Canadian Tax & Accounting Insights

The BOMCAS Canada Insights Library

The BOMCAS Canada Insights blog is a growing library of plain-English articles on Canadian tax, bookkeeping, payroll, and small business topics. Every article is written by a Canadian accountant on our team, refers to the actual Canada Revenue Agency forms and Income Tax Act provisions involved, and includes practical examples drawn from real engagements (with identifying details changed). Our goal is not to publish search-engine bait. Our goal is to give Canadian individuals and business owners enough genuine information to make better day-to-day decisions, ask better questions of their accountant, and avoid the common pitfalls we see most often.

What you will find in the Insights library

Articles in the Insights library fall into several broad categories. Personal tax pieces explain RRSP and FHSA contribution timing, TFSA strategies, principal residence exemption rules, the underused housing tax, the Canada Workers Benefit, the Disability Tax Credit, medical expense optimization, donations strategy, foreign reporting (T1135), and newcomer-to-Canada first-year issues. Small business pieces cover sole proprietor versus incorporation, GST/HST registration thresholds, the quick method election, owner-manager compensation (salary vs. dividend), shareholder loans, vehicle and home-office deductions, family employment, and TOSI. Industry-specific pieces dive into trucking (TL2, IFTA, owner-operator vs. employee status), real estate (current vs. capital, CCA elections, flips, the principal residence exemption, the new residential property flipping rule), professional corporations (medical, dental, legal, accounting), e-commerce sellers (cross-border GST/HST, marketplace facilitator rules, US sales tax exposure), and construction (T5018 contractor reporting, holdbacks, progress billings). Operational pieces address bookkeeping software choices, payroll setup, CRA audit response, voluntary disclosures, and recordkeeping for the CRA's six-year retention rule.

Why we write this content

Most Canadian tax content online is one of three things: a CRA technical document that is precise but unreadable, a generic blog post that recycles last year's article without checking whether the law has changed, or a sales pitch dressed up as advice. We want to occupy a different space — content that is current, technically accurate, written in language a non-accountant can follow, and honest about what is uncertain. Where Canadian tax law is genuinely ambiguous (and there is a great deal of ambiguity in areas like personal services businesses, short-term rentals, and the residency tests for the principal residence exemption) we say so, summarize the leading CRA technical interpretations and Tax Court cases, and explain how we would approach the question for a real client.

How we keep articles current

Every Insights article carries a publication date, and articles that are time-sensitive (deadlines, contribution limits, tax rates, sales tax thresholds) are reviewed at least annually and after every federal and provincial budget. When a law changes — for example, when a federal budget changes the alternative minimum tax, the lifetime capital gains exemption, the capital gains inclusion rate, or the disability tax credit — we update the affected articles within days and add a note describing what changed. Where an article remains useful for historical reference but is no longer current, we mark it clearly and link to the updated piece.

How to use the Insights library

The library is organized by topic and by industry. If you have a specific question, start with the search-friendly headlines below. If you are exploring a general area — say "should I incorporate?" or "how does CRA decide whether I am a contractor or an employee?" — pick the closest headline and follow the internal links to related pieces. Where a topic is too complex for a blog post we say so and direct you to the relevant service page or to a discovery call.

A note on professional advice

Insights articles are general information, not professional advice. Canadian tax outcomes depend on the specific facts of each situation — province of residence, marital status, income mix, age, dependants, fiscal year, business structure, and dozens of other variables. Use the articles as background and orientation, and then have a real conversation with a Canadian accountant before acting on anything that involves money, deadlines, or CRA exposure. You can reach BOMCAS Canada at 780-667-5250 or info@bomcas.ca, and a complimentary first conversation is always available.

Contributing topic suggestions

If there is a Canadian tax, bookkeeping, or small business topic you wish someone would write about in plain language, send it to info@bomcas.ca. We treat reader suggestions as one of our best topic pipelines — they tell us exactly what real Canadians are searching for and what existing online content has failed to answer clearly.

