6 RDTOH and Dividend Refund Planning 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 rdtoh and dividend refund planning work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Objection and relief
Desk-Review Assessment Of $34,000 Vacated — Franchise Operator with Three, Edmonton
Client: A franchise operator with three locations · Where: Edmonton, Alberta · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Assessment vacated$34,000
Supporting recordsNow on file
AccountCleared
The situation
A franchise operator with three locations in Edmonton, Alberta was carrying $34,000 of penalties and interest arising from a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
What we did
We rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result
The assessment was vacated. $34,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
Case Study 2 · Deadline rescue
6-Week Turnaround Beat The Deadline And Saved $32,500 — Import and Distribution Corporation, Calgary
Client: An import and distribution corporation · Where: Calgary, Alberta · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Late-filing penalty avoided$32,500
Filed with12 days to spare
Next yearPapers ready
The situation
With the deadline for rdtoh and dividend refund planning weeks away, an import and distribution corporation in Calgary, Alberta was carrying two corporations under common control filing as if each had its own $500,000 limit. The exposure if the date slipped was around $32,500.
What we did
We mapped the association rules across the group, allocated the business limit deliberately on Schedule 23, and corrected the prior year by adjustment request. The filing went in complete rather than provisional, so there was no amended return to follow.
The result
Filed with 12 days to spare. $32,500 in late-filing penalties avoided, and the working papers are ready for the following year.
Case Study 3 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $19,500 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Incorporated Consultancy, Guelph
An incorporated consultancy in Guelph, Ontario could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because passive investment income that had crossed the $50,000 grind threshold unnoticed sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We modelled salary against dividends across both the corporation and the shareholder’s personal return, then set the remuneration mix for the year, then documented the process so the work does not depend on any one person remembering how it was done.
The result
Records rebuilt and reconciled, $19,500 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 4 · Cash and remittance control
Instalments Rebased, $132,000 Of Cash Returned To The Business — CCPC with Two Shareholders, Moncton
Client: A CCPC with two shareholders · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Cash returned$132,000
Instalment basisCurrent year
ReviewedQuarterly
The situation
A CCPC with two shareholders in Moncton, New Brunswick was paying instalments calculated on a prior year that no longer reflected the business. Retained earnings building in the operating company with no plan for extracting them was tying up $132,000 of cash.
What we did
We rebased the instalments on the current-year estimate rather than the prior-year default, and moved passive holdings into a separate structure so the operating company’s small business limit stopped grinding down.
The result
$132,000 of cash stayed in the business, the penalty cycle ended, and the instalment position is reviewed each quarter against actual results.
Case Study 5 · Planning that cut the bill
$53,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Corporately-Owned Rental Portfolio, Red Deer
Client: A corporately-owned rental portfolio · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$53,000
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
A corporately-owned rental portfolio in Red Deer, Alberta asked for a second opinion on rdtoh and dividend refund planning after three years of rising tax. The review found a balance-due date the owner believed was the same as the filing date.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then rebuilt the instalment schedule off the current year rather than the prior year, ending the interest accrual.
The result
First-year saving of $53,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 6 · Scaling without breaking
Growth Handled Without A Missed Filing, $27,000 Freed — Holding Company and Its, Brampton
Client: A holding company and its operating subsidiary · Where: Brampton, Ontario · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Cash freed$27,000
Compliance failuresNone
ReportingMonthly
The situation
A holding company and its operating subsidiary in Brampton, Ontario was opening in a second province — different filing obligations, a different payroll regime, and a small business limit quietly shared across three associated corporations nobody had mapped already in the file.
What we did
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 put monthly reporting in place so the owner could see the cash effect of growth while there was still time to act on it.
The result
Growth was absorbed without a compliance failure. $27,000 of cash was released, and the monthly reporting now flags a problem while it is still small.
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.
