Affordable Voluntary Disclosures Program Filing for Canadian Businesses and Individuals

EI benefits are taxable income. Service Canada withholds income tax before each payment reaches you, and the total benefits plus the tax withheld appear on your T4E for the year. That withholding follows a basic calculation rather than your full marginal rate, so people who also worked during the year often end up with a balance owing at filing. Asking Service Canada to withhold more, or setting money aside yourself, avoids a surprise. Higher-income claimants can also have to repay part of their regular benefits through the return.

The usual route is online banking: add the CRA as a payee, choose the account type and the tax year, and pay as you would any bill. You can also use the CRA's My Payment service with a debit card, set up pre-authorised debit inside My Account, pay at your financial institution, or pay by credit card through a third-party provider that charges its own fee. Keep the confirmation, since payments do not always post to your CRA account immediately.

Sign in to CRA My Account and read the balance on the account overview, or check the notice of assessment issued after your return is processed. It states the balance owing or the refund and any interest charged. Until the return is prepared there is no figure to check, so an estimate means adding up your slips and deductions. Interest runs on an unpaid balance from the payment deadline, and the CRA will consider a payment arrangement.

Pay it the same way you pay any CRA balance: through your financial institution's online banking using the CRA as a payee, through My Account or My Business Account, by pre-authorised debit, by debit or credit through a third-party provider, or at a bank counter with a remittance voucher. Choose the correct account and tax year so it is applied properly. If the penalty came from circumstances beyond your control, form RC4288 asks the CRA to cancel or waive it.

Yes. Hiding income, claiming expenses you did not incur, keeping two sets of books or failing to report offshore accounts is a criminal offence, and convictions can bring fines, full repayment with interest and jail. Lowering tax through an RRSP, a TFSA or genuine business deductions is lawful planning, which is a different thing. If you have unreported income from earlier years, the CRA's Voluntary Disclosures Program may reduce penalties and interest when you come forward first.

Spread or shelter it. Contributing to an RRSP in the same year, if you have room, offsets the income directly; the RRSP dollar limit is $33,810 for 2026 and $32,490 for 2025. Where the lump sum is a retiring allowance, part may be transferred to an RRSP outside your normal room. Qualifying retroactive lump sums can be taxed as if received in the earlier years. Ask the payer to reduce withholding only with CRA approval.

Pay through your bank's online bill payment, CRA My Payment, pre-authorised debit set up in My Account, a credit card through a third-party provider, or at a Canadian financial institution with a remittance voucher. Interest runs daily on an unpaid balance from the due date, so pay what you can even if you cannot clear it all. If you cannot pay in full, call the CRA to arrange a payment plan; penalty and interest relief is requested on form RC4288.

A rental property can reduce tax, but only through real expenses. Mortgage interest, property tax, insurance, utilities you pay, repairs, condo fees and management costs are deductible against rent, and capital cost allowance on the building may be claimed at your option. A net rental loss can offset other income. Claiming capital cost allowance often comes back later as recaptured income when you sell, and half of the eventual capital gain is taxable for 2025 and 2026.

There is no general rebate cheque. The closest thing is refundable credits, and you only get them by filing. The GST/HST credit, the Canada child benefit, the Canada workers benefit and provincial credits are all calculated from your assessed return. One-off relief payments are announced from time to time, so check the CRA's benefits and credits page for what applies to the current year. Filing on time keeps payments from being interrupted.

There is no single cut-off. The Canada Child Benefit starts from a maximum per child and is reduced once adjusted family net income passes a first threshold, at a reduction rate that depends on how many children you have, with a different rate applying above a second threshold. A family with several children can still receive something at a fairly high income, while a one-child family phases out sooner. The CRA's child benefit calculator gives your own figure.

Canada applies graduated federal and provincial rates, and payroll withholds both on top of CPP and EI, so the total deduction looks large before any credits are settled. Payroll also annualises each payment, so a large or irregular cheque is taxed as though every period looked the same. Working two jobs distorts it further, because each payroll applies its own credits. Filing your return reconciles the real amount and refunds anything over-withheld.

Treat a municipal tax sale as a legal exercise rather than a bargain hunt. The municipality is selling to recover unpaid property tax, and you generally buy without vacant possession, without a survey and without the title protections of a normal purchase; some interests, including certain Crown claims, can survive the sale. GST/HST may apply to the price, and a quick resale can be business income instead of a capital gain. Get property-specific legal advice before bidding.