As a business owner or someone responsible for remitting GST/HST to the government, you have long settled into the process. Rob Hooton, Partner of Millards Chartered Accountants, warns that there have been many changes since the 20+ year inception of the GST/HST program and that complacency can lead to misunderstanding and penalties.
“Businesses have been doing it for so long many of them have fallen out of the habit of doing it properly.”
In the article titled “GST/HST Refresher – Revisiting the Basics,” authored by Dennis Tavares, CPA, CA, LPA, Tavares points out a number of potential issues for business owners and uses a fictitious Ron Smith to showcase examples of common GST/HST mistakes.
“We wouldn’t necessarily know about these errors or catch it for the client, so we are putting this information out there as a reminder and as a conversation starter for anyone that is unsure whether they are handling this properly.”
Millards is encouraging all business owners that are registered for GST/HST to download the attached article and to make sure that they are avoiding common pitfalls that could trigger an unwelcome surprise.
“Canada Revenue Agency is able to go back to prior years and disallow ITC’s that had not been properly claimed or they could assess GST/HST where it had not been correctly charged.”
As the article details, “the legislation related to GST/HST is quite complex and can easily lead to costly misunderstandings.” If you have questions or concerns about the correct calculations and procedures surrounding GST/HST, Hooton encourages you to consult a tax professional as soon as possible.
Existing clients should contact their Millards representative for more information. Millards is accepting new clients and anyone with a tax inquiry should contact Millards Chartered Accountants soon to discuss their taxation circumstances.
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