Last minute tips to file your taxes
Posted April 28, 2025 6:26 am.
You’re running out of time if you need to get your 2024 taxes done.
Gerry Vittoratos, a national tax specialist at UFile, says, first of all, don’t panic.
He adds it’s important to have all your documents handy as you sit down to file.
“You can use portals like the ‘My Accounts’ portal on the CRA, which has essentially most of your slips already there. Especially your official slips, like your T4’s, T5’s — and your RRSP receipts should be there as well.”
He explains people will often miss counting their charitable donations and medical receipts in full, which affects their refund.
“The majority of mistakes people make is a mistake of omission. A tax return is a year-round process. It’s not just for tax season, because you’re getting receipts for expenses throughout the year. For example, you go to the dentist in the month of February: that’s a receipt that’s eligible for medical expenses. So, because of that, you want to have a folder ready at the beginning of the year and stick in any documents that you think are related to your tax return.”
Vittoratos says even if you have benefits, anything extra you have to pay for, when it comes to medical expenses, should be filed with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
He points out any deductions or credits you’ve banked over the years may now come in handy.
“Deductions and credits you didn’t need that you can use in the current year. For example, capital losses. Another typical example is tuition fees. Again, the government has these in the portal and on your assessment, but don’t expect the government doing the charity of applying them automatically for you.”
Vittoratos says when the federal budget is tabled annually, there are usually several tax changes that may be applied, so check those out to make sure you’re taking advantage.
“A lot of times when the government makes these tax changes on the budget, they’re actually applicable as of the date of the announcement.”
He says if you think you may owe money to the federal government, you need to file immediately.
“A lot of people have that myth that as long as I don’t file my return, the government doesn’t know what I owe. Don’t do that. If you can’t pay, the government will charge you interest. But the worst thing you can do is not file on time when you owe money, because what the government will do is slap even more penalties on you. The penalty is five per cent — right off the bat — for the minute that you’re late filing your return on your balance owing. And then one per cent for every month you haven’t paid your amount owing.”
Vittoratos explains if the government owes you a refund, it’s allowed to take its time paying out, so you might as well file as soon as possible.
“Put yourself in any other scenario in your life where somebody owes you money. Would you do them the favour of not collecting as soon as possible? If you don’t do that in your personal life, why would you do that with the government?”
A reminder: due to the previous Canada Post strike, charitable donations made until Feb. 28, 2025, count towards your 2024 tax return.
Tax deadline day is Apr. 30.
