Latest news with #HarmonizedSalesTax
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Enforcement Notification - Surrey bookkeeper cooked the books and underreported almost $1 million in GST/HST
VANCOUVER, BC, May 16, 2025 /CNW/ - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that Aeddy Leung of Surrey, British Columbia, received a conditional sentence order for two years less a day and two years probation on April 15, 2025, at the Provincial Court of British Columbia (Robson Square). Leung pleaded guilty to willfully evading remittance tax and to making false statements in Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) returns. A CRA investigation revealed that Leung, as the bookkeeper of the Quality Hotel Airport (South) and the Coast Vancouver Airport Hotel, intentionally filed false GST/HST returns and failed to file GST/HST returns as required for the 2014-2018 reporting periods. This resulted in the evasion of $987,863 in net GST/HST that was owed by the hotels. All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records. The CRA would like to acknowledge the significant contribution of the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to this investigation. Combatting tax evasion and other financial crimes is important for the protection of Canada's tax base. The majority of Canadians pay their taxes in full and on time. To ensure that the tax system is fair for everyone, the CRA makes sure that people who try to avoid or evade paying taxes are held accountable. Willfully failing to follow Canada's tax laws could result in serious consequences, including reassessments, the imposition of civil penalties, criminal tax investigations and prosecutions resulting in court imposed fines, jail time and a criminal record. In addition to the court imposed fines and/or jail sentences, convicted taxpayers have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA. The CRA is dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada's tax system, thereby contributing to the social and economic well-being of Canadians. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion, and false claims with all the tools available to it. The CRA works to make sure that individuals and businesses report all income earned and only claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action. The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA's enforcement efforts. Associated links Reporting suspected tax or benefit cheating in CanadaVoluntary Disclosures Program Contacts Media RelationsCanada Revenue Stay connected Follow the CRA on Facebook Follow the CRA on X – @CanRevAgency Follow the CRA on LinkedIn Follow the CRA on Instagram Subscribe to a CRA electronic mailing list Add our RSS feeds to your feed reader Watch our tax-related videos on YouTube Listen to our Taxology podcast SOURCE Canada Revenue Agency View original content: Sign in to access your portfolio
Cision Canada
16-05-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
Enforcement Notification - Surrey bookkeeper cooked the books and underreported almost $1 million in GST/HST Français
VANCOUVER, BC, May 16, 2025 /CNW/ - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that Aeddy Leung of Surrey, British Columbia, received a conditional sentence order for two years less a day and two years probation on April 15, 2025, at the Provincial Court of British Columbia (Robson Square). Leung pleaded guilty to willfully evading remittance tax and to making false statements in Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) returns. A CRA investigation revealed that Leung, as the bookkeeper of the Quality Hotel Airport (South) and the Coast Vancouver Airport Hotel, intentionally filed false GST/HST returns and failed to file GST/HST returns as required for the 2014-2018 reporting periods. This resulted in the evasion of $987,863 in net GST/HST that was owed by the hotels. All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records. The CRA would like to acknowledge the significant contribution of the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to this investigation. Combatting tax evasion and other financial crimes is important for the protection of Canada's tax base. The majority of Canadians pay their taxes in full and on time. To ensure that the tax system is fair for everyone, the CRA makes sure that people who try to avoid or evade paying taxes are held accountable. Willfully failing to follow Canada's tax laws could result in serious consequences, including reassessments, the imposition of civil penalties, criminal tax investigations and prosecutions resulting in court imposed fines, jail time and a criminal record. In addition to the court imposed fines and/or jail sentences, convicted taxpayers have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA. The CRA is dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada's tax system, thereby contributing to the social and economic well-being of Canadians. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion, and false claims with all the tools available to it. The CRA works to make sure that individuals and businesses report all income earned and only claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action. The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA's enforcement efforts. Contacts Media Relations Canada Revenue Agency 613-948-8366 [email protected] Stay connected Follow the CRA on Facebook Follow the CRA on X – @ CanRevAgency Follow the CRA on LinkedIn Follow the CRA on Instagram Subscribe to a CRA electronic mailing list Add our RSS feeds to your feed reader Watch our tax-related videos on YouTube Listen to our Taxology podcast SOURCE Canada Revenue Agency
