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Common tax misconceptions

There are many common misconceptions about your taxes like if you miss paying your taxes you’ll go to jail! Not true, and that’s just one misconception that some people have when filing their taxes.

You don’t have to fill out your taxes

Not true at all, if you don’t fill your taxes out you’ll get a bill from the CRT for 5% of your tax bill every month you don’t fill and send out your taxes. Unfortunately, there is a large number of Canadians who think that filling out your taxes is a voluntary activity due to the instruction book form 1040 saying that it describes completing your taxes as voluntary. Do not believe this, you will be billed every month your taxes aren’t sent out. 

Drug trafficking or other crimes aren’t taxable

It may sound crazy but you can commit a crime or a number of crimes and get convicted from it but are still eligible to use it that money made from crime as taxable income. It is the truth that the CRT doesn’t care how you make your money, either from drug trafficking, lying to investors or stealing, they still want what they think is entitled to them. Whatever way you make your money the government wants some of it and they are technically entitled to it. 

Kids in college or university don’t have to pay taxes

I wish this was true when I was working part-time in school but unfortunately, it’s only partially true. There is one stipulation to this, and that is if the student is dependant on someone else and makes less than $12,200 in 2019 they do not have to pay taxes. Any other student that takes loans and works a part-time job making over $12,200 per year they are then expected to pay taxes like every other adult. 

Any money made through eCommerce is tax-free

Now, this should be a simple and obvious, yes but a large portion of people do believe that selling their product or service online, therefore, means that you do not have to pay taxes on that income. Wrong! You have to pay taxes on all forms of income that you make, anything $400.00 or more you must report it to the CRT and pay the taxes on it.

I hope you’ve gained some knowledge from this and are now on your way to becoming a better more efficient tax expert.