Frequently asked questions.

We work with incorporated service-based businesses across Canada, handling bookkeeping, payroll, GST/HST, corporate and personal tax, and tax planning. Our focus is ongoing advisory throughout the year, not just filing at year-end.

Incorporated service-based businesses, or owners ready to incorporate seriously, that want strategic partnership rather than just compliance. We work best with owners who see accounting as a lever for decisions, not a year-end obligation. If you're looking for a team rather than a solo accountant, we're probably a fit.

Three reasons. First, we work only with service-based businesses, so we know the tax levers that matter for this type of operation. Second, we bill a fixed monthly fee, so you know the cost upfront and use us as often as needed. Third, we run a steady monthly close and stay reachable by email for the decisions that come up between cycles, so planning happens while there is still room to decide.

Our clients benefit from a dependable partner for tax services, bookkeeping, payroll, accounts payable, and other key financial operations. Our team of specialists provides consistent support, eliminating the need for additional full-time staff. We customize our services to fit seamlessly into your operations, delivering scalable solutions that evolve alongside your business.

We work with incorporated service-based businesses across Canada (excluding Quebec). All meetings are remote, all documentation is digital, and we stay compliant with provincial variations wherever your business operates.

Yes, with one condition: you're incorporated, or committed to incorporating within 3 months. We don't work with sole proprietors as core clients because the tax levers that matter for us (salary/dividend optimization, corporate structure, CCA planning) only exist for incorporated businesses.

Pricing starts at a discovery session. Every incorporated business has different complexity: bookkeeping volume, GST/HST filings, corporate structure, audit exposure. After a 30-minute discovery session, we send a written proposal within 3 business days with a fixed monthly fee for your scope. No public price list, because a cheap fee for the wrong scope costs you more than a right-sized fee.

Fixed monthly fee based on the scope of work agreed in the proposal. No hourly billing, no time tracking, no surprise invoices. You know exactly what you pay every month and can reach out as often as needed within that scope.

You'll need to request three things from your previous accountant: prior-year tax returns (T2 and T1 if applicable), working papers and trial balance for the latest year closed, and any CRA correspondence on file. If there's accounting software in place (QuickBooks, Xero, Wave), subscription ownership should be transferred to you. We provide a template email you can send.

Between 2 and 4 weeks from signed proposal to full operation. Timeline depends on four factors: how quickly we receive files from your previous accountant, complexity of your bookkeeping setup, how many past periods need review, and scope of additional services included.

The best time is right after your fiscal year-end, when your previous accountant has closed the year and filed your corporate return. Second-best is during a quiet quarter, typically May to August. Avoid switching in the last 60 days before a major filing deadline, the transition adds risk where you want stability. That said, if your current setup is causing real problems, don't wait.

For bookkeeping clients we work exclusively with Xero. If you're on a different platform (QuickBooks, Wave, or other), standard migrations are part of onboarding and we handle the setup end-to-end. Larger or unusually complex migrations are scoped separately so the price reflects the actual work.

Your bookkeeper is your first point of contact for routine questions. For more complex bookkeeping decisions and basic to moderate tax questions, your supervisor is the point of contact. For tax strategy, corporate decisions, or CRA matters, questions route to your accountant. When in doubt, send any question to your bookkeeper, they'll escalate internally when needed. We use email for documentation and scheduled meetings for substantive conversations.

A senior accountant is the technical lead on every file and signs off on all corporate and personal tax returns. The bookkeeper handles day-to-day entries, the supervisor reviews all work before it leaves our office, and the accountant owns strategy and filing. Three people, three roles, one accountable technical lead.

Both, but compliance is the floor, not the ceiling. When tax planning is in the scope of services, we cover some or all of the following, depending on the client's needs and goals: salary/dividend mix, corporate structure, RRSP timing, upcoming purchases, and personal goals. Compliance is executed well, planning is where the relationship adds real value.

Review letters are included in the monthly fee. You forward the letter to us immediately and from there we handle the process with your approval. Formal desk or field audits are not included, but we may represent you through the process, scoped and agreed upfront. If you're new to us and a fiscal year that wasn't handled by us is reviewed, additional fees may apply.

Yes. We carry professional liability insurance (also known as errors and omissions, or E&O). The policy covers the professional work we deliver across bookkeeping, payroll, tax filings, planning, and advisory. If you or a regulatory body needs the certificate for your records, we can share it on request.

