D'Costa Financial Group
Ottawa dropped Estate Taxes about thirty-five years ago. All the provinces did away with Succession Duties by 1985. We thought that was the end of taxes arising at death. We were wrong.
Ask yourself these questions:
Do you have an interest in a pension plan, or an RRSP?
Do you own property on which you've been claiming depreciation?
Do you own anything that has increased in value since you acquired it?
Do you own an interest in a business?
Do you own property outside of Canada?
If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, you may be hit with death taxes, something you thought had been abolished in Canada.
The U.S. has Estate Taxes. Paul and Linda own a condo in Arizona. American legislation catches Canadians who own property in the United States.
You don't have to go outside of Canada to fall victim to death taxes. Max owns several rental properties and has been claiming depreciation on the buildings over the years. On death, some of the depreciation may be recaptured and become fully taxable. On top of that, any increases in value of the properties will be taxed as capital gains.
Copyright © 2008 Life Letter. All rights reserved. For information purposes only and not intended to provide specific advice. Readers are advised to seek professional advice before making any financial decision based on any of the ideas presented in this article. This copyright information presented online is not to be copied, or clipped or republished for any reason. The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy and will not be held liable in any way for any error, or omission, or any financial decision
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- Yes, Virginia, there are death taxes in Canada
