Tag Archives: Education

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What is the Quebec Student Protest About?

Guest Blogger | May 28, 2012 - 12:11 pm

Photograph: Olivier Jean/REUTERS

If you’ve turned on your television, radio, or even ventured out of your home, you’ve heard about the student protests in Quebec. But what is really going on? Who, exactly, is protesting and why? Well, to give you some background, this all started on February 13, 2012 when social science students at Université Laval decided to go on a strike to protest the proposal by the Quebec Cabinet, headed by Premier Jean Charest, to raise university tuition from $2,168 to $3,793 between 2012 and 2017.

The original strike at Université Laval was followed quickly by protesters at Université du Québec à Montréal. From there, it caught on with students and supporters across Quebec. At its highest point (so far) on 22 March, 166,068 students were on boycott in Quebec with a total of 300,000 people, including supporters, at the March 22 rally.

To give you some idea of what they are really protesting about, let us go over the history behind tuition in Quebec and how it compares to the rest of Canada. To start with, university tuition fees in Quebec were frozen at $540 a year from 1968 to 1990. In 1994, tuition was increased to $1668 a year, and then frozen until 2007. In 2007 it started increasing by $100 a year until 2012, where it reached $2168. To sum up, tuition increased 300% between 1968 and 2012, not including other fees that are paid to universities (e.g. administration fees, student service fees, etc.).

Now, a 300% increase sounds like a lot until you realize that inflation during this same period was 557%, and, even with the proposed increases, Quebec will still have the lowest tuition fees in Canada. Quebec’s current average tuition is slightly greater than one third of the average tuition cost in the rest of Canada .

Despite the arrest of literally over a thousand protesters, the protests continue. There are many who support Premier Jean Charest’s proposal, however, citing the fact that without the proposed increase in tuition costs, additional taxes and fees to cover the educational needs will be placed on the shoulders of the citizens of Quebec.

This Guest post is by Christine Kane, a graduate of Communication and Journalism. She enjoys writing about a wide-variety of subjects including internet service for different blogs. She can be reached via email at: Christi.Kane00@gmail.com.

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Tax Tip #6 – Student tax credits

Allan | February 6, 2012 - 9:38 am

As a student enrolled in an institution offering post secondary education, you may be able to claim your tuition and education amounts on your tax return.

You can claim an education amount up to $400 for each month you attended school and up to $65 per month for textbooks.  If you have unused tuition and education tax credits, these credits can be carried forward to the next year.  You can also choose to transfer up to $5000 of unused credits to a spouse or parent.

These amounts are for the Federal credits. The provincial and territorial amounts may vary. Other amounts are available for part-time students.

For more information on how filing your tax return will benefit you as a student, please refer to “Keeping the Taxman at Bay“, published by Allan Fefergrad, CGA.

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Is Hiring a Tax Professional Right for You?

Guest Blogger | January 12, 2012 - 1:44 pm

It’s about that time of year again… Tax Season! For some, it’s just another time of the year in which we fill out some forms and it’s over with.  For the majority, however, it’s a time of stress and procrastination.  

When I first filed my tax return, I hired a professional to do it for me, which was incredibly convenient. On the other hand, I was the butt of jokes from many of my friends, who all do it online for minimal cost. Still, there’s much to be said for hiring a professional to complete your tax forms, especially if you have a family, own investments or run a business. Here are a few reasons you may want to hire a professional instead of going the DIY route. 

You’ll skip the hassle. 

I was raised in a family in which, if the possibility of having someone else complete a task was presented, we’d take it.  If you are a notorious procrastinator or if you’re already very busy with a job and kids, just suck it up and hire a tax professional. It’s almost completely painless and well worth the expense (which normally pays for itself!).

 You’ll make no mistakes.

There are two obvious goals of filing your taxes—to avoid trouble with the government and to maximize your return. Making mistakes when filing your taxes alone could get you in trouble, and could as well make you lose out on some money. Certified Professional Accountants know exactly what sort of deductions and claims you can make to get the full tax return that you deserve.

You have a complicated tax situation that necessitates professional help.

For some, their taxes may be so simple that filing it online is perhaps the best choice. At the same time, however, everyone’s situation is different, and yours may be so complicated that you’ll absolutely need a professional’s help. Hiring a tax professional is ideal if you are in business, if you are experiencing changes in your family situation (divorce, marriage, kids going to college, etc.) or if you wish to diversify your financial portfolio. All of these scenarios would make filing your taxes on your own particularly tricky.

