tax tips posts

To paraphrase Ben Franklin, in this world nothing is certain, except death and taxes. With April 30 approaching, the certainty of filing a tax return is almost here.

"Taxes and procrastination seem often to go together, but your return will be much easier if you think about it before the deadline," says Cleo Hamel, a senior tax analyst at H&R Block. "Scrambling to find receipts or understand complex tax forms at the last minute will probably lead to missed credits or deductions. Everyone wants to make sure they get the biggest refund they are entitled to."

Hamel offers the following tips for preparing your own return with ease and peace of mind:

• Claim the kids: Families will continue to benefit from a $2,191 Child Tax Credit for each child under the age of 18. This will result in a federal tax saving of $328 per child. And if one parent cannot use the entire amount to lower their tax payable, the unused amount can be transferred to a spouse or common-law partner.
• Credit for being active: The Children's Fitness Amount is a non-refundable credit is worth up to $500 for children under the age of 16 enrolled in an eligible program of physical activity. Not every program meets the eligibility guidelines so you need to ensure you know the requirements. Make sure you keep your receipts. Disabled children will also qualify for the credit if they are under 18. Manitoba, Yukon, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan also have a provincial fitness credit.

Dear student,

School costs a lot, as does rent, food and all the other things that seem ridiculously expensive.

And I know that what you may earn with a part-time job makes life a bit easier, but certainly isn't that much money.

But, I offer you this bit of advice. File a tax return. It's worth the effort and it will help you in the future.

Here's some tips on why you should file a tax return and how it will help you - and possibly put some dollars in your bank account.

Maybe middle class ain't so bad. A number of jurisdictions facing deficits and debt are targeting their high earners (some call them wealth creators, others call them cash hoarders) as a way to top up coffers. 2013 could see governments around the world tinker with their marginal tax rates in an attempt to boost revenues, pay for essential services and address ballooning debt. Here are five jurisdictions where being rich this year may not be all that it's cracked up to be.






Related Links:
Condo Shopping? Key Questions to Ask Before Buying
The Winds of Financial Change: What to Expect in 2013
January Real Estate Round-up: What You Get for 400K or Less

New Website Has All You Need to Know About Dividends
If you're a newcomer to dividend stocks, The Dividend Guy has launched a new website called What Is a Dividend? He says that if you're already familiar with dividend stocks there won't be much What Is a Dividend can teach you, but he's being overly modest. It's not only an amazingly comprehensive primer but provides information useful even for seasoned dividend investors.

How Old Does Your Resume Make You Look?
I was shocked recently to hear someone who'd just turned 40 talk about how anyone over the age of 30 now worries about being discriminated against in the workforce because of age. That's shocking. And it also makes the resume advice our friends over at Financial Highway has provided doubly useful. If you're worried that your resume makes you look too old to even get called in for an interview, this post provides useful tips on how to organize your resume to stress your skills and recent experience rather than employment history.

In this series of videos, personal finance expert Alexandra Macqueen, CFP, explains the basics of our Canadian tax system. Check back for more videos everyday and if you need any other tax questions answered, leave a comment and we will try to answer it.
And be sure to enter our contest for a chance to win H&R Block tax software you can use to file electronically from the convenience of home.








More ABCs of TAXes Videos:

A is for Always File on Time, B is for Be on Time

C is for Credits, D is for Deductions

E is for Employees, or Self-Employed, and F is for Family

G is for Gifts, H is for Home Buyers Plan

I is for Individual, J is for Joint Filing

K is for Kids, L is for Losses

M is for Marriage, N is for Net Income

Q is for Quarterly Instalments, R is for Replacing a T4

S is for Scams, T is for Taxpayer Relief

U is for Underpayments... Z is for Zillionaire