Tax season is here and you have until April 30, 2018, to file and pay any outstanding amounts. For some people, tax season is a breeze, but for others, it can be very stressful. Whether you’re expecting a big tax bill or not, just getting the paperwork organized can be a daunting task. To help get you started, we’ve listed some of the best tax tips from the experts this 2018 tax season.
New Ways to File for 2018
This year there are also a few new ways to file your taxes. Things like pre-filled tax returns are paving a way for the future of the business. Since the CRA has a majority of our information anyways you can now enroll in an online service that will prefill your returns with information from things like your T4 employment income tax slip. If you’ve been doing your taxes the old-fashioned way and picking up your tax package at the post office, the CRA is sending you all the forms by mail this year. If you were contacted by the CRA as one of the lucky ones, you can also do your taxes by phone just by answering a few questions through an automated service. And finally, paying your taxes in person at any Canada Post location with cash or debit is also now a thing!
File Early
Go ahead, you can file now. This year the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) started processing tax returns as of February 26, 2018. If you can, the earlier you file the better. Whether you are expecting a refund or not, it is definitely worth getting your taxes done sooner rather than later for a few different reasons. The first reason (of course) is to get your refund back faster. Who doesn’t want money quicker? The second reason is if you are facing a big tax bill, you can set up a plan to pay it in smaller chunks by April 30. That’s right; you don’t have to pay this in one lump sum. You could do biweekly payments as the government won’t charge you interest until the tax payment deadline (April 30). Even if you can’t pay off the full balance by the payment deadline, whatever funds the CRA receives from you by then is less money on which you will have to pay interest on. Filing early also helps ensure you have all your files in order and can double check or make adjustments to your return.
For other questions about your taxes, visit the Canadian Revenue Agency website for more details.
