Low-Cost Executor Tax Assistance for Trusts and Estates in Canada

Sign in to CRA My Account, or use the CRA's mobile app, where the return shows as received, in process or assessed, and the refund amount and payment date appear once it has been assessed. The CRA also runs an automated telephone service giving the same information. A representative you have authorised through Represent a Client can check it for you. If the status has not moved past the published processing time, the return is probably under review.

A tax deduction is an amount subtracted from your income before tax is worked out, so it reduces the income being taxed rather than the tax bill directly. Its worth depends on your marginal rate: the higher the rate, the more the deduction saves. Common examples are RRSP contributions, child care costs, union dues, moving expenses and business expenses. Credits work the other way, reducing the tax calculated on that income.

Most people file electronically with software the CRA approves for NETFILE, or have a preparer send the return through EFILE. Paper filing is still accepted and takes far longer to process. Before starting, set up My Account, confirm your direct deposit details, and download the slips the CRA already holds so your return matches its records. For the 2025 tax year the deadline was 30 April 2026, with any balance owing due the same day; a 2025 return not yet filed is late, so file it now to stop the late-filing penalty growing.

The landlord pays tax on rent, not the tenant. Rent received is income, reported every year on the owner's return, and the costs of earning it are deductible: mortgage interest, property tax, insurance, utilities you pay, advertising, repairs and condo fees. Improvements are added to the cost of the property and written off over time instead. Rent a tenant pays for a home is not deductible, although some provinces give a housing or occupancy credit on the provincial return.

There is no standard amount. The refund equals tax withheld and instalments paid, less the tax calculated on the return after deductions and credits, so two people on the same salary can end up with very different results. Payroll withholding that ran higher than needed, RRSP deductions, tuition and medical claims and spousal transfers all push the figure up. The notice of assessment confirms the final number once the return is processed.

The CRA does not usually move a due date, but you can ask for a payment arrangement that spreads the balance over time. Interest keeps running while you pay. Apply through My Account, My Business Account, or the CRA's debt management call centre. Where interest or penalties arose from circumstances beyond your control, ask for relief using form RC4288. British Columbia's property tax deferment program is a separate provincial scheme with its own application.

Property tax is an annual charge a municipality levies on real estate to fund local services such as roads, water, policing, fire and schools. A provincial assessment authority values the property, council sets a tax rate in its budget, and the bill is the assessed value multiplied by the rate for your property class. Unpaid amounts stay attached to the property itself. It is separate from income tax, so the city bills it, not the CRA.

Two things: your property's assessed value and the tax rate your municipality sets each year, plus any education levy. Assessment reflects the market value of comparable properties at a set valuation date, so additions, renovations and rising local sale prices push it up. The bill falls when the assessment drops, a rate is cut, or you qualify for a rebate or a seniors or disability deferral. An assessment you believe is wrong can be appealed by the deadline on the notice.

Newfoundland and Labrador charges 15% HST in 2026 on most goods and services, combining the 5% federal GST with the provincial part. Income tax has two layers: the federal rates that apply everywhere, plus the province's own progressive brackets and credits, so your overall rate depends on your taxable income rather than on any single provincial percentage. The bracket thresholds and rates for the year you are filing are on CRA's provincial and territorial tax rates page.

No GST/HST applies. Menstrual products, including pads, tampons, cups and liners, are zero-rated, so neither the federal GST of 5% for 2025 and 2026 nor the provincial part of the HST is charged on them. The provincial sales tax provinces generally exempt them as well, though each keeps its own exemption list. If a receipt shows tax on these items, ask the retailer to correct it and check the CRA's zero-rated guidance.

Canada Student Grants arrive on a T4A and fall under the same scholarship exemption, so a full-time student in a qualifying programme who is eligible for the education amount generally pays no tax on them. Part-time students get a smaller exemption tied to tuition and required materials. Student loans are not income at all, so only the grant portion is ever reportable. Keep the slip even when the exemption reduces the taxable amount to nil.

Some are. Legal and accounting fees incurred to earn or administer the income of the estate, or to deal with the CRA on its returns, are generally deductible on the T3 return. Fees for winding up the estate, distributing capital to beneficiaries or defending a challenge to the will are usually capital or personal in nature and are not deductible, though some may adjust the cost of property. Track each invoice by the purpose of the work.