You’re more likely to meet the deadline and avoid late fees.

When you hire a tax professional, he/she will keep you on task so that you turn everything in on time. If you want to avoid these horrendous fees as noted by the Canada Revenue Agency, then hire someone to avoid being late.

Alvina Lopez is a freelance writer and blog junkie, who blogs about accredited online colleges. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: alvina.lopez@gmail.com. 

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How to Consolidate Your Business Debts

Guest Blogger | January 10, 2012 - 9:34 am

Just as consumers can find themselves in a burden of credit card debt due to misuse of their cards, business organizations can also come across such a situation due to various other reasons. When you’re residing in Canada and you have accumulated substantial amount of business debt, the reasons may be various. You may have either poorly managed your finances or been subject to sudden unexpected expenses. No matter what is the reason for the accumulation of debt, getting out of debt is always important lest this may hurt your personal financial records. Business debt management is in fact the most important task that you need to carry on while you’re the owner and if you can’t you should at least employ someone who will be entirely responsible for managing the finances of your firm.

What are the ways in which you can consolidate your business debts?

When you owe huge amount of business debt, you should educate yourself on the different ways in which you can eliminate this debt burden. There are some ways to do so and check them out.

  • Commercial credit counseling: Just as a consumer credit counselor helps you get back a grip on your finances by following a budget and the personal finance management techniques, the consumer credit counselor will also assist the business organization in getting back in shape. He will assess your present financial state so that he gets an idea about where you’re standing financially. He may craft a frugal budget for you so that you can follow it and bring your debts under control. If they see that your debt amount is beyond your capability to repay, they may sign you up with a debt management program and help you in getting out of debt through single and affordable monthly payments.
  • The debt consolidation loan: According to the Office of Consumer’s Affairs in Canada, the debtors has to calculate the total debt amount that he owes before meeting the loan officer who is supposed to give him the debt consolidation loan. Unless he knows the exact amount of debt that he owes, he can never take out the loan amount properly. You have to shop around in order to get a loan that best suits your needs and purposes.
  • Business debt settlement: When you feel that you don’t have enough funds in order to repay your debt obligations, you can opt for business debt settlement. A portion of debts will be forgiven by the lenders and you have to repay an amount that is much less than what you actually owe on your accounts.

Therefore, when you have incurred huge amounts of business debts, you need not worry as there are ways in which you can get out of the same. Choose the option that best suits your affordability so that you can make the timely payments on the loans and protect your credit score.

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How Do Canadian Tax Treaties Work?

Guest Blogger | December 7, 2011 - 11:40 am

If you are Canadian and thinking about working abroad or you are from another country and considering making Canada your new home for family and work, you’ll need to understand the tax treatment you’ll receive from the two countries involved. Canada maintains tax treaties with almost one hundred countries around the world, some large, some small.

The idea of a tax treaty is that you can legally avoid double taxation in circumstances where you would otherwise pay tax on the equivalent income in both countries. Usually, the planning behind a tax treaty decides how much tax is paid in one country and the level in the other. Tax treaties often cover pensions, wages, salaries and interest.

Look At An Example of a Treaty

As an example, let’s look at the tax treaty between Canada and Ireland as there is a high exchange of workers between these two nations. Most tax treaties are quite similar although if you are planning on making a move which involves use of a tax treaty, you will need to take professional advice to ensure you completely understand any taxation system you are entering.

It’s always a difficult time moving to another country, especially if you are taking family with you and maybe arranging schooling as well. Nevertheless, planning and information gathering is an immense task that you should start sooner rather than later so you are able to consider matters including:

  • New personal relationships
  • New job
  • New living conditions
  • New school
  • Health care arrangements
  • Tax arrangements
  • Business start up planning

You shouldn’t base your taxation planning on this article; it’s here to help you decide which information you should go and find out more about.

At least you know a tax treaty exists between the two countries. Now it’s time to read all the documentation, making notes as you go along so you are able to ask the right questions later.

Domiciles And Residence

Domiciles and residence are two important concepts. Your permanent home is your domicile. It has nothing to do with nationality or tax residence. If you have no fixed expectation of moving to the other country, your domicile won’t change.

