The Money Wise

04/14/2026

This week's blog is for a specific audience, and if it applies to you, I recommend reading it closely.

"Maximizing Your Wealth: Effective High-Income Tax Strategies in Canada for 2025" covers the most powerful, CRA-compliant planning tools available to Canadians earning above $200K or running an incorporated business.

Here's what's inside:
➡️ Ontario's top combined marginal rate is 53.53% on income above $253K. Every strategy in this post reduces the income exposed to that rate.

➡️ Prescribed rate loans: Loan money to a lower-income spouse at the CRA's 3% prescribed rate. Investment returns are taxed in their hands, not yours.

➡ CCPC planning: The small business deduction drops your corporate rate to ~12.2% on the first $500K of active business income. The salary vs. dividend mix matters more than most business owners realize.

➡️ Individual Pension Plans (IPP): For incorporated professionals over 40, contributions can be 30-65% higher than RRSP limits, all as a corporate deduction.

➡️ The 2024 AMT changes: If you've had large capital gains, significant donations, or sold QSBC shares, the updated Alternative Minimum Tax at 20.5% may apply to you.

These aren't loopholes; they're the tools the tax system was designed around. The difference between a well-advised high earner and an unadvised one can be tens of thousands of dollars a year.

Full breakdown at themoneywise.ca.
Share with someone who could use it.

Let's get money-wise together. 💙

04/07/2026

📋 This week's blog is the one to bookmark before you file.

"How to Organize Your Tax Documents in 2026" provides a complete system for getting (and staying) organized, whether you're filing yourself or working with an accountant.

Here's what's inside:
✅ Every slip you should have received by now ( T4, T4A, T4E, T5, T3, T5008, and more), and what each one means
✅ Which receipts to keep (medical, childcare, donations, moving, home office, and more)
✅ Digital vs. physical filing, what actually works in practice
✅ The best free and paid apps Canadians use to track it all
✅ How to use CRA My Account to view slips and upload documents
✅ A month-by-month system so you're never scrambling in April again
✅ A complete 2025 tax prep checklist you can use right now

The 6-year retention rule is also in there with a plain-language breakdown of what it actually means for your records.

Read the full post at themoneywise.ca/blog and share with anyone who's still hunting for receipts. 😄

Let's get money-wise together. 💙

03/29/2026

You didn't sell your crypto for cash. You just traded Bitcoin for Ethereum. CRA still wants their cut. 👇

I know this isn't what crypto holders want to hear, but I'd rather you hear it from me than from CRA during an audit.

In Canada, cryptocurrency is treated as a commodity, not currency. And that one classification changes everything.

Every time you dispose of crypto in any form, it's a taxable event.

Here's what "dispose" actually means:
❌ Selling crypto for Canadian dollars → taxable
❌ Trading Bitcoin for Ethereum → taxable (each swap is a disposition)
❌ Buying a coffee with crypto → taxable
❌ Getting paid in crypto for work → taxable as income
❌ Staking rewards and mining income → taxable when received
❌ Airdrops → taxable

✅ Buying crypto and holding it → NOT taxable
✅ Moving between your own wallets → NOT taxable

That's it. That's the whole list of exceptions.

Now here's the part that's changing fast:

Canadian exchanges are now required to report your transaction data directly to CRA.

If you've been treating your crypto as invisible income, it's not anymore.

One more thing: CRA decides whether your gains are capital gains (50% taxable) or business income (100% taxable) based on how frequently you trade. Frequent trader? CRA may call it a business whether you intended it or not.

Keep records. Every transaction. Every date. Every value in CAD at the time.

📖 Full crypto tax breakdown on the blog — link in bio. 💙

Let's get money-wise together.

03/28/2026

TFSA or RRSP? Wrong answer is costing you money right now. Here’s the actual strategy. 👇

Can we stop pretending this is a simple question?

“Should I use my TFSA or RRSP?” is one of the most common things I hear, and the honest answer is: both.
But for different things.

It’s not about which account is better. It’s about putting the right investment in the right account. Because the same investment held in the wrong account quietly costs you money every single year.

