Last-Minute Tax Filing Tips for 2024 - Avoid These Costly Mistakes!

it is tax season in Canada it's the season of t4s and t5s and all the other T forms exciting times but if you're a new immigrant in Canada filing your taxes for the very first time you are probably wondering what in Heaven's name is a T4 and what should I do with it after I receive it if you have thought of that just a bit please type A yes in the comments so we know we are not alone I know the feeling and I Ur you to relax Because by the time we are through with this video you will be singing a completely different song before I move on however have you heard the saying there are two things that are certain in life debt and taxes that is a tricky one to tackle but taxes that we can tackle now filing taxes is very important in Canada as it is one of the requirements to become a Canadian Citizen and it doesn't matter whether you are an international student or a permanent resident everybody that is eligible to needs to file their taxes but in addition to filing your tax ta you need to ensure that you are reducing your taxes as much as you can and getting all the benefits due to you in this video I will tell you when and where to file your taxes what document you need whether you're employed or self-employed or even a student what benefits you can get and the important dates to know so if you want to maximize your tax refund and get your money back as well as reduce your taxes then make sure to watch this video till the very end so let's get started first question I have been asked by new immigrants is when is the deadline filing income taxes and benefit returns in Canada the deadline is April 30th 2024 so mark it on your calendar now this is the deadline for most Canadians to file their income tax and benefit returns for 2023 you are considered to have filed on time as long as the CRA which is the Canada Revenue Agency has received your filing by April 30th by filing your income tax and benefit Returns on on time you will avoid late filing penalty interest charges and interruptions to your benefit and credit payments also if you owe any money to the CRA which does happen your payment is also due by April 30th 2024 for business owners however the tax filing deadline varies based on your fiscal year end but it is generally 6 months after the end of the fiscal period and for most businesses this means 6 months after December 31st although some corporations have a different fiscal now let's talk about how to file your taxes you can file on paper by phone or online and that's electronically if you filed on paper last year the C should mail you the 2023 income tax package by February 19th 2024 if this is your first time and you want to file on paper you would receive an income tax package that contains the information and forms to file your taxes if you want to file by PayPal and you haven't received a package by February 19th you can download and print the forms from the canada.ca website or you can order a package online I will leave the links to do this in the description below you can also file by phone s has an automatic tax filing service called Simple file by phone formerly called file my return this year if you are eligible the C will automatically send you an invitation in the mail or notify you by email if you use this service you'll be asked to verify some personal information and answer a series of short questions you do not need to speak to an agent to use the simple file by phone service answers to the questions are provided using your phone's keypad simple file uses the information in the CRA systems at the time of the call as well as the answers you provide to autofile your income and your income tax and benefit return over the phone it is free secure and very easy to use there are no forms to fill out and no calculations to do the invitation letter you receive provides the information you need to use this service then you can opt to find file electronically which is the option I like and use I am not the only one that loves this online option did you know that almost 93% of tax returns were filed electronically in 2023 filing electronically is fast as returns are generally processed within 2 weeks unlike a paper return that may take up to 8 weeks to process so to file electronically you can use the C's net file service check out C's list of net file certified text software products in the description below some of which are free and to make the tax filing process even easier you can use auto fill my return this is a secure C Service that let you automatically fill in part of your return with information that the CRA has on file at the time of the request I will also leave those links Below in the description for you one other way I just wanted to chip in is using a tax professional if you're uncertain about the process or you have a complex tax situation whatever that is or you just want the piece of Mind of knowing that your taxes are filed correctly then listing the help of a tax professional can be a wise choice they have the expertise to navigate tax laws and regulations ensuring that your return is accurate and helping you to maximize your deductions there's one other one as great for new immigrants you can get free tax help if you have a modest income and a simple tax situation volunteers at a free tax Clinic may be able to complete your tax return for you free tax clinics are available in person or virtually you can find them in your community by doing a simple online search now let's talk about the exciting part of the tax Des getting a tax refund did you know that the government may give you some of your money back when you file your taxes it's not a gift it's just your money being returned to you you can claim allowable deductions to get the maximum amount out of your refund deductions are expenses that lower the amount of your income that is act I will now briefly talk about some of the common deductions that you might see the first one is your RS V contributions RSP is the registered retirement Savings Plan contributions to your rrsp can reduce your taxable income and lead to a tax refund another one is child care cost if your child is under the age of 16 you may be able to claim a deduction child care expenses include daycare centers summer cam overnight boarding schools and caregivers such as nanes generally child care expenses is better to be deducted by the spouse with a lower income landlords can use form t77 6 to claim property taxes for the period in which a rental property was available for rent employed and self-employed tenants can claim partial rent payment as a home office expense if they use their home for employment or business purposes most professional association fees and Union fees are also tax deductible therefore lowering your taxable income you can also claim moving expenses yes so if you moved at least 40 km closer to your work or a new business or postsecondary schooling you can claim expenses from that move qualifying expenses include storage cost travel expenses temporary living expenses the cost of canceling a lease and More in addition to tax refunds you can get the chance to claim credit a credit is a type of expense you can use to reduce the amount of tax you owe it's actually different from the deduction that we just talked about because it doesn't come off from your income non-refundable tax credits can only reduce your taxable income or bring it to zero and any excess credit cannot increase your refunds the first credit I will talk about is student loan if you're paying student loans you can claim interest paid on student loans as a nonrefundable credit the federal and provincial tax credit is calculated based on the lowest tax rate and loan interest amount however it's best to wait to claim the interest if you didn't earn income in the past year as you can carry it forward for up to 5 years medical expenses are another kind of credit you can claim so expenses including ambulance Transportation Dental Services