The BC government’s recent focus on tax evasion and money laundering in the real estate market has led to proposed legislation, the Land Owner Transparency Act (Bill 23 – 2019), which will impose potentially onerous disclosure requirements on those who…
In Budget 2019, the federal government continues to bolster its tools and resources to detect and prosecute tax evasion and money laundering. These proposals are relevant both to those who do not pay the amount of tax the law requires,…
Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau, tabled the 2019 Budget today (“Budget Day”). This Thorsteinssons update summarizes some of the main tax takeaways.
The tax measures introduced in the Budget should not impact the vast majority of businesses. As a pre-election…
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) recently announced that, through a consultation process, it is examining the use and, more particularly, what it says are occasions of misuse of claims of solicitor-client privilege. The Consultation is interesting but, it also provides…
Several weeks ago the Vancouver city council passed a motion instructing its staff to develop a plan that would “improve the fairness and effectiveness of the Empty Homes Tax [or EHT]…”. This would require a review of “the fairness and…
Yesterday, the CBC reported that the CRA has transferred more than 1.6 million Canadian banking records to the United States Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) since an information sharing agreement was entered into between the two countries in 2014. The…
The Tax Court of Canada decision in Lee v The Queen, 2018 TCC 230 clarified the concept of sham in the context of transactions undertaken to give effect to a tax plan. The decision draws a line between tax avoidance…
Earnings within Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) and other tax-deferred plans are, in principle, supposed to grow “tax-free”. However, some taxes can still apply. One such tax is the advantage tax which applies at the rate of 100% of any advantage…
Taxes on residential realty in and around Greater Vancouver have been steadily proliferating over the past few years: first the provincial Foreign Buyer Tax (2016), then the municipal Vacancy Tax (2017) and, most recently, the provincial Speculation Tax (2018). All…
Last week the BC government tabled Bill 45, which seeks to implement the province’s new Speculation and Vacancy Tax. A careful review of the Bill suggests that it is overreaching and lacking in taxpayer fairness. Critical aspects of the…