6 Desktop-to-Cloud Accounting Migration 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 desktop-to-cloud accounting migration work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Missed incentive claimed
$26,500 Credit Claim Filed And Accepted Without Adjustment — Owner-Operated Trades Business, Kitchener
Client: An owner-operated trades business · Where: Kitchener, Ontario · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Claim value$26,500
AcceptedWithout adjustment
RepeatableAnnually
The situation
An owner-operated trades business in Kitchener, Ontario assumed the credits did not apply to a business its size. Input tax credits claimed on receipts that had already been claimed once meant they had applied all along.
What we did
We identified the qualifying activity, built the documentation to support it, and set up a documented chart of accounts, a receipt-capture workflow and a monthly reconciliation that closes within ten days of month-end.
The result
$26,500 recovered. Because the eligibility analysis is on file, the same claim can be repeated each year with a fraction of the effort.
Case Study 2 · Structure rebuilt
Reorganisation Completed Tax-Deferred, $54,000 Saved Each Year — Subscription Box Retailer, Moncton
Client: A subscription box retailer · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$54,000
Tax on reorganisationDeferred
Elections filedOn time
The situation
A subscription box retailer in Moncton, New Brunswick had outgrown the structure it started with. A receivables list that included invoices collected eleven months earlier was the immediate problem; the longer-term one was that the structure blocked the next step.
What we did
We mapped the current structure, modelled the target, and separated the owner’s personal spending out of the corporate accounts and cleared the resulting shareholder loan properly — with the tax-deferred elections filed on time and the supporting valuations documented.
The result
The reorganisation completed without triggering tax, and the new structure saves approximately $54,000 a year while removing the exposure the old one carried.
Case Study 3 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $11,500 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Mobile Pet-Grooming Company, Lethbridge
Client: A mobile pet-grooming company · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$11,500
Records rebuilt17 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation
A mobile pet-grooming company in Lethbridge, Alberta could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because input tax credits claimed on receipts that had already been claimed once sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We reconciled receivables and payables to source documents and wrote off the balances that were genuinely uncollectible, with support, 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, $11,500 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 4 · Scaling without breaking
Growth Handled Without A Missed Filing, $139,000 Freed — Small Law Practice, Mississauga
Client: A small law practice · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Cash freed$139,000
Compliance failuresNone
ReportingMonthly
The situation
A small law practice in Mississauga, Ontario was opening in a second province — different filing obligations, a different payroll regime, and three years of returns filed off numbers nobody could trace back to a bank statement already in the file.
What we did
We rebuilt the ledger from bank and card statements, matched every receipt to a transaction, and removed duplicated input tax credits before they became a review and put monthly reporting in place so the owner could see the cash effect of growth while there was still time to act on it.
The result
Growth was absorbed without a compliance failure. $139,000 of cash was released, and the monthly reporting now flags a problem while it is still small.
Case Study 5 · Sale and succession
$395,000 Sheltered By The Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption — Residential Cleaning Franchise, Hamilton
A residential cleaning franchise in Hamilton, Ontario had an offer on the table and 29 months to close. The shares did not qualify for the capital gains exemption, and no valuation on file to support the price the parties had agreed was part of the reason.
What we did
We purified the corporation so the shares met the qualifying tests, then set up a documented chart of accounts, a receipt-capture workflow and a monthly reconciliation that closes within ten days of month-end well ahead of the closing date.
The result
The sale closed on schedule with $395,000 sheltered by the lifetime capital gains exemption across the shareholders.
Case Study 6 · Objection and relief
Notice Of Objection Allowed In Full, $100,000 Reversed — Equipment Rental Yard, London
An equipment rental yard in London, Ontario had been reassessed for $100,000 and had 24 days left on the objection deadline. The reassessment rested on a bookkeeping file where owner draws, payroll and supplier payments all landed in the same account.
What we did
We filed the objection inside the deadline with a complete submission rather than a placeholder, and separated the owner’s personal spending out of the corporate accounts and cleared the resulting shareholder loan properly.
The result
The appeals officer allowed the objection in full. $100,000 was reversed and the account returned to a nil balance.
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.
