HELP - CANT FIND ACCOUNTANT Ottawa region

[DisneyPrincess]

OK This is definitely making me loose my mind. I have made phone calls over phone calls with this list of accountants to find a descent one to do my personal taxes for my first year in having a Home Daycare, answers I got : they dont seem to know squat about Home Daycare business, they are beyond expensive... seriously how much is this service suppose to cost, or they dont take clients anymore... wow just like doctors !!

I took the workshop at CCPRN, I am not comfortable doing my own taxes, I NEED HELP.

Anyone can share their accountant seriously ??? I live in Limoges... I can go in Ottawa or Orleans region ??? please please help !

:(

[CasualFridays]

I took mine to H&R Block last year and they seemed pretty knowledgeable :)

[BlueRose]

I am in Ottawa. I just had my taxes done at Liberity Tax Service at the Lincoln Fields mall (2525 carling Ave)

they do home daycares all the time. But it did cost me $170 (w/tax). But they seemed to know what they were going.

[DisneyPrincess]

170$ is reasonable... this accountant that sent me back an email asked for 750$ !!!! H&R Block never had a good reputation when I lived in Montreal. Hope they are better here. Thanks ladies, I appreciate your help a whole lot !!

[playfelt]

Unless you have an accountant that is willing to do the shoebox method of sorting out your receipts for him by the time you organize everything for the accountant you have all the numbers you need to put on your taxes. Go to the revenue canada site and download the two pages that you use for a business think it is T2125 or somethign like that and just look at it. All you need to put on it are the totals and the rest takes care of itself. Then that number goes on page one and you fill out your taxes like any other person would do with the exception of canada pension where you have to use the equation box since you don't have a number to copy over. I have been doing my own taxes all along and it is more daunting than it is hard really.

[DisneyPrincess]

But what if I forget to deduct something I could have to pay less taxes ?? Like I said its my first year and like others here who are in their first year, I'm scared to pay thousands in taxes. I have been a bad girl in not putting aside money each week... I guess I thought experts would think more about those little things that we dont and makes a huge difference lol !

[playfelt]

You can't forget to deduct something because your accountant can only deduct the receipts you give them so if you have a reciept for something then you will remember to deduct it. There isn't really a lot that makes a difference for us since we aren't dealing with a corporation that gets tax incentives and loopholes etc. Basically we just add up our receipts, deduct it from the total earned and the balance is our income which we treat the same as what another person would have on their T4 slip and then finish the same tax package that everyone else does.

[crafty]

Dont worry DisneyPrincess, I'm also doing it for the first time as a daycare provider. I went on CRA websites it tells you pretty much all that you can deduct and I am going to buy the quick tax or turbo tax program. I've used it for my taxes before and it's fairly easy to use. When I was in doubt I call CRA. I am sure we can figure it out :) I"m kinda nervous cause I was not able to put anything asside either... YIKES !:unsure::ohmy:

@Playfelt, do you use a program in particular ? I was wondering which type I needed.

[Crayola kiddies]

I just use my regular acct that has done my taxes for years and for $400 plus tax he does mine and my husbands and both our businesses but hes not here in Ottawa ...hes in Mississauga and we just fedex our package to him. and he efiles it

[DisneyPrincess]

400$... thats alot :O Last year we paid maybe 175$ for both of us... yes I didnt have my own business but... even when I was in Montreal it use to cost about 150$ for our family taxes :\

[playfelt]

Nope no program. I just use lined paper in a binder - very professional. Put the catagory at the top and then record what belongs in that catagory. I package my receipts in 3 month envelopes and deal with stuff each quarter although I have a bin on my desk I write on receipts as I get them and toss stuff in there till ready to be bagged. (I do three months because I have to submit HST to the government for my other felt business every 3 months and some stuff overlaps such as buying felt at fabricland for a workshop and a piece of fabric I am going to use with my daycare. All you need to put on the tax package is the total at the bottom of the page. So for instance eveytime you pay to advertise such as in a newspaper or a paid online package you write the amount down and at the end of the year add it up and put the amount down beside advertising.

I do it manually with a calculator and fill in the forms by hand and mail them in. If you go to the revenue canada site you can file online this year without using a tax program I think and you just fill in the numbers. Mine gets complicated because I have to do separate forms for each business and then add the net totals together for income and most programs wont' let me use a form twice so stopped trying and just do it by hand. I did contact revenue canada and had them send me the business tax package which also goes through each of the items you can claim and gives examples and basically walks you through the T2125 form which is in the booklet. But you can also download both from the website.

Did they have some name options at the tax workshop? I have heard people sharing names in the past but don't know anyone. My son, who lives in Calgary, is an accountant and has been doing some tax prep for people at work for at little as $30 so becuase it isn't complicated you might want to just look for someone that is tax trained but stay away from things like HR Block since many of those workers just get a crash course in taxes and that is it. It really helps if the person doing the taxes understands home daycare for sure or they will try to claim things you can't and also refuse to claim things you can - water is one example of something we can claim but most home businesses can't because they don't use it in the actual working of their business.

[Artsand crafts]

I do my taxes through Turbo tax, too. They used to have a service where accountants where available online and by phone to walk you through the whole process and answer any question you may have. Unfortunately, last year that I filed my taxes that service was not available anymore.... I guess an accountant will amortize any 'equipment' you have acquired over the next years or claim it all on this year to ensure you pay as little as possible this and the following years. This is not rocket science though. I will do it again this year myself through Turbo Tax. As Playfelt mentioned for me it is not worth it paying someone else just to enter the numbers in the software.

