6 Corporate Dissolution Tax Return 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 corporate dissolution tax return work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
Desk-Review Assessment Of $43,000 Vacated — Incorporated Trades Business, Guelph
Client: An incorporated trades business · Where: Guelph, Ontario · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Assessment vacated$43,000
Supporting recordsNow on file
AccountCleared
The situation
An incorporated trades business in Guelph, Ontario was carrying $43,000 of penalties and interest arising from retained earnings building in the operating company with no plan for extracting them, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
What we did
We mapped the association rules across the group, allocated the business limit deliberately on Schedule 23, and corrected the prior year by adjustment request and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result
The assessment was vacated. $43,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
Case Study 2 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $14,000 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — CCPC with Two Shareholders, Lethbridge
Client: A CCPC with two shareholders · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$14,000
Records rebuilt31 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation
A CCPC with two shareholders in Lethbridge, Alberta could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual, then documented the process so the work does not depend on any one person remembering how it was done.
The result
Records rebuilt and reconciled, $14,000 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 3 · Planning that cut the bill
$28,000 Cut From The Annual Tax Bill — Professional Corporation, Toronto
Client: A professional corporation · Where: Toronto, Ontario · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
First-year saving$28,000
RepeatsAnnually
Filing positionUnchanged in risk
The situation
A professional corporation in Toronto, Ontario was compliant but paying more than it needed to. The prior year had been filed correctly and still left passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed on the table.
What we did
We modelled the current position against the alternatives before changing anything, then moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down.
The result
The change saved $28,000 in the first year and repeats annually. Nothing about the filings became more aggressive; the position is simply the one the rules already allowed.
Case Study 4 · CRA review defended
$78,000 Reassessment Reduced To Nil On Review — Franchise Operator with Three, Calgary
Client: A franchise operator with three locations · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Reassessment reduced toNil
Tax protected$78,000
Prior filingsUndisturbed
The situation
A review notice arrived at a franchise operator with three locations in Calgary, Alberta covering corporate dissolution tax return for two tax years. The auditor's working position was an adjustment of $78,000, driven by a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date.
What we did
Rather than negotiate, we rebuilt the record. We modelled salary against dividends across both the corporation and the shareholder’s personal return, then set the remuneration mix for the year and submitted a point-by-point response that answered each proposed adjustment with the document behind it.
The result
The auditor accepted the documented position and closed the review without adjustment, protecting $78,000 and leaving the prior filings undisturbed.
Case Study 5 · Sale and succession
Share Sale Restructured, $565,000 Less Tax On Closing — Corporately-Owned Rental Portfolio, Vancouver
Client: A corporately-owned rental portfolio · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Tax saved on closing$565,000
PriceAs agreed
Post-closing adjustmentsNone
The situation
A corporately-owned rental portfolio in Vancouver, British Columbia was preparing to sell. Due diligence surfaced no valuation on file to support the price the parties had agreed, which would have reduced the price or killed the deal outright.
What we did
We cleaned up the historical file, mapped the association rules across the group, allocated the business limit deliberately on Schedule 23, and corrected the prior year by adjustment request, and prepared the due-diligence package the buyer's advisers actually asked for.
The result
The deal closed at the agreed price. $565,000 of tax was saved against the structure originally proposed, with no post-closing adjustment.
Case Study 6 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $50,000 Of Annual Savings — Import and Distribution Corporation, Mississauga
Client: An import and distribution corporation · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$50,000
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation
The structure at an import and distribution corporation in Mississauga, Ontario had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and retained earnings building in the operating company with no plan for extracting them had become expensive.
What we did
We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result
$50,000 of annual saving, achieved on a tax-deferred basis. The minute book, elections and valuations are all in the file.
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.