Featured Canadian tax topics on our radar in 2025–2026

Across the coming year our Canadian accounting team is preparing in-depth Insights articles on the topics our clients ask about most often. The list below previews upcoming coverage and links into the existing articles that already address adjacent issues. If a topic on this list is urgent for your situation, please call 780-667-5250 or email info@bomcas.ca so that we can address it on your file before the next CRA deadline.

Federal budget and fall economic statement watch

Every federal budget reshapes parts of the Canadian tax system that affect ordinary Canadians and small business owners: personal tax brackets, the basic personal amount, the alternative minimum tax (AMT), the lifetime capital gains exemption (LCGE), the small business deduction, GST/HST measures, and targeted credits. Each post-budget article on the Insights blog summarizes only the measures that matter to individuals, owner-managers, and Canadian-controlled private corporations, with worked numerical examples instead of legislative language.

Cross-border and US-Canada tax interactions

The number of Canadians with US tax exposure — through US citizenship, green cards, US rental property, US e-commerce sales, US-based employers, or cross-border family situations — keeps growing. Our cross-border articles explain the Canada-US tax treaty, the foreign tax credit mechanism, T1135 Foreign Income Verification Statement obligations, US Form 8938 and FBAR reporting, the implications of US citizenship for RRSPs/TFSAs/RESPs, and the increasingly common questions about remote work across the border.

Real estate, short-term rentals, and the underused housing tax

Canadian real estate has become one of the most legislated areas of tax. Articles in this category cover the principal residence exemption (and the residential property flipping rule that overrides it after less than 365 days of ownership), the GST/HST new housing rebate and assignment-sale rules, the underused housing tax (UHT) annual filing for many Canadian and non-resident owners, the federal restrictions on short-term rental deductions where local bylaws prohibit the activity, and provincial measures including British Columbia's speculation and vacancy tax and Ontario's non-resident speculation tax.

Trucking, owner-operators, and gig-economy drivers

From long-haul over-the-road trucking to short-haul deliveries and rideshare driving, transportation work is a major share of self-employment in Canada. Our trucking and gig-driver articles cover TL2 meal claims and the simplified $23-per-meal method, the long-haul truck driver 80% meal deduction, IFTA quarterly fuel tax reporting, vehicle CCA classes, employee-versus-contractor risk (the Sagaz test), GST/HST registration for ride-share and food-delivery drivers, and recordkeeping habits that survive a CRA review.

Owner-manager compensation strategy

The salary-versus-dividend question is the single most asked owner-manager planning question we receive. Our articles in this stream walk through integration, the small business deduction, the general rate income pool, the personal marginal tax bracket interactions, RRSP and CPP impact, TOSI (Tax on Split Income) rules, the holdco/opco split, the lifetime capital gains exemption planning window, and the practical implementation steps for both new and existing CCPCs.

Bookkeeping technology and CRA digital services

Cloud bookkeeping has matured to the point that almost every Canadian small business should be in QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage Business Cloud Accounting. Our technology-focused articles compare software, explain how to migrate cleanly from a desktop tool, set up bank feeds, integrate payment processors, layer payroll on top, and connect to CRA My Business Account and Represent a Client for streamlined filing and audit response.

Helping you become a more confident client

One reason we publish so much detail is that informed clients are easier and less expensive to serve. A client who understands the difference between a current expense and a capital expense will keep cleaner books. A client who understands how the GST/HST quick method works will tell us whether it makes sense for their situation. A client who understands how the CRA review process unfolds will not panic when a letter arrives. Reading the Insights library does not turn you into an accountant, but it will help you ask better questions, make better day-to-day decisions, and get more value out of every dollar you spend on professional fees.

BOMCAS Canada — Insights & Articles

Trucking Company Tax Rules in Canada: Fuel, Mileage and GST/HST Guide

Salary vs Dividends in Canada: Tax Comparison for Business Owners

RRSP Contribution Deadline Guide for Canadian Taxpayers

GST/HST Filing Deadlines for Canadian Businesses

CRA Audit Support for Canadian Small Businesses

Incorporated vs Self-Employed in Canada: Which Should You Choose?

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