $10,000 forgivable. The forgivable portion of the CEBA loans must be included in the income during the year funds...

A lot of people have claimed CERB for the full 28 weeks period, totalling up to $14,000. Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has issued letters to the taxpayers who they think might not have been eligible. The confusion came because the CRA did not mention the word “Net” while explaining the self-employment for CERB purposes. Self-employment income is always net when reporting on the...

Canada Emergency Business Account (aka CEBA) has been the most talked-about government support program for small businesses. Since its launch, it has helped many small businesses with the liquidity pressures faced during the pandemic. Many small businesses find the ease of access and a waiver of $10,000 out of $40,000 principle amount very attractive features. Unfortunately, CEBA comes with...

Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) applications are open now. CERS provides much-needed support to Canadian businesses struggling with rent payments during the pandemic. If you have already applied for Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) you will find the process quite familiar. In the below post, we are going to have a quick overview of CERS instead of going into more details. The Canada...

As we are in the final quarter of 2020, many wonder if they are subject to U.S. Income taxes due to the travel restrictions earlier in the year! Good News: Yes, there is an exception available! Generally, if you meet the substantial presence test (SPT), you are subject to U.S. income tax filing requirements. May Canadians spend a significant portion of the year in the U.S. especially in...

Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) has been providing significant support to Canadian jobs by covering 75% of employee’s wages (sometimes up to 85%, see new CEWS rules).A total of $35.31 billion has been paid under CEWS to unique applicants of 312,750 against 1,094,330 applications made by them (see updated...

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has introduced additional reporting requirements for T4 Information returns of 2020. The purpose of these additional requirements is to validate the benefit payments to Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), Canada Emergency Students Benefits (CESB) and Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS). All of these programs provide much-needed relief and support to...

NOTE: the Government is proposing to extend the CEWS further until June 2021. Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) has undergone major...