6 worked Online Bookkeeping 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 online bookkeeping work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $103,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Specialty Coffee Roaster, Red Deer
Client: A specialty coffee roaster · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Cash returned$103,000
Instalment basisCurrent year
ReviewedQuarterly
The situation — A specialty coffee roaster, Red Deer, Alberta
A specialty coffee roaster in Red Deer, Alberta was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. Meals and entertainment coded at full cost with the input tax credit claimed on the whole amount was tying up $103,000 of cash.
What we did for A specialty coffee roaster, Red Deer, Alberta
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and converted the foreign-currency purchases at transaction-date rates and recorded the exchange difference at settlement instead of burying it in cost of sales.
The result — A specialty coffee roaster, Red Deer, Alberta
$103,000 of cash stayed in the business, the penalty cycle ended, and the instalment position is reviewed each quarter against actual results.
Case Study 2 · Backlog brought current
$129,000 Of Arbitrary Assessments Vacated After 7 Years — Multi-Processor Online Seller, London
Client: An online seller reconciling three payment processors · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Arbitrary tax vacated$129,000
Years brought current7
Account statusCurrent
The situation — An online seller reconciling three payment processors, London, Ontario
7 years of unfiled returns had turned into notional assessments at an online seller reconciling three payment processors in London, Ontario, with sales recorded from bank deposits, so processor fees, chargebacks and refunds appeared nowhere in the ledger underneath. Collections had already started.
What we did for An online seller reconciling three payment processors, London, Ontario
We rebuilt the ledger from bank and card statements, matched every receipt to a transaction, and removed duplicated input tax credits before they became a review, then filed every outstanding year in chronological order so the CRA could vacate the notional assessments cleanly.
The result — An online seller reconciling three payment processors, London, Ontario
All 7 years were accepted as filed. $129,000 of arbitrarily assessed tax was vacated, collections action stopped, and the account is current for the first time in 7 years.
Case Study 3 · Planning that cut the bill
$54,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Small Law Practice, Winnipeg
Client: A small law practice · Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$54,000
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation — A small law practice, Winnipeg, Manitoba
A small law practice in Winnipeg, Manitoba asked for a second opinion on online bookkeeping after three years of rising tax. The review found a receivables list that included invoices collected eleven months earlier.
What we did for A small law practice, Winnipeg, Manitoba
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then separated the owner’s personal spending out of the corporate accounts and cleared the resulting shareholder loan properly.
The result — A small law practice, Winnipeg, Manitoba
First-year saving of $54,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 4 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $60,000 Of Annual Savings — Home-Renovation Contractor, Calgary
Client: A home-renovation contractor · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$60,000
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation — A home-renovation contractor, Calgary, Alberta
The structure at a home-renovation contractor in Calgary, Alberta had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and three years of returns filed off numbers nobody could trace back to a bank statement had become expensive.
What we did for A home-renovation contractor, Calgary, Alberta
We rebuilt sales from the processor settlement reports so gross sales, fees and refunds each landed in an account of their own. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result — A home-renovation contractor, Calgary, Alberta
$60,000 of annual saving, achieved on a tax-deferred basis. The minute book, elections and valuations are all in the file.
Case Study 5 · Scaling without breaking
Scaled To 71 Staff With $70,000 Of Working Capital Freed — Two-Location Cafe, Barrie
The situation — A two-location cafe, Barrie, Ontario
A two-location cafe in Barrie, Ontario was growing fast — headcount to 71 in eighteen months — and the back office had not kept up. A bookkeeping file where owner draws, payroll and supplier payments all landed in the same account was the first thing to break.
What we did for A two-location cafe, Barrie, Ontario
We cleared the payroll and sales tax clearing accounts every month and tied each remittance to the liability it settled, and built the compliance calendar for the size the business was becoming rather than the size it had been.
The result — A two-location cafe, Barrie, Ontario
The business reached 71 staff with no missed remittance and no late filing. $70,000 of working capital was freed in the process.
Case Study 6 · Objection and relief
Desk-Review Assessment Of $96,000 Vacated — Residential Cleaning Franchise, Kitchener
The situation — A residential cleaning franchise, Kitchener, Ontario
A residential cleaning franchise in Kitchener, Ontario was carrying $96,000 of penalties and interest arising from input tax credits claimed on receipts that had already been claimed once, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
What we did for A residential cleaning franchise, Kitchener, Ontario
We set up a documented chart of accounts, a receipt-capture workflow and a monthly reconciliation that closes within ten days of month-end and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result — A residential cleaning franchise, Kitchener, Ontario
The assessment was vacated. $96,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
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.
