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Choosing the right Canada tax preparation service is an important part of filing your tax return. The best tax preparation services will help you get the most from your tax return by guiding you through the various steps and deductions you’re entitled to. They can help you maximize the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy, and more.

Foreign Earned Income Exclusion

If you are living in Canada and have earned income abroad, you may qualify for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. However, there are some specific rules that you must follow. For example, you cannot claim foreign earned income if you have been living abroad for less than five years. For this reason, you should contact a qualified expat tax advisor to help you determine whether you qualify.

First, you must meet the physical presence test to qualify for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. The test requires you to have spent at least 330 days in the foreign country to qualify for the exemption. Those days do not have to be consecutive. Foreign earned income can be wages, salaries, professional fees, or other forms of compensation for personal services performed in a foreign country.

Second, you must file the appropriate forms with your Canada tax return. Form RC267 must be filled out and submitted with your return. If you are a high-wage earner, you can also use Form RC269 to claim your foreign tax credits.

Third, you must report the amount of income tax you owe to the government of the country in which you lived. If you have earned income from overseas, you should report it to the CRA. In Canada, the amount of income tax you owe can vary widely, depending on the income you earned.

If you have substantial Canadian sourced income, you cannot make contributions to your RRSP during the first year of your assignment. However, you can make contributions to your RRSP after leaving Canada. Then, you can deduct the contributions in your final reporting year. This is beneficial for you if you have substantial income in Canada in the year of departure. It will also be beneficial if you have trailing Canadian source employment income.

For Americans living in Canada, the FEIE is a useful tax provision to look into. It can help you save money on taxes. For American citizens living abroad, the FEIE can even help you qualify for foreign tax credits. If you earn less than $108,700 in Canada, you may qualify to claim the FEIE as a foreign tax credit.

If you have stock options or dividends from a foreign source, you may qualify for an exemption. If you work remotely, you should consult your tax advisers and ensure you meet the requirements. In addition, you should know that bonuses received while working abroad are not taxable in Canada before you become resident and after you cease to be a resident. And, if you have stock options in Canada, you should consult your tax adviser to make sure you don’t miss out on any tax deductions.

Whether or not you have a tax liability abroad, you must still file a tax return in Canada. Foreign earned income received in Canada is taxable for Canadian residents, but non-residents are subject to a 48-percent federal surtax.

Housing Exclusion

If you are a non-resident of Canada, you must prepare and file a Canadian tax return each year. You may have other taxes to pay as well. For example, you must pay the federal income tax. You will also have to pay the provincial or territorial tax. In Canada, a non-resident’s income tax rate is 25 percent. In some cases, this rate can be reduced by a tax treaty. In other cases, you can elect to pay a graduated rate of income tax on your net rental income.

Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy

The Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) is available to eligible employers. If you are employed in Canada, you can apply for the subsidy through the Canada Revenue Agency. You can submit an online application, as long as you keep records of your arm’s length revenues and remuneration paid to your employees. Further details about the application process will be announced soon.

This program helps Canadian businesses avoid layoffs and resume operations. This subsidy is paid to employees on a daily basis, and it must be reported on the corporation’s income tax return. Generally, salaries are the largest expense on the income statement, but the Emergency Wage Subsidy can help relieve the financial burden by providing cash flow for operations.

The government has introduced several measures to help businesses and protect jobs. One of these is the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS). This program provides 75% wage subsidies to eligible employers for up to 12 weeks and aims to help businesses to rehire laid-off employees and avoid further job losses.

Employers must first determine the baseline remuneration for an employee who received the CEWS. This is the amount an employee would receive if they were working full-time. They should also determine the reduction in revenue they experienced during the qualifying period, which is a minimum of 7 days. After determining this, they can claim the CEWS for the next claim period.

Employers must consider the CEWS safe harbor rule, which allows them to deduct up to 30% of their eligible revenue. Employers can apply either the CEWS 1.0 or CEWS 2.0 safe harbor rules. As long as the employer meets the minimum revenue requirements, the employer will receive the subsidy.

The employer portion of the CEWS refund will be refunded to employees as other income. It is important that the employee file the application as CEWS income in their bookkeeping. If the employee has a leave of absence from work, the CRA may contact them to ask for details of the application.

The new CEWS will also change the definition of baseline remuneration. The old one was the average weekly remuneration paid to the eligible employee. This was relevant in situations where employees had pay cuts. However, the amended version allows for a greater subsidy than 75% of the employee’s remuneration. Additionally, eligible entities may elect to use an alternate baseline period that reflects seasonality or an extended absence.