It’s not quite time to panic, but one expert advises that you should start organizing all of your documents ahead of Canada’s tax deadline this spring.
Gerry Vittoratos, the national tax specialist at U-File, tells 1130 NewsRadio that everyone accumulates expenses throughout the year, and it’s important to keep records.
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“At the beginning of the year, open a folder for the rest of the tax year, whether it’s a virtual folder or a physical folder. Then just stick in any document you think is pertinent to your return. And then once the tax season comes around, you’re ready to go at that point.”
Vittorartos adds that he often notices his clients forgetting to include charitable or medical receipts.
“The biggest mistake people make is the mistake of omission,” he said.
“Who’s going to remember you went to the dentist last February? Nobody remembers… It’s a year-round process, that’s how I see it.”
Vittoratos explains that Canada’s official tax season doesn’t start until the federal government opens the electronic filing window later this month. For accounting firms, he says, it’s not until March that they start crunching the numbers.
“You can’t submit a return right now, even if you wanted to. And number two, the emitters of the slips, so whether it’s your financial institution, whether it’s your employer with a T4, whether it’s the government with the pension slips — they’ve got until Feb. 28 to submit their copy to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).”
He says the biggest change this year is the middle-class tax cut.
“The federal government is reducing the first tax bracket tax rate by half a percentage point this year, and another half a percentage point next year. Basically, on your first $57,000 that you earn — usually you pay 15 per cent tax on that amount — as of the 2025 tax year, you’ll pay 14.5 per cent, and then next year it’ll be 14 per cent,” Vittoratos explained, adding that taxpayers won’t notice a huge difference on their returns.
The tax deadline this year is Apr. 30, and Vittoratos recommends filing as soon as possible to get the refund. He says it’s also crucial to file on time for those who owe the federal government money.
“Do you not want the money in your pocket to do something with it? Think of the debt loads right now of Canadians. There are penalties the moment you owe money to the government. In that case, the penalties are stiff. It is five per cent right off the bat, the minute you’re late. So, you’re paying five per cent on your balance owing and for every month you are late filing, it’s an extra one per cent on that amount. And that doesn’t include interest. That’s purely the penalties for late filing.”
Canadians who receive the GST benefit will get a one-time top-up payment this spring after parliamentarians fast-tracked its legislation.
The Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit received royal assent late last week after passing the final vote in the Senate and the House of Commons the previous week.
The finance department says the benefit will provide a one-time top-up payment “as early as possible this spring” — worth 50 per cent of the credit.
The normal value of the benefit, which is paid to Canadians with low and modest incomes, will also increase by 25 per cent for five years starting in July.
The government says it will help more than 12 million Canadians, and when combined, the measures mean a family of four will receive up to $1,890 this year, and about $1,400 annually for the next four years.
The Conservatives helped speed the bill through the House last week, offering their support despite referring to it as a “Band-Aid solution.”
—With files from The Canadian Press
