6 Financial Statement Preparation 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 financial statement preparation work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
Notice Of Objection Allowed In Full, $102,000 Reversed — Family-Owned Wholesale Distributor, Halifax
Client: A family-owned wholesale distributor · Where: Halifax, Nova Scotia · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Amount reversed$102,000
ObjectionAllowed in full
Account balanceNil
The situation
A family-owned wholesale distributor in Halifax, Nova Scotia had been reassessed for $102,000 and had 8 days left on the objection deadline. The reassessment rested on two sets of numbers — one in the accounting file, one the owner actually ran the business on.
What we did
We filed the objection inside the deadline with a complete submission rather than a placeholder, and reconciled the inter-company accounts, papered the arrangement with a written agreement, and aligned both corporations’ year-ends.
The result
The appeals officer allowed the objection in full. $102,000 was reversed and the account returned to a nil balance.
Case Study 2 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $89,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Specialty Food Importer, Hamilton
A specialty food importer in Hamilton, Ontario was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. A bank that refused to renew an operating line without compliant statements was tying up $89,000 of cash.
What we did
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and rebuilt the trial balance from source documents, reconciled every bank and credit-card account, and issued a CSRS 4200 compilation with a proper basis-of-accounting note.
The result
$89,000 of cash stayed in the business, the penalty cycle ended, and the instalment position is reviewed each quarter against actual results.
Case Study 3 · CRA review defended
$97,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Machine-Shop Owner-Operator, Ottawa
A machine-shop owner-operator in Ottawa, Ontario received a proposal letter opening a review of financial statement preparation. The CRA had identified year-end statements that arrived four months late and never tied to the bank and proposed an adjustment of $97,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We separated personal and corporate spending, cleared the shareholder loan through a documented salary and dividend mix, and restated the comparative year, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $97,000 of it. The file closed in 7 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 4 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $33,000 Cut From A 3-Year Backlog — Growing Landscaping Company, Mississauga
Client: A growing landscaping company · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$33,000
Backlog cleared3 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation
By the time a growing landscaping company in Mississauga, Ontario called, 3 years were outstanding and the CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat inter-company balances between two related corporations that had never been reconciled.
What we did
We reconstructed the records year by year and set a monthly close calendar with a fixed cut-off, so the year-end became a review of work already done rather than a twelve-month rebuild. 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 $33,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
Case Study 5 · Deadline rescue
$103,000 Late-Filing Penalty Cancelled On Relief Application — Boutique Fitness Studio Group, Calgary
Client: A boutique fitness studio group · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty cancelled$103,000
Relief applicationGranted
ReturnAccepted as filed
The situation
A boutique fitness studio group in Calgary, Alberta had already missed one deadline and was about to miss a second. Behind it sat a shareholder loan account that had drifted for three years with no supporting entries, and a penalty of $103,000 was accruing.
What we did
We split the work into what had to happen before the deadline and what could follow it, then reconciled the inter-company accounts, papered the arrangement with a written agreement, and aligned both corporations’ year-ends.
The result
The outstanding return was accepted as filed, and the taxpayer relief application cancelled $103,000 of the penalty already assessed on the earlier year.
Case Study 6 · Planning that cut the bill
$67,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Two-Partner Engineering Firm, Lethbridge
Client: A two-partner engineering firm · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$67,000
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
A two-partner engineering firm in Lethbridge, Alberta asked for a second opinion on financial statement preparation after three years of rising tax. The review found two sets of numbers — one in the accounting file, one the owner actually ran the business on.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then rebuilt the trial balance from source documents, reconciled every bank and credit-card account, and issued a CSRS 4200 compilation with a proper basis-of-accounting note.
The result
First-year saving of $67,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported 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.
