The tax season in Canada should’ve been over by mid-2020 if the novel coronavirus hadn’t arrived to alter the regular schedule. Instead of preparing income tax returns and filing them on or before April 30, 2020, taxpayers are staying home to be safe from the infectious COVID-19.
On March 30, 2020, the federal and provincial governments announced changes in tax dates. People hate taxes, but they are saluting the Canada Revenue (CRA) for its leniency. The CRA has moved the tax-filing dates. Taxpayers can also pay taxes owed at a later date.
New deadlines
The CRA is reminding all Canadian taxpayers of the new deadlines for tax filing and tax payments for the 2019 tax year. The new important deadline for individual and corporate taxpayers to file income tax returns is June 1, 2020. For the self-employed and their spouses or common-law partner, it will be on June 15, 2020.
Likewise, the taxman is granting a penalty-free extension to pay any taxes owed to the government. The tax payment deadline for all taxpayers is September 1, 2020. Taxpayers are given ample time to meet the deferred payment date and avoid late-filing penalties.
If you’re expecting a tax refund, the CRA advises you to file or send in your tax return early, so agency processing and funds release will be timely. As much as possible, the CRA wants to unburden taxpayers of economic pain while COVID-19 is raging.
Tax-free money growth
The stock market today is very erratic; even some of the top names are not as reliable as before. You should be using your Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) to continue the tax-free growth of your money.
The 2020 market crash is causing great panic among investors. However, TFSA users with Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX: TD)(NYSE: TD) as a core holding in their stock portfolios are not as nervous. This $99.27 billion bank should hold up well in the crisis or if Canada enters a recession.
TD is the second-largest banking institution in the country. The bank has gone through the worst global recessions and market downturns ever recorded. While COVID-19 is expected to be far more destructive, TD is expected to weather the turbulence.
Desperate times require desperate measures. As such, retirees, income investors, dividend investors, and millennials looking for havens are investing in TD. There is no other corporation during the 2008 financial crisis that reported revenue and income growth but this top-notch bank.
If you’re buying TD only now, you’re fortunate to own the stock at a discounted price of $54.87. In return, the bank is paying 5.76% in dividends.
Less financial strain
Taxpayers should welcome the tax breaks and tax payment deferrals offered by the CRA. In the present health crisis, you also need good money management skills, sound investment choices, and smart utilization of your TFSA to grow savings.
No one knows when the pandemic and lockdown will end, But the crucial element in these uncertain times is to be able to cushion the impact and lessen the financial strain.
