Accountants for incorporated consultants in Canada

One corporation, one client, and a rule worth knowing about

An incorporated consultant working mainly through a single client sits close to a rule that most other small corporations never meet. Where the CRA concludes that the worker would reasonably be regarded as an employee of that client but for the corporation, the corporation can be treated as a personal services business, and the tax treatment that follows is materially different from an ordinary small corporation.

HBT reviews where an engagement sits against the factors the CRA weighs, prepares the corporate year end and the personal return together, and sets out how the owner is being paid and what each option costs. Where the exposure is real we say so plainly, because the cost of finding out later is considerably higher than the cost of asking now.

What a consultant engagement covers

How the work begins

1. 1

   Step 1: Tell us about the engagements

   How many clients, how long each has run, and whether you work through your own corporation.

2. 2

   Step 2: Scope and price agreed

   Priced on the number of entities and the volume of transactions, confirmed before work starts.

3. 3

   Step 3: A position you can explain

   Records and reasoning kept so the treatment applied can be supported if it is ever questioned.

What does accounting for an incorporated consultant cost?

A corporate year end with the T2 return starts at $2,500 and a business owner personal return at $350. A corporate nil return starts at $750 where the corporation was inactive. Corporate tax planning and consultation is $350 per hour, which is the usual basis for reviewing personal services business exposure or a salary and dividend mix. Amounts are starting prices plus GST or HST where it applies and are confirmed before any paid work begins.