Last weekend, Adiel and I attended our annual men’s retreat in Muskoka organized by our church, Hope Bible Church Oakville, themed “The Fight of Your Life.” It was a needed reminder that, as men, we must take sin seriously, stay alert, and resist temptation through faith in Jesus Christ. The time in God’s word and fellowship with our brothers was a great way to pause and prepare our hearts for Easter. In this issue, I share some key tax and financial planning tips to help you navigate both simple and complex tax situations. Enjoy - and please share this with your network:

1. Do You Know That Your Corporate Tax Liability is due this Month?

If you have a corporation with a December 31 year-end, your corporate tax liability, if applicable, is due this month! So, it’s important that you know or at least estimate the taxes you owe and pay so you can avoid high interest charges. At GMS, we help corporations with their tax compliance work and we also provide other additional value-added services such as:

• Streamlining and automating the majority of your bookkeeping processes
• Doing a cash flow and budget analysis for your corporation
• Estimating corporate tax liability and developing a plan for installment payment of your taxes
• Corporate tax planning including how to invest corporate dollars and how to properly use insurance within your business to mitigate risk and plan for retirement
• Corporate restructuring to ensure you’re organized in the most tax-efficient way
• Remuneration planning to ensure you’re taking money out of your corporation in the most tax-efficient manner
• How to use your corporation as a nest egg for your retirement in a tax-efficient manner.
• And many more…

If you’re looking for solutions for your corporation consider working with me and my team at GMS Chartered Professional Accountants LLP. I invite you to book a complimentary time to chat with me here.

2. Let Me Help You Get Ahead In 2026

If you’re looking to accelerate your results in 2026, particularly with optimizing taxes, building more cash flow, improving your business or simply elevating your personal financial situation, I encourage you to consider working with me. As I’ve shared in the past, it’s so tempting to think we know it all. We want to figure things out ourselves. We want to go on the journey solo, not realizing that we can only go so far. Whether it is our pride or ignorance, we hurt ourselves when we don’t seek help from those that have accomplished what we want to accomplish. If you’re looking to achieve a major breakthrough or to simply go further faster, I invite you to consider coaching or consultation with me. A good start is to book a FREE 15-minute Tax Strategy Session with me here to get a taste of the potential results you can get from coaching.

3. It’s Tax Time & It’s Time To Seek Insights…

It’s that time of the year again when we all have to file our personal taxes. Often, we simply go with the flow and file for compliance’s sake. We fail to seek insights, like:

• What’s my average tax rate?
• What’s my marginal tax rate?
• As a family unit, how much did we pay in taxes?
• Why did I get a refund?
• Why did I have to make a payment to CRA?
• What options do I have to improve my situation next year?
• Did I use tools like RRSP, TFSA, Insurance, etc to optimize my taxes?
• How can additional savings in taxes enhance my investments and returns?
• How can additional savings in taxes enhance my retirement planning?

When you don’t get insights, you end up paying more in taxes than you’re required to and a dollar lost in taxes today will not only cost you a dollar today, IT WILL COST YOU A MULTIPLE OF THAT DOLLAR OVER TIME! Learn how our personal tax services can help you get answers to these questions this tax season so you can file your 2025 taxes with INSIGHTS! Get the details here.

4. You’re Either Paying Interest Or Losing Interest

Many people pride themselves in paying cash for everything and think they are getting ahead financially, but are they really getting ahead? When it comes to how we use our money, we typically fall into one of three groups of people: debtors, savers, and maximizers.

Debtors do not save. They start at zero, earn income, spend it all to fund their lifestyle. When there is an emergency for a necessary purchase, they borrow and go into a negative position (Debt). They use earned income to repay debt plus interest until they get back to zero position. When another emergency comes up, they repeat the cycle.

Savers start at zero, earn income, accumulate money in a savings account. When there is an emergency for a necessary purchase, they use their savings and then get back to zero position. When they use their savings for a purchase, they lose interest because of opportunity costs. Then they start accumulating and saving again. When another emergency comes up, they repeat the cycle.

Maximizers are like savers as they accumulate earned income to save and invest. When there is an emergency for a necessary purchase, they use their savings as collateral to borrow the funds for the purchase. By doing this, they maximize the use of their funds in the most efficient way by not interrupting the compounded growth of their savings/investments.

In conclusion, regardless of which group you fall into, we all finance everything we purchase. You either pay interest by purchasing with a loan/credit, or you lose interest you could have earned by paying with cash. However, by optimizing the way you use money, you can be more efficient and get ahead of the savers and debtors.

5. What is the Basis of Tax in Canada?

In this short video, I discuss the basis of tax in Canada. This often comes as a shock to some as they don’t understand that you’re taxed on your worldwide income if you’re a resident in Canada for tax purposes. Watch this short clip to get the full details. And as you watch, don’t forget to subscribe and turn on the notification to our channel for useful content like this.