6 Corporate 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 tax work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Sale and succession
Share Sale Restructured, $575,000 Less Tax On Closing — Second-Generation Family Manufacturer, Mississauga
Client: A second-generation family manufacturer · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Tax saved on closing$575,000
PriceAs agreed
Post-closing adjustmentsNone
The situation
A second-generation family manufacturer in Mississauga, Ontario 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
We cleaned up the historical file, moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down, and prepared the due-diligence package the buyer's advisers actually asked for.
The result
The deal closed at the agreed price. $575,000 of tax was saved against the structure originally proposed, with no post-closing adjustment.
Case Study 2 · CRA review defended
$86,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Franchise Operator with Three, Brampton
Client: A franchise operator with three locations · Where: Brampton, Ontario · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Adjustment withdrawn$86,000
File closed in8 weeks
Penalties assessedNone
The situation
A franchise operator with three locations in Brampton, Ontario received a proposal letter opening a review of corporate tax. The CRA had identified passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed and proposed an adjustment of $86,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $86,000 of it. The file closed in 8 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 3 · Planning that cut the bill
$49,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Incorporated Consultancy, Lethbridge
Client: An incorporated consultancy · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$49,000
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
An incorporated consultancy in Lethbridge, Alberta asked for a second opinion on corporate tax after three years of rising tax. The review found two corporations under common control filing as if each had its own $500,000 limit.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then modelled salary against dividends across both the corporation and the shareholder’s personal return, then set the remuneration mix for the year.
The result
First-year saving of $49,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 4 · Records and systems rebuilt
Month-End Close Cut From 11 Weeks To 8 Days — Corporately-Owned Rental Portfolio, Halifax
Client: A corporately-owned rental portfolio · Where: Halifax, Nova Scotia · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Close time before11 weeks
Close time after8 days
Year-endReview, not rebuild
The situation
The accounting file at a corporately-owned rental portfolio in Halifax, Nova Scotia was built on a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped. The year-end had taken 11 weeks each of the last three years.
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 moved the reconciliations into the monthly cycle, so the year-end stopped being a rebuild.
The result
The file reconciles. Month-end closes in 8 days instead of 11 weeks, and the year-end is a review rather than a reconstruction.
Client: A technology CCPC approaching its first profitable year · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Assessment vacated$91,000
Supporting recordsNow on file
AccountCleared
The situation
A technology CCPC approaching its first profitable year in Moncton, New Brunswick was carrying $91,000 of penalties and interest arising from a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
What we did
We moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result
The assessment was vacated. $91,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
Case Study 6 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $130,000 Cut From A 4-Year Backlog — Incorporated Trades Business, Ottawa
Client: An incorporated trades business · Where: Ottawa, Ontario · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$130,000
Backlog cleared4 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation
By the time an incorporated trades business in Ottawa, Ontario called, 4 years were outstanding and the CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat retained earnings building in the operating company with no plan for extracting them.
What we did
We reconstructed the records year by year and rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual. Each filing replaced an arbitrary assessment with a real one.
The result
The account is current. Filing on real numbers rather than CRA estimates reduced the balance by $130,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
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.
