6 Gig Worker 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 gig worker tax return work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
Notice Of Objection Allowed In Full, $128,000 Reversed — Taxpayer with US-Source Dividends, Victoria
Client: A taxpayer with US-source dividends · Where: Victoria, British Columbia · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Amount reversed$128,000
ObjectionAllowed in full
Account balanceNil
The situation
A taxpayer with US-source dividends in Victoria, British Columbia had been reassessed for $128,000 and had 9 days left on the objection deadline. The reassessment rested on three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address.
What we did
We filed the objection inside the deadline with a complete submission rather than a placeholder, and filed the outstanding T1135 disclosures under the voluntary disclosure route before the CRA raised them.
The result
The appeals officer allowed the objection in full. $128,000 was reversed and the account returned to a nil balance.
Case Study 2 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $113,000 Penalty Avoided — First-Time Home Buyer, Surrey
Client: A first-time home buyer · Where: Surrey, British Columbia · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$113,000
Turnaround4 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation
A first-time home buyer in Surrey, British Columbia came to us 4 weeks before its filing deadline with foreign accounts that had crossed the T1135 threshold two years earlier. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $113,000 before interest.
What we did
We worked backwards from the deadline. We carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance, 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 $113,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 3 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $9,500 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Two-Income Household with Rental, Lethbridge
Client: A two-income household with rental property · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$9,500
Records rebuilt17 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation
A two-income household with rental property in Lethbridge, Alberta could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We reset the medical expense claim window, transferred credits between spouses, and applied the tuition and disability amounts to the return that used them, 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, $9,500 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 4 · CRA review defended
$96,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Gig-Economy Driver, Regina
A gig-economy driver in Regina, Saskatchewan received a proposal letter opening a review of gig worker tax return. The CRA had identified a rental property reported without any capital cost allowance analysis and proposed an adjustment of $96,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. 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, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $96,000 of it. The file closed in 11 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 5 · Missed incentive claimed
$21,000 Credit Claim Filed And Accepted Without Adjustment — Recently Separated Taxpayer, Ottawa
A recently separated taxpayer in Ottawa, Ontario assumed the credits did not apply to a business its size. Three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address meant they had applied all along.
What we did
We identified the qualifying activity, built the documentation to support it, and filed the outstanding T1135 disclosures under the voluntary disclosure route before the CRA raised them.
The result
$21,000 recovered. Because the eligibility analysis is on file, the same claim can be repeated each year with a fraction of the effort.
Case Study 6 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $63,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Self-Employed Consultant, Barrie
A self-employed consultant in Barrie, Ontario was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. Three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address was tying up $63,000 of cash.
What we did
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance.
The result
$63,000 of cash stayed in the business, the penalty cycle ended, and the instalment position is reviewed each quarter against actual results.
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.