If you are moving to Ireland, in our example, but remain a Canadian for domicile purposes, your taxation will be paid on a remittance basis, even if you are noted as resident in Ireland. Only taxable work and money you bring into Ireland will be taxed there.

Residence is confirmed by legislation. If you spend 183 days or more in Ireland in a tax year or 280 days or more over two years, you will be considered tax resident in that country.

The main reason for this legal jargon is to show that you won’t be taxed in both countries. So as a Canadian, resident in Ireland and earning income in Canada, your Canadian government will charge a withholding tax against the income. That turns into a tax credit when you arrange your affairs in Ireland – so you don’t pay the tax twice.

Inheritance or Estate Taxation

Thinking ahead, Ireland applies what it calls Capital Acquisitions Tax on gifts and inheritances – remember there’s been no inheritance or estate tax in Canada since 1972. If you live in Ireland for five years you will be open to their taxation of Irish gift and estate taxes.

If you’re thinking of staying in Ireland for a long time (and are allowed to do so) you will need to learn their pay-related social insurance plans – regular contributions from salary which include a health levy. Ireland has a social security agreement with Canada. This means that any contributions you pay in either country are treated towards your final pension arrangements, wherever you take them. So either your Canadian Pension Plan counts over there or your Irish pension counts in Canada.

Essentially, you won’t pay tax on the same worldwide assets and income in both countries. One will offset against the other. It is imperative that you take serious accounting and taxation advice before considering such a move as the implications may be long term and not that friendly if you don’t plan properly.

Olivia Lennox is a personal finance writer and frequently writes on tax issues. She writes on behalf of a 0% balance transfer service and other consumer sites

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How Many Credit Cards Does a Person Require?

Allan | October 21, 2011 - 10:04 am

Having the right number of credit cards can really affect your credit score, but you may be wondering if you have too many or too few. The truth is that there is no perfect number of credit cards you should have or a mathematical function to help you figure out the right number for you. The most important thing to remember with credit cards is that it doesn’t matter how many you have. What will make a difference in your credit score is how you manage them.

Thanks to the recession, banks are now looking for many new cardholders, so it is much easier to be approved for a credit card now more than ever before. However, just because it may be easier to get a new credit card doesn’t mean you actually need to apply for one. You can have a great credit rating if you only have one credit card or even if you don’t have a card at all. The important factor here is how you use the credit you are given.

Those consumers who have decent credit scores usually follow three rules.

  • They fully pay all of their bills on time.
  • They keep a low balance on the credit cards they have.
  • They only take on new credit obligations when absolutely necessary.

Those who follow these guidelines can consistently build great credit over time and don’t have to worry about their number of credit cards.

One of the factors to remember when deciding how many credit cards you need is that your credit score could suffer if you don’t have enough credit information. If you don’t provide the credit bureau with enough information, they may not feel comfortable with your ability to make payments on time, which could cause them to lower your credit score. In this way, no credit can be just as troublesome as bad credit.

On the other hand, if you have too many credit cards, the credit bureau may think that you are a risk as well. People with more credit available to them are more likely to go into debt. Therefore, their credit score may suffer the consequences. Websites such as TransUnion Canada can help you keep track of your credit score as well as provide tips and advice on how to maintain good credit.

If you want to build a credit history, but you don’t want to have credit cards, there are other options for you. Paying a mortgage or student loan will show lenders that you are responsible and capable of handling other types of loans, and that good behavior will improve your credit rating.

Be very careful when you decide to open new lines of credit. Your credit score can fall for a period of time when you apply for new accounts. So if you want to apply for a loan or some other major credit obligation sometime soon, then you probably shouldn’t be applying for credit cards as well.

To answer the question “How many credit cards does one person need?” I have researched articles written by many experts, and they all seem to say the same thing. Three to five credit cards is generally acceptable because this number of accounts will give the credit bureau enough information for a proper analysis of your credit habits, and the card holder is still able to maintain a decent level of credit card manageability. If you don’t have three, you should probably open a few accounts as long as you can use them wisely. If you have more than five, however, closing the extra accounts isn’t the best idea. The credit bureau views older accounts as more reliable sources of information, and closing some of your accounts could lower your average credit card age. Therefore, the information from your remaining credit cards could be less valuable, and closing the accounts probably won’t help improve your credit score. Instead, stop applying for new accounts and keep all of your balances very low from month to month so you can show the credit bureau that you can be responsible, even with multiple cards.

