December 1, 2023 by Bud Arnold
The simplest part of tax compliance and planning for a farm should be the family home. However, tax issues related to farmhouses abound! Let’s unpack a few of the more common concerns.
October 26, 2023 by Thomas Blonde
One of the most common questions we get from our farm clients is how their business should be structured.
January 20, 2023 by Bud Arnold
Family business succession planning involves many components, including family dynamics, leadership training, financial planning, management transition, legal agreements and – you guessed it – taxes.
December 20, 2022 by Kale Donald
When a farmer who operates a farm through a proprietorship – that reports income for tax purposes under the cash method – passes away, there are a number of options available for how the farm inventory left behind will be treated for tax purposes. It is very important that executors of the estate understand the options available to them. This alert addresses tax planning options that are often overlooked when dealing with the estate of a farmer.
January 19, 2022 by Kyle Martin
With so many federal and provincial government support programs available in response to the pandemic, there’s a danger some farm businesses will overlook AgriStability. In March 2021, the Canadian federal and provincial governments announced changes to this program, improving income support for farm producers – and these opportunities should not be overlooked.
December 10, 2021 by Candice McKay
For many agricultural organizations, their chosen financial institution is a significant partner in the success of the operation. With increasing consolidation of farm corporations, credit facility agreements are becoming larger and more complex. Reporting frequency has increased, covenants have been added, and many institutions are seeking forward-looking projections.
November 23, 2021 by Thomas Blonde
Most farmers understand that there are many tax advantages to owning farmland. However, more complicated structures are sometimes needed for those advantages to be realized. One such structure involves owning farmland in a holding company.
February 24, 2021 by Denver Nicklas
In recent years, farmland prices have increased significantly across many parts of Canada. At the same time, the average age of the Canadian farmer has risen as well, leading to many farms being transferred to next generations or sold to third parties.
February 5, 2021 by John F. Oakey
The Income Tax Act (ITA) permits farmers to elect to compute their income from a farming business for a taxation year on a cash basis.
November 23, 2020 by Jessica Batte
Although the GST/HST has been with us since 1990, questions still seem to arise regarding what farming-related items are taxable or zero-rated. As a general rule, farmers typically do not charge GST/HST on their sales but do pay GST/HST on their regular purchases. However, there are several exceptions to this rule.
When I was asked to contribute this article regarding cybersecurity and farming, my mind immediately went to my experiences on the small family farms of my youth, where I helped relatives with haying or cattle and the technology was as complex as an old tractor and square bales. While effective, those tools were nothing like the technologies in use today.
July 2, 2020 by Kathy Byvelds
When a shareholder of a family farm wishes to exit the farm operation—whether due to retirement, disagreement with other shareholders, or a desire for a lifestyle change—and there is no shareholders’ agreement in place to dictate the procedures for buyout, negotiations are required between the exiting shareholder and the remaining shareholder(s).
April 28, 2020 by Thomas Blonde
Much information has been published in recent weeks about government programs designed to assist businesses and individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, specifics about whether farmers can qualify for these programs have not been readily available.
February 26, 2020 by John F. Oakey
The Government of Canada released the final list of designated regions where Livestock Tax Deferral has been authorized for 2019 due to extreme weather conditions. The initial list of designated regions – which was announced on July 22, 2019 – included British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec. Ongoing analysis of drought conditions throughout the remainder of 2019 identified new regions for British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.
January 31, 2020 by Dan Maresca
When a family farm operation has been incorporated, it is relatively common for the family residence to be on the same parcel of land as the farmland owned and operated by the corporation.
December 19, 2019 by Denver Nicklas
Most farmers are aware that they must charge GST/HST on custom work, but are you aware that you may need to charge GST/HST on supplies on which you did not pay GST/HST? If you operate a custom services business providing the application of fertilizer or chemical to farmers in Canada and your business is registered for HST, you should be aware of a policy statement published by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) affecting HST on those crop inputs.
October 31, 2019 by John Bujold
As advisors, we are often asked whether farmland should be held in a corporation or personally. The question arises often in the context of incorporating farming operations. Previous Farm Alerts discussed the merits of incorporating as a way of reducing taxes due to low corporate tax rates and deferral of personal income. It is important to consider the tax impact of current and future transactions involving the farmland to become comfortable in that decision.
A growing number of farm clients come to my office to discuss succession planning. In many cases, there is a single farming child that has stayed behind to help run the operation, and this child will be the successor. Often, there are other children in the family who have left the farm and have blazed their own paths in life.
May 31, 2019 by Thomas Blonde
For family farm operations to prosper into the future, it is important to have successful transfers from one generation to the next. Many tax and non-tax issues must be considered to implement a successful farm succession plan.
February 7, 2019 by Ranjan Thiruchelvam
Farm partnership tends to be the preferred choice of operating arrangement for many farm operators that stop acting as sole proprietors. Many of these farm partnerships are operated by immediate family members. As we head into the individual income tax filing season, it is the ideal time to refresh some of the key principles on computation and reporting of farm partnership income by individuals.