6 Estate 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 estate tax return work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · CRA review defended
$20,500 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Family Trust with Three, Moncton
Client: A family trust with three beneficiaries · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Adjustment withdrawn$20,500
File closed in5 weeks
Penalties assessedNone
The situation
A family trust with three beneficiaries in Moncton, New Brunswick received a proposal letter opening a review of estate tax return. The CRA had identified a graduated rate estate designation missed on the first return, defaulting the estate to top-rate taxation and proposed an adjustment of $20,500, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We filed the separate rights-or-things return alongside the final T1, claiming a second set of personal credits, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $20,500 of it. The file closed in 5 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 2 · Backlog brought current
$113,000 Of Arbitrary Assessments Vacated After 7 Years — Trustee of an Alter-Ego, Kelowna
Client: A trustee of an alter-ego trust · Where: Kelowna, British Columbia · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Arbitrary tax vacated$113,000
Years brought current7
Account statusCurrent
The situation
7 years of unfiled returns had turned into notional assessments at a trustee of an alter-ego trust in Kelowna, British Columbia, with a farm transfer completed without using the intergenerational rollover underneath. Collections had already started.
What we did
We implemented an estate freeze with a supported valuation, capping the current generation’s exposure and moving future growth to the successors, then filed every outstanding year in chronological order so the CRA could vacate the notional assessments cleanly.
The result
All 7 years were accepted as filed. $113,000 of arbitrarily assessed tax was vacated, collections action stopped, and the account is current for the first time in 7 years.
Case Study 3 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $117,000 Penalty Avoided — Estate Holding a Private, Lethbridge
Client: An estate holding a private corporation · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$117,000
Turnaround10 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation
An estate holding a private corporation in Lethbridge, Alberta came to us 10 weeks before its filing deadline with a final return filed without the rights-or-things election, leaving a second set of credits unused. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $117,000 before interest.
What we did
We worked backwards from the deadline. We made the graduated rate estate designation and re-filed, moving the estate off top-marginal-rate taxation for its first three years, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result
The return was filed on time and complete. The $117,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 4 · Planning that cut the bill
Remuneration Review Saved $11,500 Across Corporate And Personal Returns — Family with a Cottage, Calgary
Client: A family with a cottage held in trust · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Combined saving$11,500
ScopeCorporate + personal
Future yearsNo rework needed
The situation
Nothing was wrong at a family with a cottage held in trust in Calgary, Alberta — the filings were on time and accurate. What they were not was planned. A family trust approaching its 21-year deemed disposition with no plan had never been reviewed.
What we did
We filed the outstanding T3 returns with full beneficial-ownership schedules and secured relief on the late-filing penalty, and 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
$11,500 came off the combined corporate and personal tax bill, and the structure holds for future years without further work.
Case Study 5 · Missed incentive claimed
Incentive Review Recovered $91,000 Across 7 Open Years — Trustee Facing the Expanded, Mississauga
Client: A trustee facing the expanded reporting rules · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Recovered$91,000
Open years claimed7
Ongoing trackingIn place
The situation
An incentive review at a trustee facing the expanded reporting rules in Mississauga, Ontario started from a simple question: what has never been claimed? The answer ran to 7 years, driven by a farm transfer completed without using the intergenerational rollover.
What we did
We filed the separate rights-or-things return alongside the final T1, claiming a second set of personal credits, documenting eligibility to the standard a reviewer would apply rather than the standard a claim form requires.
The result
The credits produced $91,000 across the open years, and the tracking now in place means the following year's claim is documented as the work happens rather than reconstructed afterwards.
Case Study 6 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $31,500 Of Annual Savings — Business Owner Planning an, Ottawa
Client: A business owner planning an estate freeze · Where: Ottawa, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$31,500
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation
The structure at a business owner planning an estate freeze in Ottawa, Ontario had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and a graduated rate estate designation missed on the first return, defaulting the estate to top-rate taxation had become expensive.
What we did
We implemented an estate freeze with a supported valuation, capping the current generation’s exposure and moving future growth to the successors. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result
$31,500 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.
