6 worked GST Returns 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 gst returns work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $17,000 Penalty Avoided — Interprovincial Marketing Agency, Regina
Client: A marketing agency billing outside its home province · Where: Regina, Saskatchewan · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$17,000
Turnaround8 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation — A marketing agency billing outside its home province, Regina, Saskatchewan
A marketing agency billing outside its home province in Regina, Saskatchewan came to us 8 weeks before its filing deadline with a sales tax account filed annually while the CRA had moved the business to quarterly. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $17,000 before interest.
What we did for A marketing agency billing outside its home province, Regina, Saskatchewan
We worked backwards from the deadline. We filed the section 156 election for the related registrants, so supplies between them stopped carrying tax that served no purpose but cash-flow drag, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result — A marketing agency billing outside its home province, Regina, Saskatchewan
The return was filed on time and complete. The $17,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 2 · Missed incentive claimed
Incentive Review Recovered $46,000 Across 3 Open Years — Late GST/HST Registrant, Barrie
Client: A seller who crossed the registration threshold before registering · Where: Barrie, Ontario · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Recovered$46,000
Open years claimed3
Ongoing trackingIn place
The situation — A seller who crossed the registration threshold before registering, Barrie, Ontario
An incentive review at a seller who crossed the registration threshold before registering in Barrie, Ontario started from a simple question: what has never been claimed? The answer ran to 3 years, driven by nil periods left unfiled, which held up the refund on the one period that mattered.
What we did for A seller who crossed the registration threshold before registering, Barrie, Ontario
We backdated the registration to the day the threshold was crossed, remitted the tax owing, and applied for relief on the penalty portion, documenting eligibility to the standard a reviewer would apply rather than the standard a claim form requires.
The result — A seller who crossed the registration threshold before registering, Barrie, Ontario
The credits produced $46,000 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 3 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $7,000 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Used-Equipment Dealer, Vancouver
Client: A used-equipment dealer · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$7,000
Records rebuilt32 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation — A used-equipment dealer, Vancouver, British Columbia
A used-equipment dealer in Vancouver, British Columbia could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because input tax credits claimed on the exempt side of a mixed-supply business sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did for A used-equipment dealer, Vancouver, British Columbia
We brought the nil and missing periods current so the account was clean before the refund claim was filed, then documented the process so the work does not depend on any one person remembering how it was done.
The result — A used-equipment dealer, Vancouver, British Columbia
Records rebuilt and reconciled, $7,000 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 4 · Sale and succession
Intergenerational Transfer Completed With $775,000 Deferred — Exempt-Supply Clinic, Surrey
Client: A health clinic making exempt supplies · Where: Surrey, British Columbia · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Tax deferred$775,000
TransferCompleted
RecordsReview-ready
The situation — A health clinic making exempt supplies, Surrey, British Columbia
A generational transfer at a health clinic making exempt supplies in Surrey, British Columbia had been discussed for years without a plan. A single shareholder holding every share, with no room to multiply the exemption meant the transfer as contemplated would have been fully taxable.
What we did for A health clinic making exempt supplies, Surrey, British Columbia
We assembled the export documentation, restored zero-rating on the qualifying sales, and reduced the proposed assessment, sequencing the steps so each one was complete and documented before the next depended on it.
The result — A health clinic making exempt supplies, Surrey, British Columbia
$775,000 of tax was deferred through the transfer, and the successor generation took over a corporation whose records stood up to review.
Case Study 5 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $108,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Restaurant Group, Kitchener
Client: A restaurant group · Where: Kitchener, Ontario · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Cash returned$108,000
Instalment basisCurrent year
ReviewedQuarterly
The situation — A restaurant group, Kitchener, Ontario
A restaurant group in Kitchener, Ontario was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. HST charged at the home-province rate on sales into four different provinces was tying up $108,000 of cash.
What we did for A restaurant group, Kitchener, Ontario
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and rebuilt the sales ledger by customer province, applied the correct place-of-supply rate to each stream, and filed corrected returns before the CRA opened a review.
The result — A restaurant group, Kitchener, Ontario
$108,000 of cash stayed in the business, the penalty cycle ended, and the instalment position is reviewed each quarter against actual results.
Case Study 6 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $98,000 Cut From A 4-Year Backlog — Digital Platform Seller, Kelowna
Client: A platform seller collecting tax at checkout · Where: Kelowna, British Columbia · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$98,000
Backlog cleared4 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation — A platform seller collecting tax at checkout, Kelowna, British Columbia
By the time a platform seller collecting tax at checkout in Kelowna, British Columbia called, 4 years were outstanding and the CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat export sales zero-rated with no shipping documentation behind them.
What we did for A platform seller collecting tax at checkout, Kelowna, British Columbia
We reconstructed the records year by year and self-assessed the tax on the real property acquisition in the correct reporting period and claimed the offsetting input tax credit in the same return. Each filing replaced an arbitrary assessment with a real one.
The result — A platform seller collecting tax at checkout, Kelowna, British Columbia
The account is current. Filing on real numbers rather than CRA estimates reduced the balance by $98,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
Reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Founder and Tax Accountant. 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.