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bank of Canada interest rate cut odds jump following unexpectedly slow March inflation data
The Bank of Canada has a stronger case to cut its policy rate at its next meeting on Wednesday, say economists responding to the latest inflation data. Statistics Canada reported the annual rate of inflation slowed unexpectedly in March to 2.3 per cent, driven largely by lower gasoline and travel costs. In a release Tuesday, Canada's federal data agency says the slowdown was held back by the end of the temporary break on the Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) on Feb. 15, which put upward pressure on prices for eligible products in March versus February. Gasoline prices fell 1.6 per cent year-over-year in March. Statistics Canada says this was largely due to lower oil prices (CL=F) amid concerns of slowing global demand, and slowing economic growth related to the threat of tariffs. "Canadian inflation slowed sharply in March," CIBC economist Katherine Judge wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday. "The easing in price pressures is consistent with the Bank of Canada cutting interest rates by 25 basis points at tomorrow's meeting, with the downside risks to growth from the trade war outweighing any upside to inflation from tariffs in our view." Economists had expected the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to rise to 2.7 per cent in March, according to consensus estimates published by CIBC Capital Markets. CIBC's team of economists called for a 2.5 per cent reading. Scotiabank Economics and BMO Economics predicted an increase to 2.7 per cent. Canada's annual inflation rate jumped to 2.6 per cent in February, following an increase of 1.9 per cent in January. Besides falling gas prices, lower costs in the recreation, education, and reading category helped push inflation lower in March. Air transportation prices fell 12 per cent year-over-year, adding to a 4.4 per cent decline in February. Prices for cellular services also fell 8.8 per cent on an annualized basis. Statistics Canada notes lower prices for cell phone plans amid industry-wide promotions saw prices fall 6.8 per cent from February to March. "While economists estimated that the end of the 2024 Holidays' GST rebate and tariffs on U.S. food and alcohol items would drive inflation higher, broad based disinflationary factors combined to lower gasoline prices from the removal of the carbon tax appear to offset these changes," Dominique Lapointe, Manulife Investment Management's director of macro strategy, stated in an email. "We think the morning's print goes a long way to reassure the BoC about underlying inflation and as such reinforces our expectation of a cut at tomorrow's meeting," Lapointe added. "While it is not the economists consensus, it's worth noting that markets have moved from pricing in 35 per cent to 45 per cent odds of a cut after this release." According to Reuters, odds have whipsawed between favouring a hold and cut since last week. The news agency reports the odds for a pause in interest rates were around 58 per cent as of Friday. CPI-trim and CPI-median remained elevated in March, with little change. These core measures strip out changes in taxes, and are closely tracked by the Bank of Canada. On a monthly basis, inflation rose by 0.3 per cent in March. Seasonally adjusted, the monthly CPI was flat. "The headline reading says inflation risks ahead of tariffs were subsiding, and the BoC can afford to opt for an insurance cut like it did in March," RBC Economics economist Abbey Xu wrote in a report on Tuesday. Canada's central bank has cut at its last seven meetings, bring its policy rate to 2.75 per cent, the lowest level since September 2022. Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bank of Canada interest rate cut odds jump following unexpectedly slow March inflation data
