Accounting Services for Medium-Sized Businesses Case Studies
6 worked Accounting Services for Medium-Sized Businesses case studies — the position a client typically comes to us with, what we do, and what it is worth. Each is an illustrative example built on the rules that apply to accounting services for medium-sized businesses work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
Desk-Review Assessment Of $126,000 Vacated — Family Wholesale Distributor, Kelowna
Client: A family-owned wholesale distributor · Where: Kelowna, British Columbia · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Assessment vacated$126,000
Supporting recordsNow on file
AccountCleared
The situation — A family-owned wholesale distributor, Kelowna, British Columbia
A family-owned wholesale distributor in Kelowna, British Columbia was carrying $126,000 of penalties and interest arising from a shareholder loan account that had drifted for three years with no supporting entries, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
What we did for A family-owned wholesale distributor, Kelowna, British Columbia
We reconciled the inter-company accounts, papered the arrangement with a written agreement, and aligned both corporations’ year-ends and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result — A family-owned wholesale distributor, Kelowna, British Columbia
The assessment was vacated. $126,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
Case Study 2 · Cash and remittance control
$143,000 Of Working Capital Freed From The Tax Cycle — Commercial Cleaning Contractor, Moncton
Client: A commercial cleaning contractor · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Working capital freed$143,000
On-time remittancesEvery period since
Forecast horizon13 weeks
The situation — A commercial cleaning contractor, Moncton, New Brunswick
A commercial cleaning contractor in Moncton, New Brunswick was profitable on paper and short of cash every month. Two sets of numbers — one in the accounting file, one the owner actually ran the business on explained most of the gap.
What we did for A commercial cleaning contractor, Moncton, New Brunswick
We valued work in progress on one consistent basis and documented the method, so the comparative year could be relied on and built a thirteen-week cash view so tax payments stopped competing with payroll for the same dollars.
The result — A commercial cleaning contractor, Moncton, New Brunswick
$143,000 was released back into working capital. Remittances have been on time every period since, and the forecast shows the tax outflow before it lands.
Case Study 3 · CRA review defended
$19,500 Reassessment Reduced To Nil On Review — Two-Partner Engineering Firm, Victoria
Client: A two-partner engineering firm · Where: Victoria, British Columbia · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Reassessment reduced toNil
Tax protected$19,500
Prior filingsUndisturbed
The situation — A two-partner engineering firm, Victoria, British Columbia
A review notice arrived at a two-partner engineering firm in Victoria, British Columbia covering accounting services for medium-sized businesses for two tax years. The auditor's working position was an adjustment of $19,500, driven by a bank that refused to renew an operating line without compliant statements.
What we did for A two-partner engineering firm, Victoria, British Columbia
Rather than negotiate, we rebuilt the record. We moved accruals, prepaids and depreciation into a documented month-end checklist, so they stopped being year-end discoveries and submitted a point-by-point response that answered each proposed adjustment with the document behind it.
The result — A two-partner engineering firm, Victoria, British Columbia
The auditor accepted the documented position and closed the review without adjustment, protecting $19,500 and leaving the prior filings undisturbed.
Case Study 4 · Backlog brought current
5 Years Filed, $98,000 Removed From The Assessed Balance — Machine-Shop Owner-Operator, Kitchener
The situation — A machine-shop owner-operator, Kitchener, Ontario
A machine-shop owner-operator in Kitchener, Ontario had not filed for 5 years. The CRA had issued arbitrary assessments, and the business was carrying year-end statements that arrived four months late and never tied to the bank on top of a growing interest balance.
What we did for A machine-shop owner-operator, Kitchener, Ontario
We started with the oldest year and worked forward so each year's closing balances fed the next. We separated personal and corporate spending, cleared the shareholder loan through a documented salary and dividend mix, and restated the comparative year, filing the years in sequence rather than all at once.
The result — A machine-shop owner-operator, Kitchener, Ontario
Every year is now filed and assessed on actual figures. The notional assessments were vacated and $98,000 of the estimated balance came off, with a payment arrangement covering the rest.
Case Study 5 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $33,000 Penalty Avoided — Landscaping Company, Brampton
Client: A growing landscaping company · Where: Brampton, Ontario · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$33,000
Turnaround7 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation — A growing landscaping company, Brampton, Ontario
A growing landscaping company in Brampton, Ontario came to us 7 weeks before its filing deadline with a year-end moved informally, leaving twelve months of trading reported as though nothing had changed. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $33,000 before interest.
What we did for A growing landscaping company, Brampton, Ontario
We worked backwards from the deadline. We built a fixed-asset continuity schedule from the purchase invoices and set the capital cost allowance claim class by class rather than claiming the maximum by default, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result — A growing landscaping company, Brampton, Ontario
The return was filed on time and complete. The $33,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 6 · Planning that cut the bill
$11,500 Cut From The Annual Tax Bill — Related-Company Pair, London
Client: A corporation sharing administration with a related company · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
First-year saving$11,500
RepeatsAnnually
Filing positionUnchanged in risk
The situation — A corporation sharing administration with a related company, London, Ontario
A corporation sharing administration with a related company in London, Ontario was compliant but paying more than it needed to. The prior year had been filed correctly and still left work in progress carried at billing value one year and at cost the next, so neither year was comparable on the table.
What we did for A corporation sharing administration with a related company, London, Ontario
We modelled the current position against the alternatives before changing anything, then reconciled the general ledger to the GIFI schedules filed for each open year and corrected the two years where they disagreed.
The result — A corporation sharing administration with a related company, London, Ontario
The change saved $11,500 in the first year and repeats annually. Nothing about the filings became more aggressive; the position is simply the one the rules already allowed.
Reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Founder and Tax Accountant. These case studies are illustrative worked examples composed from the CRA rules that apply to this type of work, not specific client files; figures are representative and outcomes depend on your own facts.