prescription drugs and certain medical procedures can be claimed as a nonrefundable credit again if you're married or in a common law relationship please consider having the partner with the lower net income claim the medical expenses you can also claim a $5,000 tax credit if you purchase your first home and did not live in another home owned by you or your partner in the past 4 years another one is charitable deductions including Church offerings these can also be claimed as a tax credit with the federal government crediting 15% of the first $200 and 29% of any amount above that each province also has its own tax credit rate if you have children under 18 years old you might be eligible for the Canada child benefit or the CCB which provides financial assistance to eligible families if you an international student you need to have been in Canada for 18 months to qualify you can also get gst/hst credits and in addition to Federal and provincial GST or HST credit many provinces and territories have additional credits for certain segments of the population these include safety related home renovations for seniors in bronswick to climate action incentives in British Colombia etc etc there are many of them check out your provinces website to see what credit you may be entitled to now let's talk about small business owners small business owners or self-employed people can deduct various business expenses including advertising costs Bank fees office supplies and even travel expenses those who work from home can claim a portion of their utilities insurance and maintenance costs deductible amounts are based on what portion of the residence is used for business purposes also the disability tax credit or the DTC which helps disabled individuals and family members has reduce the amount of income tax they pay to qualify for the DTC a medical practitioner must certify that you're leaving with a severe mental or physical disability payment amounts vary by province but if you qualify for this tax credit it could open the door other benefits another one is the Canada workers benefit if you're a low income worker you can claim the Canada workers benefit or the CWB when you file your taxes the refundable tax credit provides up to $1,428 for single individuals and $2,461 for families it also includes a disability supplement if you have an approved disability tax credit certificate that is from t2201 on file with the c if you qualify you can request an advanced payment which allows you to receive half of your benefits in four separate payments the Canada training credit supports workers over the age of 26 by reducing barriers to professional development it offers $250 every year $5,000 lifetime limit for eligible tuition and other cost fees talking about tax credits makes me so excited and as you can see there are many tax credits you can claim and many of those options will be available for you to indicate when you are filing your taxes great progress we are making so far and if you're getting any value this might just be the time for you to like the video and subscribe to the channel so at this point after hearing about the benefits andit you might be thinking okay sh I want to get started what do I need to do now that's what we're going to be talking about next you need to gather your information in one place to ensure accuracy it is better to be patient and double check your tax slips and figures to make sure you have everything you need to file before doing so just to get you started here are some tax slips you might need so you need a T4 for employment income you need T5 for investment income T4 RSP and T4 RF for rrsp income t4a for pension and Order income nr4 for non-residents t513 for partnership income T3 for tax income and t5008 for Securities transactions you will also need to gather receipts for deductions such as your charitable donations medical expenses and tuation ensure you have your social insurance number or your sin and the sins of your dependent if applicable if you are self-employed or you have income from other sources you will need the appropriate tax form such as the t2125 for business income if you sell investment in a non-registered account for more than what you paid for it you may have to pay taxes on the capital gains however if you sell for less than what you paid you incure a capital loss you can use this loss to offset future capital gains but it's important to keep track of these losses for tax purposes check your notice of Assessments or your investment statements to keep a record of all your losses now I cannot end a discussion about about taxes without talking about audit audits can happen and it doesn't only happen to others it could happen to you so you want to make sure that you're prepared if it ever happens to you an audit is when the CRA does a deep assessment and check of your tax filing and tax claims an audit is never a breeze but just in case you are PE you can minimize the pain of a c audit by keeping all your tax income slips and receipts for deductions for up to 6 years if you find it hard to organize all this paperwork check out some free apps that are used for easy organization your paperwork to keep them all in an easy to find Place personally I have folders on my laptop that contains the documents I used to file my taxes I scan all the documents and I upload them to this folder you can adopt the style if you want as well now there's something very exciting I don't want to forget each tax year brings new updates changes and adjustments to the Canadian tax system staying informed about about these changes is essential as they can have a direct impact on your financial situation for the 2024 tax season the government made some very important changes and I did a full video about it which I'm going to leave the link in the description and up here somewhere at the end of this video remember these important dates as well February 19th 2024 is the first day that you can start filing your 2023 tax income or tax returns online if you file on paper you should receive your income tax package in the mail by this date April 30th 2024 is the deadline for most Canadians to file a tax return by filing your tax return on time you will avoid delays to any refunds benefit or credit payments you may be entitled to if you owe money to the CRA this is also the payment deadline you will avoid late filing penalties and interest by filing and paying on time June 15th 2024 is also an important date if you or your spouse or your common law partners are selfemployed this is the deadline to file your tax returns now as this date falls on a Saturday your return will be considered filed on time if the C receives it or it is postmarked on on or before June 17th 2024 if you owe money to the C you'll still need to pay by April 30th 2024 to avoid interest I know that's a lot of information I've thrown at you and you may want to save this video and come back to it later still I want to point out that filing your personal taxes in 2024 doesn't need to be a stressful experience by understanding the important date your filing options credits you get and changes in the tax system all of which I've told you about you can make the process smoother and potentially save money through deductions and credit now whether you decide to tackle your taxes yourself or seek the expertise of a professional being informed and being proactive can make a significant difference in your financial well-being as the 2024 tax season is here remember that staying organized can put you on the path to a smoother tax filing experience and again no matter what filing option you choose the goal is the same to ensure that you meet the tax deadline keep your financial matters in order and potentially maximize your return and if you would like to learn about the new tax changes for 2024 be sure to watch this detailed video right here don't forget to like And subscribe to the channel thank you for watching and I hope you gained value take care and catch you in the next one