6 GRIP and Eligible Dividend Planning 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 grip and eligible dividend planning work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Scaling without breaking
Scaled To 33 Staff With $55,000 Of Working Capital Freed — CCPC with Two Shareholders, Guelph
Client: A CCPC with two shareholders · Where: Guelph, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Headcount reached33
Working capital freed$55,000
Missed deadlinesZero
The situation
A CCPC with two shareholders in Guelph, Ontario was growing fast — headcount to 33 in eighteen months — and the back office had not kept up. Passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed was the first thing to break.
What we did
We mapped the association rules across the group, allocated the business limit deliberately on Schedule 23, and corrected the prior year by adjustment request, and built the compliance calendar for the size the business was becoming rather than the size it had been.
The result
The business reached 33 staff with no missed remittance and no late filing. $55,000 of working capital was freed in the process.
Case Study 2 · Records and systems rebuilt
Month-End Close Cut From 10 Weeks To 9 Days — Professional Corporation, Windsor
Client: A professional corporation · Where: Windsor, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Close time before10 weeks
Close time after9 days
Year-endReview, not rebuild
The situation
The accounting file at a professional corporation in Windsor, Ontario was built on a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date. The year-end had taken 10 weeks each of the last three years.
What we did
We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual and moved the reconciliations into the monthly cycle, so the year-end stopped being a rebuild.
The result
The file reconciles. Month-end closes in 9 days instead of 10 weeks, and the year-end is a review rather than a reconstruction.
Case Study 3 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $59,000 Of Annual Savings — Franchise Operator with Three, Regina
Client: A franchise operator with three locations · Where: Regina, Saskatchewan · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$59,000
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation
The structure at a franchise operator with three locations in Regina, Saskatchewan had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and two corporations under common control filing as if each had its own $500,000 limit had become expensive.
What we did
We moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result
$59,000 of annual saving, achieved on a tax-deferred basis. The minute book, elections and valuations are all in the file.
Case Study 4 · Missed incentive claimed
$115,000 In Credits Claimed That Prior Filings Had Missed — Corporately-Owned Rental Portfolio, Saskatoon
A corporately-owned rental portfolio in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan had been filing for 7 years without ever claiming the incentives its activity qualified for. Behind that sat two corporations under common control filing as if each had its own $500,000 limit.
What we did
We tested each activity against the eligibility criteria rather than the description on the invoice, then modelled salary against dividends across both the corporation and the shareholder’s personal return, then set the remuneration mix for the year.
The result
$115,000 in credits claimed, with the open prior years adjusted as well. The claim passed review without adjustment.
Case Study 5 · Planning that cut the bill
$28,500 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Incorporated Trades Business, Winnipeg
Client: An incorporated trades business · Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$28,500
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
An incorporated trades business in Winnipeg, Manitoba asked for a second opinion on grip and eligible dividend planning after three years of rising tax. The review found a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then mapped the association rules across the group, allocated the business limit deliberately on Schedule 23, and corrected the prior year by adjustment request.
The result
First-year saving of $28,500, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 6 · Deadline rescue
6-Week Turnaround Beat The Deadline And Saved $17,000 — Holding Company and Its, Vancouver
Client: A holding company and its operating subsidiary · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Late-filing penalty avoided$17,000
Filed with18 days to spare
Next yearPapers ready
The situation
With the deadline for grip and eligible dividend planning weeks away, a holding company and its operating subsidiary in Vancouver, British Columbia was carrying passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed. The exposure if the date slipped was around $17,000.
What we did
We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual. The filing went in complete rather than provisional, so there was no amended return to follow.
The result
Filed with 18 days to spare. $17,000 in late-filing penalties avoided, and the working papers are ready for the following year.
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.