Generally yes, even with low volume. Regular close keeps GST/HST filings accurate, surfaces issues early, and gives you a real profit-and-loss view period over period. A less frequent cadence can work for very simple files, but it is the exception, not the rule.

Yes, in some scenarios. If your in-house team keeps clean books and follows the reconciliation discipline our T2 work depends on, we can do tax-only. If the books arrive in poor shape, cleanup is part of the T2 engagement and the fee reflects that.

Registration is mandatory once worldwide sales of taxable goods and services exceed CAD 30,000.00 in a single quarter or four consecutive quarters. Voluntary registration below that is often a smart move to recover Input Tax Credits on startup costs. Our GST/HST threshold tracker gives a quick read on where you stand.

It depends on cash needs, RRSP room, CPP contribution preference, expected future income, and the corporation's taxable income. There is no universal rule. We model the after-tax outcome of each mix and pick what optimizes your specific situation, then revisit annually. Our salary vs dividend tool gives an initial read on the trade-offs.

Much more. Categorization is the easy part. The work that matters has four layers.

Consistency. The same transactions categorized the same way every cycle. Without consistency, comparisons across periods mean nothing and trend analysis is impossible.

Compliance with CRA rules. Revenue recognition timing, the 50% rule on meals and entertainment, capitalizing assets rather than expensing them, splitting vehicle and home-office costs between business and personal use, treating shareholder loans and capital dividends correctly. Getting these right at the entry level prevents reassessments later.

Documentation procedures. Every transaction backed by source documents (receipts, invoices, contracts, mileage logs) stored in a system that survives a CRA review. Procedures defined during onboarding and followed every cycle.

Organization. Chart of accounts structured so reporting is meaningful, related accounts grouped, GST/HST and payroll liabilities tracked separately from operating accounts, sub-ledgers reconciled to the general ledger.

The output is a set of books a CRA reviewer can audit, a lender can underwrite, and an owner can actually use to make decisions.

We get authorized as a representative on your CRA file. You keep ownership of the account; we just have the access needed to do the work.

What we can do: view notices and assessments, file T2 and GST/HST returns, request transcripts and instalment summaries, respond to review letters, communicate with CRA agents on your behalf, and pull your corporate and payroll balances.

What we cannot do: change the legal ownership of the corporation, add or remove directors, access your personal CRA My Account (T1) without separate authorization, or change your banking and direct deposit details on file with CRA.

We still want to talk. We work with service businesses of all kinds, and many patterns translate across sectors. The ten industries we feature are where our experience runs deepest, but they are not a gate. If you are an incorporated service business and the work fits our model (bookkeeping, payroll, GST/HST, corporate tax, planning), there is a good chance we can help.

Both matter. Industry experience speeds up the work because we do not have to learn your basics. Accounting depth means we can handle the complexity when it shows up. We aim for both, not either. A firm that knows only your industry but is light on accounting can miss the tax planning that actually moves the needle. A firm with deep accounting but no industry context will spend the first six months learning, and you will pay for that learning curve.

No. We are generalists who happen to have meaningful depth in ten sectors. Specialist firms exist (only legal, only healthcare) and may be the right choice if your needs are very narrow. We are the right choice if you want a team that understands service businesses broadly, with sector depth in the industries we feature.

Through multiple channels: continuing education for our accountants, sector-specific tax law updates, peer networks of other firms working similar files, and our existing clients in your sector surfacing changes early.

We do not claim omniscience. Regulations move, and when something material changes (a new GST/HST rule for digital services, an updated T3010 form, a CRA interpretation bulletin), we want to hear about it from clients on the ground as much as from official sources.

Yes. The Discovery Session is a 30-minute call at no cost and no commitment. We charge for the work, not the conversation. The goal is to see if your business and our practice are a fit, and to give you a clear sense of how we work before you decide on anything.

No. Anything technical needs a proper review of your file, and that is not what a Discovery call is for. The Discovery is about understanding your situation and seeing if working together makes sense. For one-off technical questions, book a paid Consultation instead.

You can reschedule from the confirmation email up to one hour before the call. After that we ask for a quick note so we can free the slot for someone else. Two no-shows in a row and we ask you to book a paid Consultation instead.

Yes. Add them in the booking form and the confirmation goes to both inboxes. Two screens at most so the call stays focused.