Corporate tax accountant for London, Ontario corporations

For a one-owner London Ontario corporation, monthly bookkeeping, payroll and the year-end T2 corporate tax return with statements usually cost from $500 to $700 a month all-in.

One T2 carries both layers of tax

Under Ontario’s collection agreement, provincial corporate tax is calculated inside the federal T2 and paid to the CRA. Active business income up to the business limit gets the combined small-business rate; income above it and most investment income pay more. Current rates, including the mid-2026 change, are on the Ontario tax facts page.

The return is due six months after year-end. The balance is due sooner: two months after year-end, or three for a Canadian-controlled private corporation claiming the small business deduction that meets the conditions. Interest runs from the payment date, whatever the filing date says.

Equipment decides the return more than the rate does

A London parts shop, a carrier with a yard of trailers, a grain farm and a framing contractor have one thing in common: most of their capital is in machines. Each purchase goes into a capital cost allowance class and is written off over years, with a reduced claim in the year it becomes available for use.

When a unit is sold or traded in, the proceeds come off the class, and if they exceed what is left, the difference is recapture and fully taxable. Selling the last asset in a class for less produces a terminal loss. Timing a purchase, a trade or a disposal around year-end changes the tax, so the conversation belongs before the deal. CCA classes covers the mechanics.

SR&ED claims from the shop floor

Work that tries to resolve a technical uncertainty can earn scientific research and experimental development credits. In London it often looks like process improvement: a fixture holding a tolerance, a shelf-life change on a food line, a misbehaving automation cell. The claim goes on Form T661 with the T2; a Canadian-controlled private corporation can earn an enhanced refundable credit. Records made at the time decide it. See accounting for London manufacturers.

The registry return and good standing

The Ontario annual return goes through the Ontario Business Registry within six months of year-end. It is a corporate-law filing, absent from CRA mail and easily forgotten until a lender, buyer or bid asks for proof of good standing. We file it alongside the T2.

Paying yourself out of the company

Salary builds CPP and RRSP room and is deducted by the corporation; dividends are simpler to pay but carry neither benefit. Many London family businesses pay a spouse or adult children who work in the company, which is fine when the pay matches the work. Money taken out without either — a shareholder loan — is generally taxed as your income if it is not repaid within one year after the company’s year-end. The decision is made once, for the corporate and personal returns together. Try the salary vs dividends calculator for a first look.

Remote corporate tax

EverStone, a fully virtual CPA firm, serves London, Ontario corporations online. There is no London office and no local staff. The T2 and registry return are filed electronically, and statements arrive by secure upload link.