6 worked Accounts Payable Services 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 accounts payable services work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Records and systems rebuilt
Month-End Close Cut From 9 Weeks To 7 Days — Regional Courier Operator, Guelph
The situation — A regional courier operator, Guelph, Ontario
The accounting file at a regional courier operator in Guelph, Ontario was built on inter-company balances between two related corporations that had never been reconciled. The year-end had taken 9 weeks each of the last three years.
What we did for A regional courier operator, Guelph, Ontario
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 and moved the reconciliations into the monthly cycle, so the year-end stopped being a rebuild.
The result — A regional courier operator, Guelph, Ontario
The file reconciles. Month-end closes in 7 days instead of 9 weeks, and the year-end is a review rather than a reconstruction.
Case Study 2 · Backlog brought current
6 Years Filed, $42,000 Removed From The Assessed Balance — Machine-Shop Owner-Operator, Barrie
The situation — A machine-shop owner-operator, Barrie, Ontario
A machine-shop owner-operator in Barrie, Ontario had not filed for 6 years. The CRA had issued arbitrary assessments, and the business was carrying a bank that refused to renew an operating line without compliant statements on top of a growing interest balance.
What we did for A machine-shop owner-operator, Barrie, Ontario
We started with the oldest year and worked forward so each year's closing balances fed the next. We reconciled the inter-company accounts, papered the arrangement with a written agreement, and aligned both corporations’ year-ends, filing the years in sequence rather than all at once.
The result — A machine-shop owner-operator, Barrie, Ontario
Every year is now filed and assessed on actual figures. The notional assessments were vacated and $42,000 of the estimated balance came off, with a payment arrangement covering the rest.
Case Study 3 · Scaling without breaking
Second-Province Expansion Handled, $137,000 Of Cash Released — Quarterly-Close Practice, Windsor
Client: A professional practice that closes its books quarterly · Where: Windsor, Ontario · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Cash released$137,000
New registrationsComplete on day one
Compliance gapsNone
The situation — A professional practice that closes its books quarterly, Windsor, Ontario
Revenue at a professional practice that closes its books quarterly in Windsor, Ontario was up sharply and cash was tighter than ever. Underneath it sat work in progress carried at billing value one year and at cost the next, so neither year was comparable.
What we did for A professional practice that closes its books quarterly, Windsor, Ontario
We set a monthly close calendar with a fixed cut-off, so the year-end became a review of work already done rather than a twelve-month rebuild. Every new obligation — registration, remittance frequency, provincial filing — was set up before it was triggered, not after.
The result — A professional practice that closes its books quarterly, Windsor, Ontario
$137,000 of cash was released from the working capital cycle, and the expansion completed with every registration and filing obligation covered from day one.
Case Study 4 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $50,000 Penalty Avoided — Family Wholesale Distributor, Red Deer
Client: A family-owned wholesale distributor · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$50,000
Turnaround11 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation — A family-owned wholesale distributor, Red Deer, Alberta
A family-owned wholesale distributor in Red Deer, Alberta came to us 11 weeks before its filing deadline with a shareholder loan account that had drifted for three years with no supporting entries. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $50,000 before interest.
What we did for A family-owned wholesale distributor, Red Deer, Alberta
We worked backwards from the deadline. We separated personal and corporate spending, cleared the shareholder loan through a documented salary and dividend mix, and restated the comparative year, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result — A family-owned wholesale distributor, Red Deer, Alberta
The return was filed on time and complete. The $50,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 5 · Sale and succession
Share Sale Restructured, $630,000 Less Tax On Closing — Independent Pharmacy, Regina
The situation — An independent pharmacy, Regina, Saskatchewan
An independent pharmacy in Regina, Saskatchewan was preparing to sell. Due diligence surfaced a minute book with no resolutions behind a decade of dividends, which would have reduced the price or killed the deal outright.
What we did for An independent pharmacy, Regina, Saskatchewan
We cleaned up the historical file, rebuilt the trial balance from source documents, reconciled every bank and credit-card account, and issued a CSRS 4200 compilation with a proper basis-of-accounting note, and prepared the due-diligence package the buyer's advisers actually asked for.
The result — An independent pharmacy, Regina, Saskatchewan
The deal closed at the agreed price. $630,000 of tax was saved against the structure originally proposed, with no post-closing adjustment.
Case Study 6 · Planning that cut the bill
Remuneration Review Saved $50,000 Across Corporate And Personal Returns — Fitness Studio Group, Burnaby
Client: A boutique fitness studio group · Where: Burnaby, British Columbia · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Combined saving$50,000
ScopeCorporate + personal
Future yearsNo rework needed
The situation — A boutique fitness studio group, Burnaby, British Columbia
Nothing was wrong at a boutique fitness studio group in Burnaby, British Columbia — the filings were on time and accurate. What they were not was planned. Capital assets written off in full in the year of purchase, with no fixed-asset schedule behind the deduction had never been reviewed.
What we did for A boutique fitness studio group, Burnaby, British Columbia
We moved accruals, prepaids and depreciation into a documented month-end checklist, so they stopped being year-end discoveries, and ran the numbers across both the corporate and personal returns so the saving was real rather than deferred into someone else's hands.
The result — A boutique fitness studio group, Burnaby, British Columbia
$50,000 came off the combined corporate and personal tax bill, and the structure holds for future years without further work.
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.
