Arne Sorbo, an 88 year old senior with dementia and Parkinson’s disease is being charged $12,000 in penalties after the Canada Revenue Agency assessed that his tax returns contained ‘incorrect’ information.
Mr. Sorbo, a retired accountant who does his own tax returns and prides himself in getting the numbers just right, forgot to declare the small Norwegian pension payments that he received, on his 2011 tax return for which that CRA has charged him with a tax penalty. In addition, the CRA has deemed Arne cannot claim a tax credit for his wife because she is under the age of 65. The fact of the matter is that his wife is actually 79 years old, making her well eligible for the tax credit.
Arne spent years completing income tax returns for seniors free of charge. Arne thought his tax return was correct and does not know what went wrong; he feels the $12,000 charges in tax penalties and interest is very excessive.
Michael Sorb, who is Arne’s son and an accountant, has been working to help out his father sort out his back tax issues. According to Michael, it has been a very frustrating experience dealing with the CRA to resolve this matter. He has sent the CRA a copy of his mother’s passport to prove her age and he has requested the agency to invoke its own ‘fairness provision’ which waives tax penalties for particular individuals like the elderly and the ill.
The CRA has told the Sorbo family that it will take up to 15 months to get a final decision on the matter. In the meantime, interest will continue to accrue on the $12,000 tax penalty charge.
Tax rules and regulations are Constantly Changing
Tax rules and regulations are continuously being amended and updated. Tax filing mistakes can be costly and time consuming as exemplified by this case. The professional tax accountants at Tax Doctors Canada attend tax conferences across North America in order to keep on top of the latest tax rules and regulations. You can count on Tax Doctors Canada to deliver cutting edge tax return services and maximize your tax savings.
Dealing with the CRA to resolve your back tax issues can be a long and complicated process and it is best to seek the advice of a professional tax accountant. At Tax Doctor’s we can help.
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