Here’s the cheat sheet, save this: 📌

🏦 RRSP - put these here:
→ U.S. dividend stocks (treaty protection = zero withholding tax)
→ Bonds and fixed income (shelter fully taxable interest income)
→ High-income earners’ core holdings (get the deduction now, pay tax later at a lower rate)

💚 TFSA - put these here:
→ High-growth stocks and ETFs (tax-free compounding with no tax ever on withdrawal)
→ GICs (shelter that fully taxable interest income)
→ Investments you might need before retirement (withdrawals are always tax-free)

🍁 Taxable account (Non-Registered or Margin Account) - put these here:
→ Canadian dividend stocks (the Dividend Tax Credit only works OUTSIDE registered accounts - it’s lost inside)
→ Investments where you want to be able to claim capital losses

One more thing people miss:
→ TFSA withdrawals don’t count as income. RRSP/RRIF withdrawals do.
→ For retirees - that difference affects your OAS, GIS, and every income-tested benefit you receive.

The account you choose changes your after-tax return without changing a single investment.

📖 Full breakdown on the blog - link in bio. 💙

Let’s get money-wise together.
TaxTipsCanada

03/27/2026

The CRA doesn’t tax all your investments the same way

👀 Here’s what most Canadian investors don’t know before they file. 💰

Save this before April 30. 📌
Share it with your investor friends. 💙

03/24/2026

This one is for every Canadian investor filing their 2025 taxes.
If you earn dividends, sell stocks, hold crypto, own a rental property, or collect interest on GICs, your investment income is taxed. But how much you pay depends entirely on the type of income, where you hold it, and how you time your moves.

This week on The Money Wise, we're unpacking it all 👇

📊 Not All Investment Income Is Created Equal

Here's the short version of how the CRA treats different types of investment income for a moderate-income Ontario taxpayer:

💚 Capital gains → Only 50% is taxable. High efficiency.
💚 Eligible dividends (Canadian corps) → Grossed up with a tax credit to offset double taxation. High efficiency.
🟡 Non-eligible dividends (CCPC) → Smaller gross-up, smaller credit. Moderate efficiency.
🔴 Interest income → 100% taxable at your full marginal rate. Low efficiency.
🔴 Foreign dividends (U.S. stocks) → 100% taxable. No Canadian DTC. Possible foreign withholding.

Understanding this hierarchy is the foundation of tax-smart investing.

📌 Capital Gains:
The 50% Inclusion Rate Is Confirmed - Here's What That Means

When you sell an investment for more than you paid, you've realized a capital gain. In Canada, only 50% of that gain is added to your taxable income, the rest is tax-free.

Example: You sell an ETF for a $10,000 gain. Only $5,000 is taxable. At a combined federal + Ontario marginal rate of ~43%, you'd owe approximately $2,150 in tax, not $4,300.

The proposed inclusion rate increase is officially dead. After months of back-and-forth, Prime Minister Carney's government cancelled the proposed increase from 50% to 66.67% on March 21, 2025. The CRA has reverted to administering the 50% rate for all 2025 filings. If you filed early under the higher rate, you are entitled to a reassessment and refund.

Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption: $1.25 million If you're selling shares in a qualifying small business corporation or qualified farm/fishing property, the LCGE shields up to $1.25 million in gains from tax entirely. This is one of the most powerful planning tools for Canadian entrepreneurs, but the rules are strict. Talk to a CPA before you sell.

📌 Dividends:
Canada's Built-In System to Avoid Double Taxation

When a Canadian corporation earns income, it pays corporate tax first. When it pays the remainder to you as a shareholder, the CRA doesn't want to tax the same money twice, so they built the Dividend Tax Credit system.

Here's how it works:

Eligible dividends (from public companies and large corps):
→ Your $1,000 dividend gets grossed up to $1,380 on your return
→ You claim a federal DTC of ~15% of the $1,380 = ~$207
→ Plus Ontario's provincial DTC on top
→ Net result: effective tax rate well below your marginal rate

Non-eligible dividends (from CCPCs using the small business deduction):
→ Your $1,000 dividend gets grossed up to $1,150
→ Smaller federal DTC of ~9%
→ Higher effective personal rate than eligible dividends

Foreign dividends (U.S. stocks, international ETFs)?

No gross-up. No DTC. 100% added to your taxable income at your full rate. Plus the U.S. withholds 15% at source (make sure your broker has a W-8BEN on file to get the treaty rate without it, they withhold 30%). You can claim a Foreign Tax Credit on your Canadian return for the amount withheld, but you're still paying significantly more tax than on an equivalent Canadian dividend.

The slips you'll need:
📄 T5 from your brokerage shows cash dividend, taxable (grossed-up) amount, and DTC
📄 T3 from mutual funds and ETFs often arrives late (sometimes after April 30,plan ahead)

Capital losses go to work too. You can apply capital losses against capital gains in the current year, carry them back 3 years, or carry them forward indefinitely. Just watch the Superficial Loss Rule: don't repurchase the same security within 30 days of selling it at a loss or CRA disallows it.