Amy Young is an author working for a financial education company. Her articles relate to various topics including business, finance, and important credit card information for consumers.

 

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Taxpayer Bill of Rights

Allan | March 17, 2011 - 9:57 am

In an effort to increase accountability and transparency, the Canada Revenue Agency, or CRA, released the Taxpayer Bill of Rights in 2007. The underlying assumption of this document is that if citizens are treated fairly and get the information they need, they will be more likely to comply with the law. Fifteen rights for taxpayers are outlined. They include general rights including the right to privacy, access to accurate and timely information, professional and courteous treatment and the fair application of laws.

In the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, more specific rights are outlined as well. These include the right to a review and possible appeal, the right to lodge a complaint and be provided with an explanation of the findings and the right to service in both English and French. Also listed is the right to representation, which may come in the form of an accountant or any person of the taxpayer’s choosing. The Taxpayer Bill of Rights also provides relief from penalties and interest in extraordinary circumstances.

Additional provisions are the specific requirements of the CRA, in particular, the annual publishing of their service standards and report as well as timely warnings by the CRA of shady tax schemes to citizens.

The rights outlined fall into either the legislative or service category. Issues in the legislative area can be addressed through the redress rights in the legislation and court appeals where appropriate. Taxpayers with service issues may file a complaint or contact the Taxpayers’ Ombudsman.

In addition, the Taxpayer Bill of Rights seeks to address small business concerns with five commitments. These five promises are aimed at reducing the compliance burden on small businesses by reducing costs and offering resources to assist small businesses with compliance.

Here is the link for complete Taxpayer Bill of Rights offered through the Canada Revenue Agency.

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When Dealing With the CRA Know Your Rights!

Allan | March 14, 2011 - 10:11 am

The Taxpayer Bill of Rights outlines what you can expect in your dealings with the CRA. Know the services you are entitled to before initiating any dealings with the CRA will help you make the most of your interactions.

Tip # 1 – Be prepared

Have pertinent information and documentation on hand when you contact the CRA.  This can include your:

Income tax report
Social Insurance Number (SIN)
Business number
GST registration number
Any correspondence relevant to your request or complaint to the CRA.

Tip # 2 – Be quiet and respectful

Addressing issues of taxes can be stressful. If you feel you that were treated unfairly and you are contacting the CRA to make a complaint, your emotions may be running high. Remember that the agent you are speaking to is probably not responsible or even aware of the situation you are seeking help with. They are there to assist you. If you are disrespectful or remove your frustration on them, you make it difficult for them to effectively understand your situation and provide the assistance you require.

Tip # 3 – Keep track of your communications

Take detailed notes of all your communications, written or verbal, with the CRA, including dates.

If you deal with the CRA by phone, make a written summary of the conversations.

Keep all correspondence you send and receive from the CRA.

A record of your transactions with the CRA may be useful at a later date in case of dispute about what was discussed.

Tip # 4 – Ask for the phone agents for their identification.

When you contact the call center of the CRA or general line of investigation, you are entitled to know the identity of the agent who handles your call. Ask the agent for their first name, agent identification number and regional suffix.
This information will will reinforce the agent’s accountability and may be useful if at a later date, you must prove that you spoke with someone at the CRA or to confirm that you have received advice.

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Smart Tax Tips for Students

Allan | March 21, 2010 - 7:57 pm

If you are a student and you are interested in reaping the benefits of all that our Canadian tax system has to offer you should definitely read the following article published by our Accountant, Allan Fefergrad, CGA.   

 

Allan graduated with a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree from Concordia University and he prepares hundred of tax returns each year.  Contact us so that we can get started on your file immediately.

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Have you had the tax talk with your teen?

Allan | January 24, 2010 - 11:21 am

Over the weekend we came across an interesting article in the Globe and Mail.  There are some major advantages for having your children file their taxes at an early age. 

  • When they file a tax return they will create valuable RRSP contribution room for when they begin working full-time upon graduation.
  • If they are full-time students and have no income at all, they can begin receiving quarterly GST refunds starting at the age of 19. 
  • Parent’s who are small business owner’s stand to reap the greatest benefits. 

For the full story: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/tax-matters/have-you-had-the-tax-talk-with-your-teen/article1438526/

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