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ARTICLE · 25 APRIL 2024

Not-So-Cheap Thrills: The Bare Trust Reporting Rollercoaster

Gardiner Roberts LLP
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In our previous blogs, we discussed the expanded trust filing and reporting requirements for trusts with tax years ending on or after December 31, 2023...

CanadaTax
Ian Spiegel
Ian Spiegel
Mitchell Hajnal
Mitchell Hajnal
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In our previous blogs, we discussed the expanded trust filing and reporting requirements for trusts with tax years ending on or after December 31, 20231, and the Canada Revenue Agency's (the "CRA") last minute decision to no longer "require bare trusts to file a T3 Income Tax and Information Return (T3 Return), including Schedule 15 (Beneficial Ownership Information of a Trust), for the 2023 tax year, unless the CRA makes a direct request for these filings."2, 3

While the CRA's decision to not enforce the new requirements for bare trusts came as a relief for many, it left both taxpayers and accountants grappling with the costly aftermath of their compliance efforts. An online survey of 118 Canadian accounting firms done by Joseph Devaney, the director of tax education and development at Video Tax News, (the "Survey") estimated that $905 million was spent by accountants and their clients in an attempt to comply with the CRA's bare trust reporting requirements.4

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