Do you do your own taxes or pay someone else to do them?

Kathryn said:

Do you do your own taxes or pay someone else to do them?


* It's April 30th. The last day for filing your income tax. Remember even if they owe you Income Tax Act 162 (7) states that CRA can charge you $25.00/day to a maximum of 100 days for every day that you are late in filing your return.

Click to expand...

That's interesting. I didn't know that. Talk about a double whammy -- they hang on to the refund longer and charge the taxpayer for the privilege.

One more thing I've heard is that late filers attract extra scrutiny than usual. So, it's best to file taxes on time!

I typically collect the documents, run the numbers myself before submitting to an accountant. I personally like having a CA's name on my paperwork when I file.

We do them ourselves.

I also am surprised about the $25/day.
I'd better let some relatives know (whom are years backed up).

I now do my fiances. I'm still undecided whether I will be doing mine.

FrugalTrader said:

I typically collect the documents, run the numbers myself before submitting to an accountant. I personally like having a CA's name on my paperwork when I file.

Click to expand...

I am assuming that is due to business income and you are just trying to prevent an audit or review? Has it worked, or does CRA still ask you questions?

Kathryn said:

* It's April 30th. The last day for filing your income tax. Remember even if they owe you Income Tax Act 162 (7) states that CRA can charge you $25.00/day to a maximum of 100 days for every day that you are late in filing your return.

Click to expand...

I didn't know about that either. I always thought as long as CRA owed you money you could file late. I have filled late for some of my family in the past because I thought it was OK and they never got penalized for it.

For those of you who pay for a CA to prepare and file for you, how much do you typically pay and what kind of services are they providing?
Just personal, personal and business, unique situation, complex personal filings?

So far I have done my own taxes. I would recommend Studiotax (it's free!) to anyone filing fairly simple tax returns. This was my 3rd year using it.

Next year I may hire someone as I have rental income.

lb71 said:

I didn't know about that either. I always thought as long as CRA owed you money you could file late. I have filled late for some of my family in the past because I thought it was OK and they never got penalized for it.

Click to expand...

I don't think CRA does this much. We got a notice from head office where I work saying they 'can' do it. I've never heard of it happening to anyone though.

I do my own, many of my family members, some friends, and some of my small business clients. And I actually really don't like doing it!

I enjoy accounting, but taxes are a real pain, you have to constantly be aware of tax law changes, it can take a lot of time to stay current. My tax situation is going to start getting very complex in coming years, and I'm quite tempted to just pay a tax accountant to handle it.

For those last minute filers (or for next year), here's a link to a FREE tax software. Just fill in the info, print them out, and mail. Only downside is that you cannot do a Netfile with this program.

http://pacificcoast.net/~gthompson/

Kathryn said:

Do you do your own taxes or pay someone else to do them?

Click to expand...

My wife and I have fairly detailed tax returns so we pay to have them done. We're not confident that we would be able to take advantage of everything that we may be entitled to under Canadian tax laws.

However, we always follow the motto, pigs get fat and hogs get slaughtered.

Bullseye said:

... taxes are a real pain, you have to constantly be aware of tax law changes, it can take a lot of time to stay current.

Click to expand...

This is pretty much the reason we pay to have ours done.

I do my own - but I think I will hire someone (who?) for at least one year to make sure I'm not missing out on anything.

I have been doing my own taxes (and for the parents as well) for the past 10 years. Come as a result of some questionable attitude by a family acquaintance we asked to help do our taxes back then...I promise my folks I would do what I can not to bother said person anymore and I have kept my promise since.

Doesn't mean I got all my bases covered because I am not a tax accountant by trade but it's a great feeling doing what you can within your abilities.

Used to do them myself, but things are getting more complex... paid over 1,000 this year... in accountant fees

I always did my own, along with doing family members' returns. Now however, my daughters are grown up and out of town, so they take care of theirs. I still do my mother's- very simple (3 basic sources of income and rental rebate). Since I work at H&R Block I get mine (and hubby's) done for free. With rental, capital gains/losses and pension splitting, things have become more complicated, and having a system figure things out is really nice.

Unless you are a tax accountant or have a very simplistic situation (ie 15 year-old with a summer job at the mall), if you do your own taxes you are leaving a lot of money on the table (for the government to take/keep).

Rickson9 said:

Unless you are a tax accountant or have a very simplistic situation (ie 15 year-old with a summer job at the mall), if you do your own taxes you are leaving a lot of money on the table (for the government to take/keep).

Click to expand...

I don't agree. Unless you have your own business, very few individuals would need an accountant to do their taxes. If you are not comfortable with doing your taxes, sure pay someone for that piece of mind. But they won't find you a penny more than any of the software out there.

I do my own taxes, and tax for a bunch of other people as well. I am intensely interested in tax policy, and this is a way for me to keep current about tax stuff.