Filing your taxes doesn’t have to be stressful. With over a decade of experience, S & M Tax Services has compiled seven actionable tips to help Canadians across the Durham Region and the GTA maximize deductions, stay organized, and avoid costly pitfalls.

Keep Your Receipts Organized

Maintaining a clear record of receipts is your first line of defense if the CRA audits your return.

Create a dedicated folder (digital or physical).
Sort documents by category: medical, charitable, RRSP, and business expenses.
Review and update your folder monthly to avoid a year-end scramble.

Maximize Your RRSP Contributions

Your Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) contributions lower your taxable income and can boost your refund.

Check your Notice of Assessment for your RRSP limit.
Aim to contribute by the 60-day deadline to apply to the current tax year.
Consider splitting contributions between you and a spouse for additional tax savings.

Claim Childcare and Education Credits

Families can recover significant costs through childcare and tuition credits.

Keep receipts from daycare, camps, and after-school programs.
Claim eligible tuition and education amounts via T2202 slips.
Explore the Canada Training Credit for continuing education expenses.

Seniors: Leverage ONBEN and Medical Credits

If you’re over 70 or providing for an elderly parent, the Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit (ONBEN) and medical expenses can add up.

Claim up to $6,000 in eligible medical expenses for a refundable credit.
Include long-term care and attendant-care fees under medical expenses.
Pair with Ontario Disability Tax Credit-eligible costs for extra savings.

Small Business Owners: Track Every Expense

Every deductible dollar matters when you run a business.

Use accounting software or a simple spreadsheet to log revenue and costs.
Track home-office utilities, vehicle mileage, and office supplies.
Reconcile your records monthly to spot discrepancies early.

File On Time to Avoid Penalties

Missing deadlines can trigger interest and penalties that eat into your refund.

Individual returns are due April 30; self-employed returns are due June 15 (with any balance owed still due April 30).
Set calendar reminders three weeks before deadlines.
If you can’t pay in full, consider a CRA payment plan to avoid ongoing interest.

Explore the Disability Tax Credit (DTC)

The DTC can unlock additional credits if you or a dependent has a prolonged impairment.

Submit Form T2201 with supporting medical documentation.
Claim attendant-care and medical device costs alongside the DTC.
Reassess eligibility every few years if conditions change.

What is first-time Homebuyer Credit?

First-time home buyers who acquire a qualifying home during the year are entitled to claim a federal non-refundable tax credit up to $5000 and worth $750 (5000×15%). To qualify, neither the individual nor his or her spouse or common-law partner can have owned and lived in another home in the calendar year of the new home purchase or in any of the four preceding calendar years. The credit is claimed by either the purchaser or spouse or common law.

What is the DTC (Disability Tax Credit Program), and who qualifies for it?

According to the CRA, the Canadian Disability Tax Credit is a non-refundable tax credit that helps persons with disabilities or their caregivers reduce the amount of income tax they have to pay. This Canadian disability benefit creates greater tax equity by providing relief for disability costs. A person with a severe and prolonged impairment in physical or mental functions may claim the disability amount once they are eligible for the DTC.
Currently, the disability tax credit is non-refundable, meaning that it’s worth nothing to you if you don’t earn enough to owe taxes. And while it may be possible to transfer all or part of the tax credit that can’t be used to one’s spouse, common-law partner, or another supporting person.
The requirements to be eligible for the disabled tax credit are laid out in the T-2201 DTC certificate application form. Click on the link above to view or download for printing the form.

Eligibility criteria for the Disability Tax Credit

There are different ways in which a person can be eligible for the disability tax credit (DTC). In all cases, the impairment must be prolonged. Also, the person must meet one of the following criteria:

is blind
is markedly restricted in at least one of the basic activities of daily living
is significantly restricted in two or more of the basic activities of daily living (can include a vision impairment)
needs life-sustaining therapy

In addition, the person’s impairment must meet all of the following:

is prolonged, which means the impairment has lasted or is expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months
is present all or substantially all the time (at least 90% of the time)

Learn more about the eligibility criteria:

Vision

A person is considered blind if, even with the use of corrective lenses or medication:

the visual acuity in both eyes is 20/200 (6/60) or less, with the Snellen Chart (or an equivalent) or
the greatest diameter of the field of vision in both eyes is 20 degrees or less

View the vision video to help you understand the criteria.

Markedly restricted

A person is markedly restricted if, they are unable or take an inordinate amount of time to do one or more of the basic activities of daily living, even with therapy (other than life-sustaining therapy) and the use of appropriate devices and medication. This restriction must be present all or substantially all the time (at least 90% of the time).

What we mean by “inordinate amount of time”

This is a clinical judgment made by a medical practitioner who observes a recognizable difference in the time it takes a patient to do an activity. Usually, this equals three times the average time needed to complete the activity by a person of the same age who does not have the impairment.

Basic activities of daily living

See the links below to get details, examples, and videos explaining each basic activity of daily living.

Among other things, there must be a prolonged impairment in physical or mental functions that must have lasted, or be expected to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months.

Click below on the link to find out if you’re eligible for the DTC

CRA Disability Tax Credit link

The disability tax credit can be claimed retroactively for up to 10 years if a person has been experiencing eligible impairments but has only now applied for the credit. That can add up to a major tax refund.

Content source# https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/segments/tax-credits-deductions-persons-disabilities/information-medical-practitioners/eligibility-criteria-disability-tax-credit.html

Canada Revenue CRA & Unfilled/Overdue Canadian Taxes

What happens when you don’t file your taxes or have overdue taxes?

There is an increase in the number of people who have not filed their tax returns. It is understandable that there are many priorities in everyone’s lives and it is becoming increasingly difficult for the person to catch up with their filing requirements.

The CRA however, is not very sympathetic. To CRA not being in compliance with the income tax act no matter what the cause, merits financial or legal punishment.

CRA will not offer any relief from CRA collection actions such as income garnishment or bank levy, until you complete and file all tax returns. So the sooner you file all your back taxes, the sooner the CRA will be willing to negotiate with you.

CRA will send you a demand to file for the current year’s tax return; CRA may also wait for a few years and then take increased measures to make you file( lock up your bank, garnish your income, bank levy, etc). You need to keep in mind that CRA will eventually find you and if they do, you will have to face the late filing of tax penalties and accumulated interests starting from the date when the tax is due.

With advances in technology, CRA has been using an enhanced database to identify people who have unfiled tax returns. If you have unfiled returns, you are automatically on the list of the most wanted people for tax collection. If you can act before CRA gets to you, you have a better chance of resolving your tax problems without going through the pain of legal action. Intentionally not filing, or filing a false return, is a crime. It is critical to take action to resolve your unfiled return problems before a simple mistake becomes a crime.

To control your damage right away, we do the assessment and determine your filing obligations. Then we will quickly help you to reconstruct all the financial information and locate all your missing pieces of tax information to report your returns properly.

Ready for Expert Guidance?

Navigating Canada’s tax system can be complex. At S & M Tax Services, we combine more than 10 years of expertise with a client-first approach to deliver personalized tax preparation, accounting, and advisory solutions.

📞 (416) 262-8507
📧 info@smtaxservices.ca
Serving Durham Region & the GTA with trust and professionalism.