6 worked Employed Individual Tax Return 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 employed individual tax return work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Scaling without breaking
Second-Province Expansion Handled, $36,500 Of Cash Released — Student Filer, Vancouver
Client: A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Cash released$36,500
New registrationsComplete on day one
Compliance gapsNone
The situation — A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Vancouver, British Columbia
Revenue at a full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings in Vancouver, British Columbia was up sharply and cash was tighter than ever. Underneath it sat three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address.
What we did for A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Vancouver, British Columbia
We pulled the full slip history from the CRA record, refiled the affected years by adjustment request, and recovered the credits that had been missed. Every new obligation was set up before it was triggered, not after. That covered registration, remittance frequency and provincial filing.
The result — A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Vancouver, British Columbia
$36,500 of cash was released from the working capital cycle. The expansion completed with every registration and filing obligation covered from day one.
Case Study 2 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $79,000 Cut From A 3-Year Backlog — Two-Income Landlord Household, Kelowna
Client: A two-income household with rental property · Where: Kelowna, British Columbia · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$79,000
Backlog cleared3 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation — A two-income household with rental property, Kelowna, British Columbia
By the time a two-income household with rental property in Kelowna, British Columbia called, 3 years were outstanding. The CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat a rental property reported without any capital cost allowance analysis.
What we did for A two-income household with rental property, Kelowna, British Columbia
We reconstructed the records year by year. We reported the disposition and filed the principal residence designation for the year of sale, closing the late-designation exposure before the CRA raised it. Each filing replaced an arbitrary assessment with a real one.
The result — A two-income household with rental property, Kelowna, British Columbia
The account is current. Filing on real numbers rather than CRA estimates reduced the balance by $79,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
Case Study 3 · Structure rebuilt
Reorganisation Completed Tax-Deferred, $14,000 Saved Each Year — Employee with Foreign Accounts, Red Deer
Client: An employee with foreign investment accounts · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$14,000
Tax on reorganisationDeferred
Elections filedOn time
The situation — An employee with foreign investment accounts, Red Deer, Alberta
An employee with foreign investment accounts in Red Deer, Alberta had outgrown the structure it started with. Foreign accounts that had crossed the T1135 threshold two years earlier was the immediate problem. The longer-term one was that the structure blocked the next step.
What we did for An employee with foreign investment accounts, Red Deer, Alberta
We mapped the current structure and modelled the target. Then we reset the medical expense claim window, transferred credits between spouses, and applied the tuition and disability amounts to the return that used them. The tax-deferred elections were filed on time and the supporting valuations documented.
The result — An employee with foreign investment accounts, Red Deer, Alberta
The reorganisation completed without triggering tax, and the new structure saves approximately $14,000 a year while removing the exposure the old one carried.
Case Study 4 · Cash and remittance control
Remittance Schedule Corrected, $34,500 Refunded — Disability Amount Claimant, London
Client: A taxpayer claiming a dependant's transferred disability amount · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Overpayment refunded$34,500
Late remittances sinceZero
ScheduleAutomated
The situation — A taxpayer claiming a dependant's transferred disability amount, London, Ontario
Remittances at a taxpayer claiming a dependant's transferred disability amount in London, Ontario were consistently late by a few days. That was enough to trigger penalties every quarter. Behind it sat years of small donation receipts claimed one at a time instead of pooled onto a single return.
What we did for A taxpayer claiming a dependant's transferred disability amount, London, Ontario
We pooled the carried-forward donation receipts onto the higher-income spouse’s return so the whole claim sat above the low-rate first tier. Then we moved the remittance dates into a scheduled process rather than a monthly decision.
The result — A taxpayer claiming a dependant's transferred disability amount, London, Ontario
Penalties stopped from the following remittance onwards, and $34,500 of overpaid instalments was refunded.
Case Study 5 · Planning that cut the bill
Remuneration Review Saved $47,000 Across Corporate And Personal Returns — Commissioned Salesperson, Winnipeg
The situation — A commissioned salesperson, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Nothing was wrong at a commissioned salesperson in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The filings were on time and accurate. What they were not was planned. Medical expenses claimed on a calendar-year basis when a shifted window was worth far more had never been reviewed.
What we did for A commissioned salesperson, Winnipeg, Manitoba
We carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance. We 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 commissioned salesperson, Winnipeg, Manitoba
$47,000 came off the combined corporate and personal tax bill, and the structure holds for future years without further work.
Case Study 6 · Objection and relief
$14,500 Of Penalties And Interest Cancelled On Relief — Gig-Economy Driver, Calgary
Client: A gig-economy driver · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Penalties and interest cancelled$14,500
Relief groundsAccepted
AssessmentAdjusted to filed position
The situation — A gig-economy driver, Calgary, Alberta
An assessment of $14,500 landed at a gig-economy driver in Calgary, Alberta following a desk review. It turned on RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year. The auditor had not seen the records behind it.
What we did for A gig-economy driver, Calgary, Alberta
We obtained the signed T2200 and rebuilt the employment-expense claim on the prescribed form with the supporting records attached to the file. We then set out the legislative basis for the position alongside the documents supporting it.
The result — A gig-economy driver, Calgary, Alberta
$14,500 of penalties and interest was cancelled under the taxpayer relief provisions, and the underlying assessment was adjusted to match the filed position.
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.
