Corporate tax accountant for Richmond corporations
Richmond companies are often one of several in a family group: an operating company that imports or trades, another that owns the warehouse or the strata unit, and sometimes a holding company above both. That structure decides how much income gets the small business rate. EverStone prepares T2 returns remotely for Richmond businesses from Abbotsford.
Quick answer: A Richmond corporation pays 11% combined on active business income that qualifies for the small business deduction and 27% on income above the limit. The $500,000 business limit is shared across associated corporations, so a family group gets one limit, not one each. EverStone prepares the T2 remotely at a fee fixed in writing before work starts.
Corporate tax (T2) on its own is quoted after a free consultation. For a one-owner Richmond company that also needs bookkeeping and payroll, the bundle with the year-end T2 and statements usually runs $450 to $650 a month. The year-end covers the T2 with Schedule 50, the CCA schedule, the small business deduction claim, T4 or T5 slips for the owner’s pay, and instalments for the year ahead.
One business limit for the whole family group
BC taxes small business income at 2% provincially, and the federal rate on the same income brings the combined figure to 11%. Above the business limit, the combined rate is 27%. The limit is $500,000, and it is shared among associated corporations. Two companies owned by the same person, or by members of a family acting together, are usually associated. They have to agree how to split one limit between them on Schedule 23 each year.
That matters in Richmond because family groups are common. A parent may own an import company while an adult child owns a delivery company, and a holding company sits above both. Whether those corporations are associated depends on who controls them, which is a question to settle before the year-end rather than after the return is assessed. Associated corporations and the small business deduction explains the tests.
The warehouse in a separate company
Industrial and commercial units around Sea Island, along the river and near Highway 99 are often owned in a company separate from the business that uses them. The rent paid between the two is income to the property company. Whether that rent is active business income or property income depends on the relationship between the companies. Between associated corporations, rent paid by one that deducts it from active business income can often keep its active character in the hands of the landlord company. Set up carelessly, it can be taxed at a much higher investment rate. The lease, the rent and who owns which shares are worth documenting.
Retained earnings and passive income
A profitable Richmond company that leaves money in the business often invests it. Interest, dividends from portfolio shares and taxable capital gains earned inside the corporation are passive income. Above a threshold, passive income grinds down the business limit for the following year, and the limit is gone entirely at a higher level. The grind is invisible in the year the investments earn money and only shows up on the next year’s T2. Passive income and the small business deduction sets out how it works.
Inventory, imports and foreign currency on the T2
An importing company’s taxable income depends heavily on its closing inventory. Stock has to be valued at the lower of cost and market, and cost includes freight, duty and brokerage, not just the supplier’s price. Purchases from foreign suppliers also produce foreign exchange gains and losses, and those have their own tax treatment. A year-end count that is accurate and costed properly is the single largest figure on many Richmond T2 files. The year-end inventory count guide covers the method.
Paying the owner: salary, dividends and the shareholder loan
A Richmond owner can take money out as salary, which produces a T4 and CPP contributions and creates RRSP room, or as dividends, which produce a T5 and do neither. Most owners use a mix, chosen each year. Money taken out with no decision at all lands in the shareholder loan account. A loan to the owner that is not repaid within one year after the corporation’s year-end is generally taxed as the owner’s income. The salary versus dividends calculator shows the trade-off for a given income.
Deadlines that sit apart from the return
The T2 is due six months after the fiscal year-end, but the balance owing is due 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 deadline, not the filing deadline. A December year-end company that files in June but pays then has usually been accruing interest since March. Instalments for the following year are set at the same time. The T2 deadline calculator works out the dates for any year-end.
BC also requires an annual report to the corporate registry within two months of the incorporation anniversary. It is not a tax return and no one at the CRA chases it, which is exactly why it gets missed.
Prepared and reviewed by a Chartered Professional Accountant at EverStone CPA, an Abbotsford CPA firm working with small businesses across British Columbia. Updated . About the firm · Send an enquiry
Key T2 dates for a Richmond corporation
| Obligation | When it is due |
|---|---|
| Balance owing | 3 months after fiscal year-end, for a CCPC claiming the small-business deduction |
| T2 return filing | 6 months after fiscal year-end |
| Instalments | Monthly or quarterly, where your corporation is required to pay them |
| BC annual report | Within 2 months of the incorporation anniversary |
| Sales tax where you operate | 5% GST plus 7% BC PST: two registrations, two returns |
Source: All CRA deadlines. General information, not advice.
In Richmond, EverStone also works with trucking and logistics companies, retailers and realtors.
Richmond corporate tax questions
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Related services and local guides
Nearby cities, the rest of what we do for Richmond businesses, and the reference pages behind this one.
Who this is for, and who it is not
For a Richmond corporation, especially one in a family group or holding its own premises, that wants the business limit and the T2 managed by one CPA on a fee agreed first. Not for anyone deciding on price alone, or wanting a meeting room in City Centre. It all runs remotely on the published fees.
What happens when you get in touch
A Richmond corporation comes on in three steps.
- Email enquiry. Tell us about the company, any related companies and what is outstanding. A fixed fee follows in writing.
- Representative access. After CRA authorization through My Business Account, balances and notices are read directly. If you are moving firms, the file is requested that week.
- Current, then planned. Books closed, any late years filed, and T2 and instalment dates set out for the year.
Incorporated in Richmond?
Get the T2, the shared business limit and the BC provincial layers reviewed by one CPA, at a fixed fee agreed up front.
Fully virtual, based in Abbotsford
EverStone works from Abbotsford and serves Richmond corporations remotely. There is no Richmond office and no local staff. Records arrive through a secure upload link, questions go by email first, and returns are approved by e-signature. The same CPA prepares the T2 and answers questions during the year. For payroll behind the T4s, see payroll in Richmond.
