6 Separation and Divorce Tax Review 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 separation and divorce tax review work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Planning that cut the bill
$49,000 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Retiree Drawing From Three, Red Deer
Client: A retiree drawing from three sources · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$49,000
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
A retiree drawing from three sources in Red Deer, Alberta asked for a second opinion on separation and divorce tax review after three years of rising tax. The review found three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and 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
First-year saving of $49,000, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 2 · Deadline rescue
11-Week Turnaround Beat The Deadline And Saved $38,000 — Employee with Foreign Investment, Edmonton
Client: An employee with foreign investment accounts · Where: Edmonton, Alberta · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Late-filing penalty avoided$38,000
Filed with9 days to spare
Next yearPapers ready
The situation
With the deadline for separation and divorce tax review weeks away, an employee with foreign investment accounts in Edmonton, Alberta was carrying RRSP room accumulated over eight years and never used in a high-income year. The exposure if the date slipped was around $38,000.
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. The filing went in complete rather than provisional, so there was no amended return to follow.
The result
Filed with 9 days to spare. $38,000 in late-filing penalties avoided, and the working papers are ready for the following year.
Case Study 3 · Backlog brought current
4 Years Filed, $130,000 Removed From The Assessed Balance — Physician in Their First, Victoria
Client: A physician in their first year of practice · Where: Victoria, British Columbia · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Years filed4
Assessed balance removed$130,000
CollectionsStopped
The situation
A physician in their first year of practice in Victoria, British Columbia had not filed for 4 years. The CRA had issued arbitrary assessments, and the business was carrying medical expenses claimed on a calendar-year basis when a shifted window was worth far more 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 filed the outstanding T1135 disclosures under the voluntary disclosure route before the CRA raised them, 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 $130,000 of the estimated balance came off, with a payment arrangement covering the rest.
Case Study 4 · CRA review defended
$13,500 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Self-Employed Consultant, Ottawa
A self-employed consultant in Ottawa, Ontario received a proposal letter opening a review of separation and divorce tax review. The CRA had identified foreign accounts that had crossed the T1135 threshold two years earlier and proposed an adjustment of $13,500, 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 $13,500 of it. The file closed in 7 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Remittances at a commissioned salesperson in Windsor, Ontario were consistently late by a few days, which was enough to trigger penalties every quarter. Behind it sat a rental property reported without any capital cost allowance analysis.
What we did
We carried the capital loss back against gains reported in the prior three years and generated a refund rather than a carry-forward balance, then moved the remittance dates into a scheduled process rather than a monthly decision.
The result
Penalties stopped from the following remittance onwards, and $25,000 of overpaid instalments was refunded.
Case Study 6 · Objection and relief
Desk-Review Assessment Of $65,000 Vacated — First-Time Home Buyer, Winnipeg
Client: A first-time home buyer · Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Assessment vacated$65,000
Supporting recordsNow on file
AccountCleared
The situation
A first-time home buyer in Winnipeg, Manitoba was carrying $65,000 of penalties and interest arising from three years of returns filed without the slips that had been mailed to an old address, much of it accumulated during a period the CRA itself had delayed.
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 and framed the relief application on the specific grounds the CRA guidelines recognise rather than on general hardship.
The result
The assessment was vacated. $65,000 came off the account, and the documentation now on file makes the same position straightforward to defend next time.
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.
