6 Partnership Dissolution Tax Filing 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 partnership dissolution tax filing work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $70,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Sole Proprietor Consultant, Winnipeg
Client: A sole proprietor consultant · Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Cash returned$70,000
Instalment basisCurrent year
ReviewedQuarterly
The situation
A sole proprietor consultant in Winnipeg, Manitoba was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. Business income reported entirely on one spouse’s return despite shared operations was tying up $70,000 of cash.
What we did
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and filed the outstanding T5013 returns with full partner allocations and requested penalty relief on the basis of the first-time nature of the failure.
The result
$70,000 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
7 Years Filed, $140,000 Removed From The Assessed Balance — Food-Truck Sole Proprietorship, Victoria
Client: A food-truck sole proprietorship · Where: Victoria, British Columbia · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Years filed7
Assessed balance removed$140,000
CollectionsStopped
The situation
A food-truck sole proprietorship in Victoria, British Columbia had not filed for 7 years. The CRA had issued arbitrary assessments, and the business was carrying an incorporation completed without the section 85 election, triggering an unnecessary gain on top of a growing interest balance.
What we did
We started with the oldest year and worked forward so each year's closing balances fed the next. We restructured the draw policy so no partner’s adjusted cost base went negative again, and reported the deemed gain correctly for the year it arose, filing the years in sequence rather than all at once.
The result
Every year is now filed and assessed on actual figures. The notional assessments were vacated and $140,000 of the estimated balance came off, with a payment arrangement covering the rest.
Case Study 3 · Planning that cut the bill
$21,500 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Joint-Venture Property Partnership, Edmonton
Client: A joint-venture property partnership · Where: Edmonton, Alberta · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$21,500
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
A joint-venture property partnership in Edmonton, Alberta asked for a second opinion on partnership dissolution tax filing after three years of rising tax. The review found a partnership that crossed the T5013 threshold two years before anyone noticed.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then rewrote the partnership allocation to match how the practice actually operated, effective for the following fiscal year.
The result
First-year saving of $21,500, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 4 · Structure rebuilt
Reorganisation Completed Tax-Deferred, $24,000 Saved Each Year — Three-Partner Medical Clinic, Kitchener
Client: A three-partner medical clinic · Where: Kitchener, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$24,000
Tax on reorganisationDeferred
Elections filedOn time
The situation
A three-partner medical clinic in Kitchener, Ontario had outgrown the structure it started with. Partner draws that had pushed one partner’s adjusted cost base negative was the immediate problem; the longer-term one was that the structure blocked the next step.
What we did
We mapped the current structure, modelled the target, and filed the section 85 election with correct elected amounts and rolled the assets in without a taxable disposition — with the tax-deferred elections filed on time and the supporting valuations documented.
The result
The reorganisation completed without triggering tax, and the new structure saves approximately $24,000 a year while removing the exposure the old one carried.
Case Study 5 · Scaling without breaking
Scaled To 35 Staff With $80,000 Of Working Capital Freed — Two-Partner Architecture Practice, Vancouver
Client: A two-partner architecture practice · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Headcount reached35
Working capital freed$80,000
Missed deadlinesZero
The situation
A two-partner architecture practice in Vancouver, British Columbia was growing fast — headcount to 35 in eighteen months — and the back office had not kept up. A profit split applied in practice that the written agreement did not support was the first thing to break.
What we did
We filed the outstanding T5013 returns with full partner allocations and requested penalty relief on the basis of the first-time nature of the failure, and built the compliance calendar for the size the business was becoming rather than the size it had been.
The result
The business reached 35 staff with no missed remittance and no late filing. $80,000 of working capital was freed in the process.
Case Study 6 · Objection and relief
$71,000 Of Penalties And Interest Cancelled On Relief — Freelance Developer, Brampton
An assessment of $71,000 landed at a freelance developer in Brampton, Ontario following a desk review. The auditor had not seen the records behind business income reported entirely on one spouse’s return despite shared operations.
What we did
We restructured the draw policy so no partner’s adjusted cost base went negative again, and reported the deemed gain correctly for the year it arose, then set out the legislative basis for the position alongside the documents supporting it.
The result
$71,000 of penalties and interest was cancelled under the taxpayer relief provisions, and the underlying assessment was adjusted to match the filed position.
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.