📌 Interest Income: The Most Taxed Investment Dollar

GICs, savings account interest, bonds, and peer-to-peer lending income are all treated the same by CRA: 100% taxable at your full marginal rate. No credit. No special treatment.

On a 5% GIC earning $2,500 per year, a taxpayer in the 40% combined bracket pays $1,000 in tax, keeping only $1,500. The same $50,000 earning 5% in a TFSA keeps the full $2,500. Every year. With compounding.

The single best move: Hold your GICs and bonds inside a TFSA or RRSP. It's the highest-impact, lowest-effort tax optimization most Canadian savers can make.

📌 TFSA vs. RRSP: Where You Hold Your Investments Matters as Much as What You Hold

Both accounts shelter your investments from annual tax, but in different ways and with different strategies.

🏦 TFSA: Contributions aren't deductible, but all growth and withdrawals are completely tax-free. 2025 contribution room is $7,000/year, with a $102,000 lifetime cumulative limit. Withdrawals don't affect OAS, GIS, or income-tested benefits.

🏦 RRSP: Contributions are tax-deductible now, but withdrawals are fully taxable. Best for high earners who expect lower income in retirement.

The smart account placement strategy:
✅ U.S. dividend stocks → RRSP (the Canada-U.S. Tax Treaty exempts RRSP accounts from U.S. withholding tax, the same stock in a TFSA gets 15% withheld with no recovery)
✅ Canadian dividend payers → Taxable account (the DTC benefit is lost inside registered accounts)
✅ GICs, bonds, interest-bearing assets → TFSA or RRSP (shelter 100% taxable income)
✅ High-growth stocks and ETFs → TFSA (tax-free compounding with no tax on withdrawal)

📌 Crypto: The CRA Is Watching - And Here's What You Owe
Cryptocurrency is treated as a commodity by CRA, not as currency. That means almost every crypto transaction is a taxable event.

What triggers a taxable event:
→ Selling crypto for CAD or USD
→ Trading one crypto for another (e.g., ETH for SOL - each swap is a disposition)
→ Using crypto to pay for goods or services
→ Receiving crypto through mining, staking, or as payment for work
→ Receiving airdrops or hard fork tokens

What doesn't trigger tax:
→ Buying crypto and simply holding it
→ Transferring between your own wallets

Capital gain or business income? If you hold and trade occasionally as an investor, CRA generally treats your gains as capital gains (50% inclusion). If you trade frequently, CRA may reclassify your activity as a business, meaning 100% of gains are taxable as income.

The record-keeping requirement is strict. Track every transaction: date, CAD value at the time, coin, amount, and purpose. As of 2025, Canadian exchanges are reporting user data directly to CRA. International exchanges are being captured through expanding information-sharing agreements.

📌 Tax-Loss Harvesting: How to Turn Paper Losses Into Real Savings

If you're holding investments that are currently down, you may be sitting on a valuable tax tool.

Here's the concept: sell the losing investment before December 31 to realize the capital loss, then use that loss to offset capital gains you've already realized this year (or in the past 3 years).

Example: You've realized $15,000 in capital gains from ETF sales this year. You're also holding a stock down $8,000. If you sell the stock before year-end, you reduce your net capital gain to $7,000, cutting your taxable capital gain from $7,500 to $3,500. Depending on your province, that's roughly $1,700–$2,000 in tax savings.

Key rules:
→ The Superficial Loss Rule: no repurchasing the same or identical security within 30 days. Buy a similar ETF instead to maintain exposure.
→ Settlement is now T+1 for most equities in 2025. Act by December 30.
→ Losses can be carried back 3 years or forward indefinitely.

✅ Investor Tax Filing Checklist - Before April 30
1️⃣ Collect all T5 slips (interest, dividends, foreign income)
2️⃣ Collect T3 slips - note these often arrive late
3️⃣ Collect T5008 slips (investment dispositions) for Schedule 3
4️⃣ Confirm foreign income amounts in CAD and foreign tax withheld
5️⃣ Export crypto transaction records from all exchanges and wallets
6️⃣ Compile rental income and expenses (T776)
7️⃣ Verify your ACB (adjusted cost base) on all sold positions, your broker reports proceeds, not your cost
8️⃣ Check for carryforward capital losses from prior years

The full Week 9 blog is live now including an investment income comparison table, a dividend gross-up walkthrough with real numbers, a complete TFSA vs. RRSP side-by-side, and a breakdown of every crypto event that triggers tax.

