6 Rental Income 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 rental income tax return work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · CRA review defended
$141,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Two-Income Household with Rental, London
Client: A two-income household with rental property · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Adjustment withdrawn$141,000
File closed in11 weeks
Penalties assessedNone
The situation
A two-income household with rental property in London, Ontario received a proposal letter opening a review of rental income tax return. The CRA had identified a rental property reported without any capital cost allowance analysis and proposed an adjustment of $141,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We reset the medical expense claim window, transferred credits between spouses, and applied the tuition and disability amounts to the return that used them, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $141,000 of it. The file closed in 11 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 2 · Missed incentive claimed
Incentive Review Recovered $103,000 Across 6 Open Years — Gig-Economy Driver, Hamilton
An incentive review at a gig-economy driver in Hamilton, Ontario started from a simple question: what has never been claimed? The answer ran to 6 years, driven by RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year.
What we did
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, documenting eligibility to the standard a reviewer would apply rather than the standard a claim form requires.
The result
The credits produced $103,000 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.
Case Study 3 · Objection and relief
$99,000 Of Penalties And Interest Cancelled On Relief — Recently Separated Taxpayer, Mississauga
An assessment of $99,000 landed at a recently separated taxpayer in Mississauga, Ontario following a desk review. The auditor had not seen the records behind medical expenses claimed on a calendar-year basis when a shifted window was worth far more.
What we did
We filed the outstanding T1135 disclosures under the voluntary disclosure route before the CRA raised them, then set out the legislative basis for the position alongside the documents supporting it.
The result
$99,000 of penalties and interest was cancelled under the taxpayer relief provisions, and the underlying assessment was adjusted to match the filed position.
Case Study 4 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $106,000 Penalty Avoided — Taxpayer with US-Source Dividends, Lethbridge
Client: A taxpayer with US-source dividends · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$106,000
Turnaround5 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation
A taxpayer with US-source dividends in Lethbridge, Alberta came to us 5 weeks before its filing deadline with RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $106,000 before interest.
What we did
We worked backwards from the deadline. We carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result
The return was filed on time and complete. The $106,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 5 · Records and systems rebuilt
27 Months Reconciled And $6,800 Of Input Tax Recovered — First-Time Home Buyer, Moncton
Client: A first-time home buyer · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Months reconciled27
Input tax recovered$6,800
Close time5 days
The situation
A first-time home buyer in Moncton, New Brunswick was carrying three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address. Nothing reconciled, and every filing started with 27 months of cleanup.
What we did
We rebuilt from source rather than correcting on top of the existing file. We reset the medical expense claim window, transferred credits between spouses, and applied the tuition and disability amounts to the return that used them, then set the routine that keeps it clean.
The result
27 months reconciled to the bank. The close now takes 5 days, and $6,800 of previously unclaimable input tax was recovered in the process.
Case Study 6 · Backlog brought current
Collections Halted And $34,500 Cut From A 7-Year Backlog — Commissioned Salesperson, Kitchener
By the time a commissioned salesperson in Kitchener, Ontario called, 7 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
We reconstructed the records year by year and pulled the full slip history from the CRA record, refiled the affected years by adjustment request, and recovered the credits that had been missed. 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 $34,500, and a relief application addressed part of the accumulated interest.
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.