Canada's annual rate of inflation slowed unexpectedly in March to 2.3 per cent, according to Statistics Canada. The moderated price growth was driven largely by lower gasoline and travel costs. In a release Tuesday, Statistics Canada says the slowdown was held back by the end of the temporary break on the Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) on Feb. 15, which put upward pressure on prices for eligible products in March versus February. Gasoline prices fell 1.6 per cent year-over-year in March. Canada's federal data agency says this was largely due to lower oil prices (CL=F) amid concerns of slowing global demand, and slowing economic growth related to the threat of tariffs. "Canadian inflation slowed sharply in March," CIBC economist Katherine Judge wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday. "The easing in price pressures is consistent with the Bank of Canada cutting interest rates by 25 basis points at tomorrow's meeting, with the downside risks to growth from the trade war outweighing any upside to inflation from tariffs in our view." Economists had expected the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to rise to 2.7 per cent in March, according to consensus estimates published by CIBC Capital Markets. CIBC's team of economists called for a 2.5 per cent reading. Scotiabank Economics and BMO Economics predicted an increase to 2.7 per cent. Canada's annual inflation rate jumped to 2.6 per cent in February, following an increase of 1.9 per cent in January. Besides falling gas prices, lower costs in the recreation, education, and reading category helped push inflation lower in March. Air transportation prices fell 12 per cent year-over-year, adding to a 4.4 per cent decline in February. Prices for cellular services also fell 8.8 per cent on an annualized basis. Statistics Canada notes lower prices for cell phone plans amid industry-wide promotions saw prices fall 6.8 per cent from February to March. "While economists estimated that the end of the 2024 Holidays' GST rebate and tariffs on U.S. food and alcohol items would drive inflation higher, broad based disinflationary factors combined to lower gasoline prices from the removal of the carbon tax appear to offset these changes," Dominique Lapointe, Manulife Investment Management's director of macro strategy, stated in an email. "We think the morning's print goes a long way to reassure the BoC about underlying inflation and as such reinforces our expectation of a cut at tomorrow's meeting," Lapointe added. "While it is not the economists consensus, it's worth noting that markets have moved from pricing in 35 per cent to 45 per cent odds of a cut after this release." According to Reuters, odds have whipsawed between favouring a hold and cut since last week. The news agency reports the odds for a pause in interest rates were around 58 per cent as of Friday. CPI-trim and CPI-median remained elevated in March, with little change. These core measures strip out changes in taxes, and are closely tracked by the Bank of Canada. On a monthly basis, inflation rose by 0.3 per cent in March. Seasonally adjusted, the monthly CPI was flat. Tuesday's inflation reading from Statistics Canada precedes a rate decision from the Bank of Canada scheduled for Wednesday. Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Canada's annual inflation rate slows to 2.3% in March, as gasoline and travel costs taper
Canada's annual rate of inflation slowed unexpectedly in March to 2.3 per cent, according to Statistics Canada. The moderated price growth was driven largely by lower gasoline and travel costs. Statistics Canada says the slowdown was held back by the end of the temporary break on the Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) on Feb. 15, which put upward pressure on prices for eligible products in March versus February. Gasoline prices fell 1.6 per cent year-over-year in March. Canada's federal data agency says this was largely due to lower oil prices (CL=F) amid concerns of slowing global demand, and slowing economic growth related to the threat of tariffs. "Canadian inflation slowed sharply in March," CIBC economist Katherine Judge wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday. "The easing in price pressures is consistent with the Bank of Canada cutting interest rates by 25bps at tomorrow's meeting, with the downside risks to growth from the trade war outweighing any upside to inflation from tariffs in our view." Economists had expected the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to rise to 2.7 per cent in March, according to consensus estimates published by CIBC Capital Markets. CIBC's team of economists called for a 2.5 per cent reading. Scotiabank Economics and BMO Economics predicted an increase to 2.7 per cent. Canada's annual inflation rate jumped to 2.6 per cent in February, following an increase of 1.9 per cent in January. Tuesday's inflation reading from Statistics Canada precedes a rate decision from the Bank of Canada scheduled on Wednesday. Derek Holt, Scotiabank's head of capital markets economics, downplayed the potential impact of the new data on the central bank's rate decision in a research note published last Friday. 'Could it sway the call either way? That's highly doubtful,' Holt wrote. 'The BoC's forecasts and Monetary Policy Report will be set before the CPI release, and they are unlikely to be overly reactionary to just one set of numbers.' Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. Sign in to access your portfolio
