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Complete 2020 Income Tax Return Checklist

Posted on Friday, September 20th, 2019 - 1,241 Reads

If you have not hired an accountant to file your taxes, it can be quite challenging to get them done right, but we are here to help you.

2020 Tax Check ListWe’ve put together a complete income tax return checklist for 2020 that you can reference which will help you organize everything you need to properly prepare your tax information before filing, and help you to file on time. With the right preparation, you can organize your income tax returns more quickly and and much easily. Note that not all of the sections below will apply to you, so read it carefully to make sure which section you need to focus on.

A few notes to consider: this checklist applies to all provinces in Canada, but it would be smart to speak with your accountant to make sure the filing rules do indeed apply to the province you live in.

Let’s get to it! Read the Complete 2020 Income Tax Return Checklist

Obtain Your T4 Slips

You need to make sure to obtain your T4 slips from every company that you worked for during the previous calendar year. T4 slips are using to log and report the income you earned during the year, to register and of your deductions and calculate the taxes you paid. If you have not received your T4 slip by mid February of the year, we advise that you contact your employer(s) and ask them to send it to you. You will be using your T4 when filing your tax returns.

Organize Your T4A Slips

You may also be receiving a T4A slip from other income sources such your retirement allowances, your pension or annuities. The T4A slip covers all the income you received from other sources aside from regular work income.

Obtain Your OAS/CPP Tax Slips

You old age security (OAS) and Canada Pension Plan (CPP) slips may not get mailed to you, especially if you have signed up for online access to your account. OAS/CPP are retirement benefits offered by the federal government and are based on your income. OAS/CPP is taxable income and is taxed at your income tax rate. Your income, marital status, and your spouse’s income can qualify or disqualify you for additional benefits.

Obtain Your T4E Slips

If you’ve received EI (Employment Insurance benefits) you will be receiving a T4E slip in the mail. The T4E slip is issued by Service Canada to tell you the gross amount of EI benefits that were paid to you during the previous tax year. It includes the income tax deducted and any over-payment amounts. If you’ve registered for the My Service Canada, you can print your T4E after the first of February and submit it with your tax returns.

Obtain Your T4RIF/T4RSP Slips

Your T4RSP and T4RIF returns are used to report the contributions from your RRSPs or RRIFs that you can deduct from their income. There is a minimum $100 penalty for filing your T4RSP or T4RIF slips late and a maximum penalty of $7,500 depending on the circumstances. You need to be careful that you are as accurate as possible when filing your T4RSP or T4RIF returns because an initial review of the information you submit is done to determine if there are any problems. If there are, Revenue Canada will be in contact with you.

Submit Your T5 Slips

Your T5 slip identifies various investment income that need to be reported on your income tax and benefit returns. Your T5 basically has to do with investment income so if you haven’t made any investments over the past year or earned any money from investments, you will not receive a T5 in the mail, and nor will it be in your Service Canada website account.

Obtain Your T3 Slips

A T3 slip (Statement of Trust Income Allocations and Designations) details the various types of income you received from family trusts, estate trusts, etc., for the current year. The T3 slip is used to identify income from beneficiaries and report income and credits that a trust designates to them. If the beneficiary income you received is less than $100, you do not have to complete a T3 slip but be aware that you must notify the beneficiary of the allocated income so that person can report the income in their tax return.

File Your T5007 Slips

If you received Workers Compensation you will receive a T5007 slip which is issued by the Workers Compensation Board.  The T5007 is a report of the benefits you received during the calendar year. WCB benefits are not taxable but they must be calculated into your net income for the year and are used to calculate federal tax credits like GST/HST. the Child Tax credit, etc.

Report Spousal Support Income

Spousal support (not to be confused with child support) must be reported as income on your taxes. CRA may ask to see proof of spousal support income so its important maintain copies of cheques you receive or a record of your cash deposits.

Report Share Capital Gains & Losses

When selling or redeeming mutual funds and shares in any currency, you must report all trading statements for the given tax year on your income tax. You will file this report using a Schedule D form with those amounts then being transferred onto your Form 1040.

Report Real Estate Capital Gains & Losses

To report real estate capital gains or loses, the CRA only requires a copy of your purchase and sale documents which you can easily obtain from your lawyer or notary.

Report Rental Income or Self-Employment Income

When filing your income taxes, the income you earned from a rental property, or from self-employment must be declared. You will also want to document and report all the expenses you incurred while operating your business which can be done by keeping all your purchase expense receipts and adding them up for the final sum.

Now that you’re aware of which documents you need to properly file your income taxes for 2020, don’t hesitate to view our accounting and tax services page for information on what we can do for you if you so choose to have your taxes done by a professional.

By

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Lana Leigh McDole is the owner of LLM Business Solutions. She studied accountancy at CGA Ontario in Ottawa Ontario and graduated in 2012. Her passion is her work and providing her customers with the best service possible, at the best prices.

Email: [email protected] | Phone: 226-802-0541

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