6 worked Professional Tax Return 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 professional tax return work, not a specific client's file.
Case Study 1 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $135,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — Pension-Splitting Retiree, Toronto
Client: A retiree splitting eligible pension income with a spouse · Where: Toronto, Ontario · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Cash returned$135,000
Instalment basisCurrent year
ReviewedQuarterly
The situation — A retiree splitting eligible pension income with a spouse, Toronto, Ontario
A retiree splitting eligible pension income with a spouse in Toronto, Ontario was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. Years of small donation receipts claimed one at a time instead of pooled onto a single return was tying up $135,000 of cash.
What we did for A retiree splitting eligible pension income with a spouse, Toronto, Ontario
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and obtained the signed T2200 and rebuilt the employment-expense claim on the prescribed form with the supporting records attached to the file.
The result — A retiree splitting eligible pension income with a spouse, Toronto, Ontario
$135,000 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
Collections Halted And $75,000 Cut From A 4-Year Backlog — Employee with Foreign Accounts, Edmonton
Client: An employee with foreign investment accounts · Where: Edmonton, Alberta · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Balance reduced by$75,000
Backlog cleared4 years
CollectionsHalted
The situation — An employee with foreign investment accounts, Edmonton, Alberta
By the time an employee with foreign investment accounts in Edmonton, Alberta called, 4 years were outstanding and the CRA had assessed on estimates. Underneath it sat a rental property reported without any capital cost allowance analysis.
What we did for An employee with foreign investment accounts, Edmonton, Alberta
We reconstructed the records year by year and reported the disposition and filed the principal residence designation for the year of sale, closing the late-designation exposure before the CRA raised it. Each filing replaced an arbitrary assessment with a real one.
The result — An employee with foreign investment accounts, Edmonton, Alberta
The account is current. Filing on real numbers rather than CRA estimates reduced the balance by $75,000, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
Case Study 3 · Planning that cut the bill
$32,500 Cut From The Annual Tax Bill — Self-Employed Consultant, Surrey
Client: A self-employed consultant · Where: Surrey, British Columbia · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
First-year saving$32,500
RepeatsAnnually
Filing positionUnchanged in risk
The situation — A self-employed consultant, Surrey, British Columbia
A self-employed consultant in Surrey, British Columbia was compliant but paying more than it needed to. The prior year had been filed correctly and still left employment expenses claimed with no signed T2200 from the employer to support them on the table.
What we did for A self-employed consultant, Surrey, British Columbia
We modelled the current position against the alternatives before changing anything, then carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance.
The result — A self-employed consultant, Surrey, British Columbia
The change saved $32,500 in the first year and repeats annually. Nothing about the filings became more aggressive; the position is simply the one the rules already allowed.
Client: A physician in their first year of practice · Where: Burnaby, British Columbia · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Annual saving$49,000
ReorganisationTax-neutral
StructureMatches operations
The situation — A physician in their first year of practice, Burnaby, British Columbia
A physician in their first year of practice in Burnaby, British Columbia was carrying RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year, and every option for fixing it ran through a reorganisation that had to be done without triggering tax.
What we did for A physician in their first year of practice, Burnaby, British Columbia
Working with the client's lawyer, we pulled the full slip history from the CRA record, refiled the affected years by adjustment request, and recovered the credits that had been missed and prepared the elections, resolutions and valuations the structure needed to stand up.
The result — A physician in their first year of practice, Burnaby, British Columbia
The structure now matches the business. Annual saving of $49,000, and the reorganisation itself was tax-neutral.
Case Study 5 · Scaling without breaking
Second-Province Expansion Handled, $71,000 Of Cash Released — Commissioned Salesperson, Red Deer
Client: A commissioned salesperson · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Cash released$71,000
New registrationsComplete on day one
Compliance gapsNone
The situation — A commissioned salesperson, Red Deer, Alberta
Revenue at a commissioned salesperson in Red Deer, Alberta was up sharply and cash was tighter than ever. Underneath it sat three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address.
What we did for A commissioned salesperson, Red Deer, Alberta
We recalculated the instalments on the current year’s expected income rather than the prior year’s, which stopped the instalment interest from growing. Every new obligation — registration, remittance frequency, provincial filing — was set up before it was triggered, not after.
The result — A commissioned salesperson, Red Deer, Alberta
$71,000 of cash was released from the working capital cycle, and the expansion completed with every registration and filing obligation covered from day one.
Case Study 6 · CRA review defended
$24,500 Reassessment Reduced To Nil On Review — Student Filer, Barrie
Client: A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings · Where: Barrie, Ontario · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Reassessment reduced toNil
Tax protected$24,500
Prior filingsUndisturbed
The situation — A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Barrie, Ontario
A review notice arrived at a full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings in Barrie, Ontario covering professional tax return for two tax years. The auditor's working position was an adjustment of $24,500, driven by foreign accounts that had crossed the T1135 threshold two years earlier.
What we did for A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Barrie, Ontario
Rather than negotiate, we rebuilt the record. We pooled the carried-forward donation receipts onto the higher-income spouse’s return so the whole claim sat above the low-rate first tier and submitted a point-by-point response that answered each proposed adjustment with the document behind it.
The result — A full-time student with tuition credits and part-time earnings, Barrie, Ontario
The auditor accepted the documented position and closed the review without adjustment, protecting $24,500 and leaving the prior filings undisturbed.
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.
