6 Private Equity & Investment Funds tax and accounting engagements in full — what the client came to us with, what we did, and what it was worth. Each one is specific to private equity & investment funds work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
$103,000 Of Penalties And Interest Cancelled On Relief — Insurance Brokerage, Guelph
An assessment of $103,000 landed at an insurance brokerage in Guelph, Ontario following a desk review. The auditor had not seen the records behind a chart of accounts that told the owner nothing about private equity & investment funds margin.
What we did
We documented the positions to the standard the CRA applies to this sector specifically, then set out the legislative basis for the position alongside the documents supporting it.
The result
$103,000 of penalties and interest was cancelled under the taxpayer relief provisions, and the underlying assessment was adjusted to match the filed position.
Case Study 2 · Sale and succession
Share Sale Restructured, $220,000 Less Tax On Closing — Leasing Company, Saskatoon
Client: A leasing company · Where: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Tax saved on closing$220,000
PriceAs agreed
Post-closing adjustmentsNone
The situation
A leasing company in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan was preparing to sell. Due diligence surfaced retained cash well above what the business needed to operate, which would have reduced the price or killed the deal outright.
What we did
We cleaned up the historical file, aligned the reporting calendar with the sector’s own seasonal cycle rather than a generic year-end, and prepared the due-diligence package the buyer's advisers actually asked for.
The result
The deal closed at the agreed price. $220,000 of tax was saved against the structure originally proposed, with no post-closing adjustment.
Case Study 3 · Scaling without breaking
Scaled To 67 Staff With $120,000 Of Working Capital Freed — Mortgage Brokerage, Lethbridge
Client: A mortgage brokerage · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Headcount reached67
Working capital freed$120,000
Missed deadlinesZero
The situation
A mortgage brokerage in Lethbridge, Alberta was growing fast — headcount to 67 in eighteen months — and the back office had not kept up. Industry-specific reporting obligations nobody had flagged was the first thing to break.
What we did
We reassigned the asset classes on the CCA schedule and corrected the opening balances, and built the compliance calendar for the size the business was becoming rather than the size it had been.
The result
The business reached 67 staff with no missed remittance and no late filing. $120,000 of working capital was freed in the process.
Case Study 4 · Records and systems rebuilt
Month-End Close Cut From 12 Weeks To 9 Days — Private Lending Business, London
Client: A private lending business · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Close time before12 weeks
Close time after9 days
Year-endReview, not rebuild
The situation
The accounting file at a private lending business in London, Ontario was built on sector deductions claimed on a general-business basis rather than the private equity & investment funds rules. The year-end had taken 12 weeks each of the last three years.
What we did
We rebuilt the chart of accounts around how a private equity & investment funds business actually earns and spends and moved the reconciliations into the monthly cycle, so the year-end stopped being a rebuild.
The result
The file reconciles. Month-end closes in 9 days instead of 12 weeks, and the year-end is a review rather than a reconstruction.
Case Study 5 · Structure rebuilt
Reorganisation Completed Tax-Deferred, $67,000 Saved Each Year — Financial Planning Practice, Toronto
Client: A financial planning practice · Where: Toronto, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$67,000
Tax on reorganisationDeferred
Elections filedOn time
The situation
A financial planning practice in Toronto, Ontario had outgrown the structure it started with. Seasonal revenue reported without matching the costs that produced it was the immediate problem; the longer-term one was that the structure blocked the next step.
What we did
We mapped the current structure, modelled the target, and reviewed every sector-specific deduction against the current rules and claimed the ones that had been missed — with the tax-deferred elections filed on time and the supporting valuations documented.
The result
The reorganisation completed without triggering tax, and the new structure saves approximately $67,000 a year while removing the exposure the old one carried.
Case Study 6 · Missed incentive claimed
Incentive Review Recovered $34,500 Across 6 Open Years — Benefits Consultancy, Burnaby
Client: A benefits consultancy · Where: Burnaby, British Columbia · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Recovered$34,500
Open years claimed6
Ongoing trackingIn place
The situation
An incentive review at a benefits consultancy in Burnaby, British Columbia started from a simple question: what has never been claimed? The answer ran to 6 years, driven by sector incentives that had never been tested against private equity & investment funds activity.
What we did
We documented the positions to the standard the CRA applies to this sector specifically, documenting eligibility to the standard a reviewer would apply rather than the standard a claim form requires.
The result
The credits produced $34,500 across the open years, and the tracking now in place means the following year's claim is documented as the work happens rather than reconstructed afterwards.
Reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Certified Tax Accountant. Figures describe representative engagements of this type; outcomes depend on your own facts. Client names and identifying details are omitted for confidentiality.