👉 Read it at https://www.themoneywise.ca/post/investment-income-tax-guide

The difference between a tax-aware investor and a tax-unaware one isn't the investments they hold, it's the after-tax dollars they keep. 💙

Let's get money-wise together.

Let's get money-wise together.

03/17/2026

🎯 This one's for every Canadian retiree and near-retiree filing their 2025 taxes this spring.

If you (or someone you love) is receiving CPP, OAS, or drawing down an RRIF, please read this. There are credits, strategies, and programs that go unclaimed every single year, and they add up to real money.

Here's your complete senior tax guide for 2026 👇

💰 CPP: Are You Getting What You Deserve?

The maximum CPP at age 65 is $1,410/month in 2026, but most Canadians receive far less because the amount is based on their personal contribution history. Here's the part that surprises most people:
📉 Take CPP at 60 → reduced by up to 36%
📊 Take CPP at 65 → your standard amount
📈 Delay to age 70 → increased by up to 42%

If you're in good health and have other income to draw from in your early retirement years, delaying CPP to 70 is often one of the most impactful financial decisions you can make. The break-even point is typically around age 82–83.

Also important: the CPP Enhancement Phase 2 is now fully in effect. If you contributed to CPP after 2019, your eventual benefit will reflect the higher replacement rate, up to 33% of pre-retirement earnings, rather than the old 25%.

📬 OAS: Quarterly Increases & The Clawback You Need to Know About

OAS increased 0.3% in Q1 2026.
Current monthly maximums:
→ Ages 65–74: $742.31/month
→ Ages 75+: $816.54/month (the 10% permanent boost remains in effect)

⚠️ The OAS Clawback starts at $95,353 net income in 2026.

For every dollar your net income exceeds that threshold, you repay 15 cents of OAS.

What counts toward that number? RRIF withdrawals, capital gains, rental income, investment income, all of it. Full clawback for ages 65–74 kicks in around $154,708.

This is exactly why RRIF withdrawal timing is so critical, and why pension income splitting matters so much for higher-income retirees.

Don't forget GIS, the Guaranteed Income Supplement is a non-taxable monthly top-up for lower-income OAS recipients. If you're single and your income is below ~$22,488, you may qualify. It's automatically assessed when you file your taxes — but only if you file.

📊 RRIF Withdrawals: The Minimums Go Up Every Year

Once you convert your RRSP to a RRIF (mandatory by December 31 of the year you turn 71), you must withdraw a minimum percentage each year. That percentage increases with age, and every dollar withdrawn is fully taxable income.

Here's a snapshot:
→ Age 71: 5.28% minimum
→ Age 75: 5.82% minimum
→ Age 80: 6.82% minimum
→ Age 85: 8.51% minimum
→ Age 90: 11.92% minimum

On a $300,000 RRIF at age 80, that's a mandatory $20,460 taxable withdrawal before you've chosen to take a single extra dollar.

Three strategies that make a real difference:
✅ Base your minimum on your younger spouse's age, which keeps more money in the account longer
✅ Convert to a RRIF before 71, which unlocks the $2,000 Pension Income Tax Credit (worth up to $300 in federal savings annually) and qualifies income for pension splitting
✅ Time withdrawals to stay under the OAS clawback threshold, sometimes spreading withdrawals across years saves more than the investment return on keeping it in the RRIF

👫 Pension Income Splitting: One Form, Thousands in Savings

This is one of the most powerful and underused tools available to Canadian retiree couples.

Here's how it works: if one spouse has significantly more eligible pension income (RRIF withdrawals age 65+, employer pensions, annuities), you can allocate up to 50% of that income to the lower-earning spouse's tax return.

The result? The higher earner moves into a lower tax bracket, and the lower earner's income remains well below the OAS clawback threshold.

Real-world example:
Robert has $60,000 in RRIF and pension income. His spouse Maria has $20,000 in OAS and CPP. By splitting $20,000 of Robert's eligible pension income on Maria's return, they save an estimated $2,000–$4,000 in combined federal and provincial tax each year.

The best part? No permanent change to your benefits. No planning ahead. Just complete Form T1032 when you file. (Note: you must re-elect it every year; it doesn't carry forward automatically.)

Important: CPP does NOT qualify for pension income splitting. It has its own separate sharing program through Service Canada.