[playfelt]

For stuff you buy that will last a long time such as a playpen or a climber for the yard you put that down under Capital Cost Allowance and again there is a form. You put in the amount, find the catagory it belongs to - mostly 8 for our stuff so that is 20% per year but only based on half the first year but again you just do what the boxes on the chart say - take 50% of box C , add Box C +D or whatever and the number at the end is the amount you claim this year and the amount left is the amount you start with next year.

Mostly it comes down to not gettting overworked and frustrated to start and then just going slowly through the whole package. I realize though that if you have not ever done your personal taxes either and had an accountant do them that now adding the business part onto the process can seem daunting. Think of the taxes as two parts. The first part is filling out the T2125 form which is for your daycare and does all of your daycare expenses and really on the whole page you only usually fill out about 10 lines as our food, craft supplies, household supplies, toys, all go down under supplies and yes that can be $10,000 or more on that line alone. The business use of home is a separate place to fill out but again you just add up your bills - what you paid for heating, sewer, water, etc. and put the numbers on the lines and follow the amounts.

Start by downloading the form from the revenue canada site and take a look at it and try filling it out to see how easy it is or where you get stuck. Maybe we can help you with what to put where. And in the grand scheme of things if you put something like a box of paper down under office instead of supplies but use the paper half and half for crafts it doesn't really matter because all the numbers just get added at the bottom of the page so as long as the amount is there somewhere you will get credit for the deduction.

[crafty]

Yeah I think it's just more intimidating than it actualy is and I actualy like doing some ''accounting''. I prepared envelops with titles of all the expenses I was allowed and got that all sorted out over the weekend. Now I just need to file. I like to use the programs cause they ask you questions that will help determine if you are illigible to some other tax credits. I just hope the programm will help with the capital cost allowance because that's the one I do not know how to account for and I practicaly bought everything used. Anyway I will give it a shot for sure bacause I really don't think it is necessary to get an accountant.

[Artsand crafts]

I never have claim anything I buy used unless I get it from Once Upon a Child. They give you receipts for your purchases.

[BlueRose]

I am too afraid of messing it up, that is why I have someone else do it. If anyone wants the phone number for Liberity Tax Service just PM me and let me know if you want the Bank Location or the one I used on Carling Ave

[DisneyPrincess]

I called Liberty Tax Service... I ask my hubby last night turns out that the service we used but we didnt like their service, but that was on Montreal Rd I think. I called on Carling Av yesterday and the girl was nice. Thanks Bluerose :)

[playfelt]

I never have claim anything I buy used unless I get it from Once Upon a Child. They give you receipts for your purchases.

Anything you buy used you can write yourself a receipt that has the date and place of purchase on it and the amount paid. This applies to things like from a garage sale. In effect what you are doing is transferring an item from personal to business as in you bought it and now you are selling it to your daycare. This also applies to things you have from your own children they have outgrown that you are adding to the daycare such as a highchair or playpen.

[Artsand crafts]

Hi Playfelt, what about a CRA audit? I though you have to prove with your receipts your purchases. I have gotten lots of stuff from Kijiji from several people. Will CRA take my word when I "tell" them how much I have paid for them?

[BlueRose]

Hi Playfelt, what about a CRA audit? I though you have to prove with your receipts your purchases. I have gotten lots of stuff from Kijiji from several people. Will CRA take my word when I "tell" them how much I have paid for them?
if you contact the person sell the item via email, ask them to email you how much the item cost or print out the ad. keep these with your records.

[Artsand crafts]

I just did a quick google search because it bugged me not to be claiming something when I could get more tax savings. So far I have found this:

http://sbinfocanada.about.c om/cs/taxinfo/f/noreceipts.htm

I will have to look more on to it, but it sounds risky to claim something if you do not have receipts in case of an audit.

[playfelt]

The nature of our business is different than for most businesses. Most do not buy from garage sales, second hand stores, the dollar store, friends, kijijji, etc. We do and as such we can still claim an item if we can prove we bought it. In an audit yes you may be denied something unless you can prove it such as producing the puzzle or truck in the kijiji ad. But at the same time to miss out on savings that are legitimate because of the fear of it being denied in an audit is not realistic either and a fear the tax people like to portray.

[notaunicorn]

I print out the kijiji ad, and staple the emails of correspondence with the seller including time and date we agree to meet for sale.

I use strategic tax in bells corners, Dave something.

[DisneyPrincess]

Yeah I'll claim my kijiji and second hand store things that I bought. I dont remember where I have heard this once, but as long as you can prove the purchase, it was okay. Anyhoo the problem is, I loaded my daycare from kijiji and second hand store before I open and never thought of printing the papers or asking a receipt at the second hand store :( If I had in the beginning it would of been a few hundred dollars more to my advantage. Oh well, now I do...

[playfelt]

Since you bought those things before opening you can also claim they belonged to you. Now you wish to change their ownership from you to the daycare so you "sell" them to yourself at used prices and make out a receipt and claim accordingly. What you then have to remember for anything you do that with is that if you later sell the item the money counts towards your daycare and not you.

[DisneyPrincess]

Oh really... I did not know that... tx

[playfelt]

It was a lot more helpful when the CCPRN tax workshops were given by seasoned caregivers and not people from revenue canada. Of course they are going to just spout what is written and not let you know all of the extra perks you can claim. But if you do get to ask questions like that you will be told how to do the receipts etc for yourself.

It all comes down in an audit of logic and proof. You have proof in that you have a piece of paper you wrote and dated 3 years ago (assuming you are audited back which they tend to do) that says you bought a puzzle, 2 books and sorting toy at a garage sale for $10. It is a legitimate item in that it falls under supplies-toys and was done at the time of sale/purchase not like an afterthought.