Estate Planning & Administration

How Trusts are Taxed in Canada

Taxation of TrustsThe taxation of trusts and their beneficiaries are dealt with under Sections 104 to 108, inclusive, of the ITA. The fundamental principle with respect...

Establishing the Beneficiaries of a Trust

BeneficiariesShould the beneficiaries be not specifically referred to by name, they could be referred to by class, such as “children”. However, the description of the class...

Trusts, Trustees and Estate Planning

What is a Trust?The word “trust” has not been defined in the Income Tax Act (ITA), nor is there any definitive guideline to establish whether or not a...

Filing Tax Returns for a Deceased Person

TAXATION AT DEATH AND PERSONAL TAX PLANNING Extension of Time for Filing ReturnsAlong with the extended deadline for the filing of the basic terminal return, there...

Wills and estates of Natives

Administration and probateWhen the estate of a member of the First Nation falls within the jurisdiction of the Indian Act, the procedures for administration and probate...

When to File a Terminal Tax Return

The due date for the terminal return depends upon the date of the deceased’s death:1) For a death prior to November, the terminal return is due...

Taxation of an Estate as a Trust

Upon the death of a taxpayer, a T3 trust tax return is prepared, as well as a report of the income earned by the estate after...

Estate Tax Planning: RRSPs and Rollovers

Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs)Like non-depreciable capital property and depreciable capital property, a spousal rollover is available for RRSPs. Money directly received by the spouse (as...

Keeping your Trusts Clean

Cleansing Tainted TrustsA qualifying spousal trust could inadvertently lose its special status by inadvertently putting capital in the hands of persons other than the spouse. In such situations,...

Taxation at Death: Using Rollovers to Defer Taxes

RolloversAccording to the Canadian Income Tax Act there are two circumstances under which death need not bring forth a deemed realization of non-depreciable capital property or...