✅ Senior Tax Credits Checklist. Don't Leave These Behind
Here's a quick rundown of credits that every senior should review before filing:
💙 Age Amount: $8,396 if your net income is below ~$42,335. Phases out above that.
💙 Pension Income Amount: Up to $300 in federal tax savings on $2,000 of eligible pension/RRIF income.
💙 Basic Personal Amount: $16,452. Every Canadian taxpayer gets this.
💙 Medical Expense Tax Credit: Prescriptions, mobility aids, home care, hearing aids, dental. Keep every receipt.
💙 Home Accessibility Tax Credit: Up to $20,000 in eligible renovation costs; up to $3,000 back in federal savings.
💙 Canada Caregiver Credit: Supporting a dependent with an impairment, including a spouse.
💙 Disability Tax Credit: Up to $9,872. Apply using Form T2201. Many seniors qualify and never apply.
💙 Ontario Trillium Benefit (Ontario residents): Combines energy, sales, and property tax credits. Paid monthly. Triggered by filing.
💙 GIS: Non-taxable. Income-tested. Only paid if you file your return annually.

📅 Your Action Plan Before April 30, 2026
1️⃣ Gather your income slips: T4A (pension), T4A(OAS), T4A(P) (CPP), T4RIF (RRIF), T5 (investments), T3 (trusts)
2️⃣ Check your total net income against the $95,353 OAS clawback threshold
3️⃣ Run the pension income splitting numbers or ask your tax preparer to
4️⃣ Claim every credit: don't skip the Age Amount, Pension Income Amount, or medical expenses
5️⃣ Confirm GIS if your income is low and make sure you're actually receiving it
6️⃣ File even if you owe nothing, benefits like GIS and Ontario Trillium only flow if you file

The Seniors & Retirees blog is live now, including a RRIF withdrawal table by age, a complete credits quick-reference guide, and a plain-language explanation of pension splitting vs. CPP sharing (they are NOT the same thing).

👉 Read it at www.themoneywise.ca
Every year, Canadian seniors leave thousands of dollars unclaimed. Let's make sure that's not you. 💙

Let's get money-wise together.

03/12/2026

03/10/2026

Most Canadians are leaving money on the table this tax season, and they don’t even know it.

The Money Wise Tax Season Series is here, and this week I’m talking about the tax credits and deductions that hide in plain sight every single year. Not loopholes. Not tricks. Just credits the CRA designed specifically to put money back in your pocket, which most people forget to claim.

💊 THE MEDICAL EXPENSE TAX CREDIT (METC)
You can claim eligible medical expenses that exceed the lesser of 3% of your net income OR $2,834. The federal credit is 15% above that threshold, and Ontario adds a provincial credit on top.

Commonly missed expenses that DO qualify:
✅ Prescription glasses, contacts & LASIK
✅ Dental work your insurance didn’t cover
✅ Mental health therapy (psychologist or social worker)
✅ Fertility treatments & IVF medications
✅ Travel 40+ km for medical treatment (mileage, meals, accommodation)
✅ Private health premiums on your T4 (Box 85)
✅ Gluten-free food premium for those with celiac disease.

💰 Real example:
David earns $60,000 in Ontario. He has $4,800 in eligible expenses. His 3% threshold = $1,800. He claims credit on $3,000, getting back about $840. That’s real money.

❤️ CHARITABLE DONATIONS
Did you donate to charity in 2025?
You’re leaving money behind if you didn’t claim it. Here’s how the credit works in Ontario:
🔹 First $200 donated = ~20% combined credit
🔹 Above $200 = ~40% combined credit
💵 A $1,000 donation = approximately $361 back. And you can carry forward unclaimed donations up to 5 years!

📋 OTHER CREDITS YOU’RE PROBABLY MISSING
📌 Union & professional dues (Box 44 on your T4): dollar-for-dollar deduction
📌 Canada Caregiver Credit: up to $8,375 if you support a dependent with a disability
📌 Home Accessibility Tax Credit: 15% of up to $20,000 in renovations for seniors or people with disabilities
📌 Canada Training Credit: 50% of tuition, up to your accumulated limit (check your NOA)
📌 Moving Expenses: if you moved 40+ km closer to a new job or school in 2025
📌 Multigenerational Home Renovation Credit: up to $7,500 refundable if you built a secondary suite for a senior or family member with a disability

💡 PRO TIP:
Pool your family’s medical expenses on the lower-income spouse’s return. Combine your expenses from any 12-month period ending in 2025. And check CRA My Account for unclaimed donation receipts going back to 2020, you may still be able to claim them!

All of this is covered this week, with real examples, CRA line numbers, and a step-by-step action plan you can use right now before you file.

👉 Read the full blog at www.themoneywise.ca/blog

Let’s get money-wise together. 💪

03/07/2026

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DM me!

03/06/2026

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