6 worked Corporate Accounting 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 corporate accounting services work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Records and systems rebuilt
30 Months Reconciled And $8,500 Of Input Tax Recovered — Quarterly-Close Practice, Regina
Client: A professional practice that closes its books quarterly. Where: Regina, Saskatchewan. Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee.
Months reconciled30
Input tax recovered$8,500
Close time5 days
Case 1: the situation
Nothing reconciled at a professional practice that closes its books quarterly in Regina, Saskatchewan. Every filing started with 30 months of cleanup. The file was carrying inter-company balances between two related corporations that had never been reconciled.
Case 1: what we did
We rebuilt from source rather than correcting on top of the existing file. We built a fixed-asset continuity schedule from the purchase invoices. We set the capital cost allowance claim class by class rather than claiming the maximum by default. Then we set the routine that keeps it clean.
Case 1: the result
30 months reconciled to the bank. The close now takes 5 days, and $8,500 of previously unclaimable input tax was recovered in the process.
Case Study 2 · Structure rebuilt
Reorganisation Completed Tax-Deferred, $55,000 Saved Each Year — First Year-End Corporation, Guelph
Client: An owner-managed corporation preparing its first year-end. Where: Guelph, Ontario. Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee.
Annual saving$55,000
Tax on reorganisationDeferred
Elections filedOn time
Case 2: the situation
An owner-managed corporation preparing its first year-end in Guelph, Ontario had outgrown the structure it started with. Year-end statements that arrived four months late and never tied to the bank was the immediate problem. The longer-term one was that the structure blocked the next step.
Case 2: what we did
We mapped the current structure and modelled the target. Then 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. The tax-deferred elections were filed on time and the supporting valuations documented.
Case 2: the result
The reorganisation completed without triggering tax, and the new structure saves approximately $55,000 a year while removing the exposure the old one carried.
Case Study 3 · Missed incentive claimed
$133,000 Credit Claim Filed And Accepted Without Adjustment — Related-Company Pair, Winnipeg
Client: A corporation sharing administration with a related company. Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba. Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee.
Claim value$133,000
AcceptedWithout adjustment
RepeatableAnnually
Case 3: the situation
A corporation sharing administration with a related company in Winnipeg, Manitoba assumed the credits did not apply to a business its size. Two sets of numbers — one in the accounting file, one the owner actually ran the business on meant they had applied all along.
Case 3: what we did
We identified the qualifying activity and built the documentation to support it. Then we 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.
Case 3: the result
$133,000 recovered. Because the eligibility analysis is on file, the same claim can be repeated each year with a fraction of the effort.
Case Study 4 · Planning that cut the bill
$30,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Machine-Shop Owner-Operator, Kitchener
A machine-shop owner-operator in Kitchener, Ontario asked for a second opinion on corporate accounting services. That followed three years of rising tax. The review found a bank that refused to renew an operating line without compliant statements.
Case 4: what we did
We built the comparison first: current structure against two alternatives. Then we reconciled the general ledger to the GIFI schedules filed for each open year and corrected the two years where they disagreed.
Case 4: the result
First-year saving of $30,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 5 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $52,000 Penalty Avoided — Commercial Cleaning Contractor, Lethbridge
A commercial cleaning contractor in Lethbridge, Alberta came to us 4 weeks before its filing deadline. The file came with work in progress carried at billing value one year and at cost the next, so neither year was comparable. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $52,000 before interest.
Case 5: what we did
We worked backwards from the deadline. We valued work in progress on one consistent basis and documented the method, so the comparative year could be relied on. We prioritised the items that actually gated the filing and deferred everything that did not.
Case 5: the result
The return was filed on time and complete. The $52,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 6 · Backlog brought current
$75,000 Of Arbitrary Assessments Vacated After 6 Years — Fitness Studio Group, Hamilton
Client: A boutique fitness studio group. Where: Hamilton, Ontario. Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee.
Arbitrary tax vacated$75,000
Years brought current6
Account statusCurrent
Case 6: the situation
6 years of unfiled returns had turned into notional assessments at a boutique fitness studio group in Hamilton, Ontario. Underneath lay two sets of numbers — one in the accounting file, one the owner actually ran the business on. Collections had already started.
Case 6: what we did
We reconciled the inter-company accounts, papered the arrangement with a written agreement, and aligned both corporations’ year-ends. We then filed every outstanding year in chronological order so the CRA could vacate the notional assessments cleanly.
Case 6: the result
All 6 years were accepted as filed. $75,000 of arbitrarily assessed tax was vacated, collections action stopped, and the account is current for the first time in 6 years.
Reviewed by Udit Gupta, Founder and Tax Accountant for the 2025 tax year. 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.
