A 2018 Income Tax Return Checklist (Part 1 of 4)

By Birch Accounting & Tax Services Ltd. | | Categories: Accountants , Bookkeeping , Corporate Taxes , Personal Taxes

Income Tax Return Checklist - Blog by Birch Accounting & Tax Services Ltd.

At Birch Accounting & Tax Services Ltd., we understand that filing income tax returns can be quite a challenge. Without professional help, it can be viewed as a stressful or laborious task, but with a little preparation, you can manage your income tax returns quickly and easily.

As experts in tax filing, we’ve created handy checklists to help you complete your taxes with as little stress as possible. Follow this checklist to ensure you have all the right income documents ready to file your income tax returns accurately and on time so that you can get back to the other important things in life.

1. T4.

You receive a T4 slip from every employer that has hired you within the calendar year. T4 slips are meant to report your income earned in the year as well as any deductions.

2. T4A.

You get a T4A tax slip from different sources of income such as pension, retirement allowance or even student grants.

3. OAS/CPP.

Old Age Security (OAS) and Canada Pension Plan (CPP) are retirement benefits offered by the Federal Government based on your income. These may not get mailed to you if you opt for online access.

4. T4E.

A T4E is a Statement of Employment Insurance (EI). You are entitled to EI benefits if you are on maternity leave or in case you lose your job, or take medical/apprenticeship leave.

5. T4RIF/T4RSP.

The T4RIF (Registered Retirement Income Fund) tax slip reports how much money was paid to you from your RIF (converted from an RRSP) for the year. A T4RSP shows what you withdrew from your RRSP for the year. Converting your RRSP to a RIF (must be done by December 31 of the year your turn 71. The conversion does not trigger any tax consequences, only the actual draws are taxed).

6. T5.

A T5 tax slip reports how much investment income you have earned for a given year. Income on T5 slips includes things like: dividends, interest, royalties & foreign income from your investments or personally owned corporation.

7. T3.

A T3 slip or Statement of Trust Income details the various types of income you received from investments in mutual funds in non-registered accounts, it also includes income from family trusts, estate trusts, etc., for a given year.

8. T5007.

The T5007 statement issued by the Workers Compensation Board reports compensation benefits paid to you or on your behalf during the calendar year. While the WCB benefits are not taxable, they must be included in your net income as they are used to calculate federal tax credits such as Child Tax Benefits, GST credit, etc.

9. Alimony income.

If you receive alimony, you must report only the spousal support amount as income on your taxes. To prove the same, you need to keep on hand a copy of the payment and support agreement - CRA may ask to see copies. Keep in mind that alimony does not include child support.

10. Capital gains/losses from share purchases or sales.

We require all trading statements for the given tax year to backup any summary sheets. If the purchase of shares took place in previous years, we would need those statements as well.

11. Capital gains/losses from the purchase or sale of real estate including principal residence.

For this, we need your purchase and sale documents from your lawyer or notary.

12. Rental income and self-employment income.

When it comes to rental and self-employment income, you need to follow specific checklists, we will provide those in a later post. The requirements can be better understood if you have an accounting and tax consultant on your side.

If you have any concerns about filing your taxes or you’re looking for an accounting firm to help simplify the process, reach out to the tax experts at Birch Accounting & Tax Services Ltd. We have over a decade of experience providing bookkeeping, personal taxes, corporate taxes, business planning, and payroll services to clients across Leduc, Calmar, Nisku, Devon, Millet, and Edmonton, Alberta.

To learn more about our services, please click here. Have a question? We’d love to hear from you. Contact us here.



READ MORE BLOG ARTICLES