6 Personal Services Business 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 personal services business tax return work, not a general example.
Client: A technology CCPC approaching its first profitable year · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty cancelled$81,000
Relief applicationGranted
ReturnAccepted as filed
The situation
A technology CCPC approaching its first profitable year in Calgary, Alberta had already missed one deadline and was about to miss a second. Behind it sat two corporations under common control filing as if each had its own $500,000 limit, and a penalty of $81,000 was accruing.
What we did
We split the work into what had to happen before the deadline and what could follow it, 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
The outstanding return was accepted as filed, and the taxpayer relief application cancelled $81,000 of the penalty already assessed on the earlier year.
Case Study 2 · Objection and relief
Notice Of Objection Allowed In Full, $107,000 Reversed — Incorporated Consultancy, Regina
An incorporated consultancy in Regina, Saskatchewan had been reassessed for $107,000 and had 20 days left on the objection deadline. The reassessment rested on a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date.
What we did
We filed the objection inside the deadline with a complete submission rather than a placeholder, and moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down.
The result
The appeals officer allowed the objection in full. $107,000 was reversed and the account returned to a nil balance.
Client: A second-generation family manufacturer · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$45,000
ReorganisationTax-neutral
StructureMatches operations
The situation
A second-generation family manufacturer in Mississauga, Ontario was carrying passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed, and every option for fixing it ran through a reorganisation that had to be done without triggering tax.
What we did
Working with the client's lawyer, 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 prepared the elections, resolutions and valuations the structure needed to stand up.
The result
The structure now matches the business. Annual saving of $45,000, and the reorganisation itself was tax-neutral.
Case Study 4 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $117,000 Cut From A 5-Year Backlog — Holding Company and Its, Red Deer
Client: A holding company and its operating subsidiary · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$117,000
Backlog cleared5 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation
By the time a holding company and its operating subsidiary in Red Deer, Alberta called, 5 years were outstanding and the CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped.
What we did
We reconstructed the records year by year and rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual. Each filing replaced an arbitrary assessment with a real one.
The result
The account is current. Filing on real numbers rather than CRA estimates reduced the balance by $117,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
Case Study 5 · Sale and succession
$635,000 Sheltered By The Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption — Import and Distribution Corporation, Ottawa
Client: An import and distribution corporation · Where: Ottawa, Ontario · Engagement: 7 weeks, fixed fee
Gain sheltered$635,000
ClosingOn schedule
Share qualificationMet
The situation
An import and distribution corporation in Ottawa, Ontario had an offer on the table and 11 months to close. The shares did not qualify for the capital gains exemption, and a minute book with no resolutions behind a decade of dividends was part of the reason.
What we did
We purified the corporation so the shares met the qualifying tests, then modelled salary against dividends across both the corporation and the shareholder’s personal return, then set the remuneration mix for the year well ahead of the closing date.
The result
The sale closed on schedule with $635,000 sheltered by the lifetime capital gains exemption across the shareholders.
Case Study 6 · Missed incentive claimed
Incentive Review Recovered $36,500 Across 3 Open Years — Incorporated Trades Business, Windsor
Client: An incorporated trades business · Where: Windsor, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Recovered$36,500
Open years claimed3
Ongoing trackingIn place
The situation
An incentive review at an incorporated trades business in Windsor, Ontario started from a simple question: what has never been claimed? The answer ran to 3 years, driven by a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date.
What we did
We moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down, documenting eligibility to the standard a reviewer would apply rather than the standard a claim form requires.
The result
The credits produced $36,500 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.
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.
