6 Trust Tax 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 trust tax planning work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · CRA review defended
$62,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Spousal Trust Following a, Vancouver
Client: A spousal trust following a death · Where: Vancouver, British Columbia · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Adjustment withdrawn$62,000
File closed in10 weeks
Penalties assessedNone
The situation
A spousal trust following a death in Vancouver, British Columbia received a proposal letter opening a review of trust tax planning. The CRA had identified a graduated rate estate designation missed on the first return, defaulting the estate to top-rate taxation and proposed an adjustment of $62,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We filed the outstanding T3 returns with full beneficial-ownership schedules and secured relief on the late-filing penalty, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $62,000 of it. The file closed in 10 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 2 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $20,500 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Trustee Facing the Expanded, Saskatoon
Client: A trustee facing the expanded reporting rules · Where: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$20,500
Records rebuilt27 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation
A trustee facing the expanded reporting rules in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because a family trust approaching its 21-year deemed disposition with no plan sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We implemented an estate freeze with a supported valuation, capping the current generation’s exposure and moving future growth to the successors, 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, $20,500 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Case Study 3 · Backlog brought current
$130,000 Of Arbitrary Assessments Vacated After 7 Years — Business Owner Planning an, Windsor
Client: A business owner planning an estate freeze · Where: Windsor, Ontario · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Arbitrary tax vacated$130,000
Years brought current7
Account statusCurrent
The situation
7 years of unfiled returns had turned into notional assessments at a business owner planning an estate freeze in Windsor, Ontario, with a farm transfer completed without using the intergenerational rollover underneath. Collections had already started.
What we did
We made the graduated rate estate designation and re-filed, moving the estate off top-marginal-rate taxation for its first three years, then filed every outstanding year in chronological order so the CRA could vacate the notional assessments cleanly.
The result
All 7 years were accepted as filed. $130,000 of arbitrarily assessed tax was vacated, collections action stopped, and the account is current for the first time in 7 years.
Case Study 4 · Scaling without breaking
Scaled To 60 Staff With $88,000 Of Working Capital Freed — Estate Holding a Private, Mississauga
Client: An estate holding a private corporation · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Headcount reached60
Working capital freed$88,000
Missed deadlinesZero
The situation
An estate holding a private corporation in Mississauga, Ontario was growing fast — headcount to 60 in eighteen months — and the back office had not kept up. A trust that had never filed a T3 under the expanded reporting rules was the first thing to break.
What we did
We filed the separate rights-or-things return alongside the final T1, claiming a second set of personal credits, and built the compliance calendar for the size the business was becoming rather than the size it had been.
The result
The business reached 60 staff with no missed remittance and no late filing. $88,000 of working capital was freed in the process.
Case Study 5 · Deadline rescue
$111,000 Late-Filing Penalty Cancelled On Relief Application — Corporation Planning an Intergenerational, London
Client: A corporation planning an intergenerational transfer · Where: London, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty cancelled$111,000
Relief applicationGranted
ReturnAccepted as filed
The situation
A corporation planning an intergenerational transfer in London, Ontario had already missed one deadline and was about to miss a second. Behind it sat a final return filed without the rights-or-things election, leaving a second set of credits unused, and a penalty of $111,000 was accruing.
What we did
We split the work into what had to happen before the deadline and what could follow it, then filed the outstanding T3 returns with full beneficial-ownership schedules and secured relief on the late-filing penalty.
The result
The outstanding return was accepted as filed, and the taxpayer relief application cancelled $111,000 of the penalty already assessed on the earlier year.
Case Study 6 · Sale and succession
$795,000 Sheltered By The Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption — Family Trust with Three, Moncton
Client: A family trust with three beneficiaries · Where: Moncton, New Brunswick · Engagement: 5 weeks, fixed fee
Gain sheltered$795,000
ClosingOn schedule
Share qualificationMet
The situation
A family trust with three beneficiaries in Moncton, New Brunswick had an offer on the table and 15 months to close. The shares did not qualify for the capital gains exemption, and a single shareholder holding every share, with no room to multiply the exemption was part of the reason.
What we did
We purified the corporation so the shares met the qualifying tests, then implemented an estate freeze with a supported valuation, capping the current generation’s exposure and moving future growth to the successors well ahead of the closing date.
The result
The sale closed on schedule with $795,000 sheltered by the lifetime capital gains exemption across the shareholders.
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.
