HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2019-02-07, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2019.
NC –Owning a small business
can be a challenging, but rewarding
experience. One of those challenges
is learning how to file your taxes
properly.
If you own a restaurant, bar, hair
salon or other business where your
employees receive tips from
customers, it’s important to know
that you have certain responsibilities
with respect to how to treat that tip
income.
How you handle tips earned by
your staff determines whether they
are considered “direct” or
“controlled” and what your
obligations are as a business owner.
Controlled tips are tracked and
paid by the employer. You collect
them from customers and control
how to pay them out to your
employees. For example, you may
choose to add an automatic gratuity
to a bill, or you may decide to share
tips equally among your staff.
Controlled tips should also be
included as part of your employees’
wages, which means that Canada
Pension Plan (CPP) contributions
and Employment Insurance (EI)
premiums must be deducted at
source if the employee is employed
in pensionable or insurable
employment, or both.
In contrast, direct tips are amounts
that need to be tracked by the
employee, who then declares the
income on their tax return. Direct
tips go from the customer straight to
the employee; for example, cash tips
that are handed to the employee by
the customer.
If your business follows a direct
model and a customer includes an
amount for a tip when paying their
bill by credit or debit card, the tip
would be considered to be a direct
tip as long as you pay it out
promptly and in full to the
employee. If you hold those funds,
they could be considered controlled
and you could become responsible
for CPP contributions and EI
premiums.
Get more information on how to
follow the tipping model of your
choice online on the Government of
Canada website.
NC – Many fraudsters target their
scams at seniors, believing that they
are more vulnerable and easier to
trick. This isn’t always true of
course, but seniors remain one of the
most targeted groups, so it pays to be
cautious.
Whether you’re a senior or hoping
to keep your parents safe, learn some
of the most popular scams and how
to protect against them.
• Emergency scams:The typical
scam starts with a grandparent
receiving a phone call from someone
claiming to be their grandchild, who
says they’re in trouble and need
money immediately. Worried
grandparents will act quickly out of
concern and have their money or
financial information stolen.
To guard against these scams,
anyone receiving this type of call
should take time to verify the story
by asking questions and calling the
child’s parents or friends to find out
about their whereabouts.
• Door-to-door scams:With this
trick, door-to-door salespeople use
high-pressure tactics to convince
homeowners to buy a product or sign
up for a service they don’t want or
need. These aggressive pitches can
be for charitable donations or home
maintenance services. In many
cases, the product or service is never
received or in others they are of poor
quality or not as represented.
Seniors can protect themselves
against these scams by not feeling
pressured to make a quick decision
and taking time to do some research
on the seller and the products first.
It’s a good idea to ask for photo ID,
get the name of the person and of the
company or charity they represent.
• Tax scams:There are a couple of
variations on this scam – an e-mail,
text or phone call supposedly from
the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
claims the receiver is entitled to an
extra refund and all that’s needed are
their banking details. Another
version is a call that says the receiver
owes the CRA money right away, or
else the caller will file a police
report. In either case, it’s not a
government agency calling.
Here, it’s important to remember
that the CRA will never use
aggressive or threatening language,
ask for payments via prepaid credit
cards or gift cards, or collect or
distribute payments through e-
transfers.
Find more information at
www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/fraud
Seniors often scam targets
Filing properly key to owning a small business
Breaking it down
As the owner of a small business, filing your taxes properly when the time comes is one of the
most important things you’ll do over the course of the year. (News Canada photo)
Keeping safe
Seniors are one of the most-targeted demographics for scams, but there are ways they can
ensure they keep their money safe, no matter the circumstances. (News Canada photo)
ABC Investments is a broker for more than
30 financial institutions
We do not charge any fees for our services.
All investments are eligible for deposit insurance.
Give us a call or stop in for rates on
RSP’s, RIF’s & TFSA’s
(We will pay the transfer fee charged to you by another
financial institution up to $100.)
BEST RATESGIC
1 yr. 2 yr. 3 yr. 4 yr. 5 yr.
519-524-2773 |1-800-265-5503
abcinvestments@gicinvest.net
ABC Investments
12 Courthouse Square, Goderich N7A 1M3
2.85% 3.07% 3.35% 3.45% 3.60%
• Rates effective February 4, 2019
• Minimum $10,000.
Susan Alexander CFP CLU CHS • Kim Perrier FINANCIAL ADVISOR
www.sholdicefinancial.com
PEAK Investment Services Inc.
Thinking About Post-Secondary Education?
Learn more about the
Registered Education
Savings Plan (RESP)
and the benefits it can offer!
Please join us February 20th
7-8:30 pm
Brussels Public Library Meeting Room
Please call Kim at 519-887-2662 or 519-887-9594
to reserve your space
Light refreshments provided
Watch for more seminars to come!
JACQUIE GOWING ACCOUNTING
Accounting, Income Tax & Business Management Services
Monthly Bookkeeping Tailored To “YOUR” Needs
• Reconciliations •Personal, Farm
• Government Remittances Business & Corporate
• Payroll • Electronic Tax Filing
All services available on site or at our office
jgowing623@gmail.com
RR 2 Bluevale
519-887-9248 Fax 519-887-9454