Who this applies to
Owner-operated corporations with a bookkeeper, with software, or with a shoebox. The list is the same; only the amount of sorting differs.
One thing most people do not realize
The six-year record rule runs from the end of the tax year the records relate to, not from the date on the document. Records for a year that ended in June 2026 must be kept until mid-2032. Records that support the cost of property the company still owns last even longer.
The checklist
What we ask for.
Identity and history
- Legal name, business number, fiscal year end
- Last year’s T2 return and Notice of Assessment
- Any CRA letters received during the year
Money in and out
- Bank statements for every business account, covering the full fiscal year
- Credit card statements for any card used for the business
- Sales invoices or a sales summary
- Expense receipts, or the bookkeeping file that records them
- Loan statements, including any balance owing at year end
People
- Payroll records and the T4 summary, if the company had employees
- Amounts paid to contractors
Government filings during the year
- GST returns filed and payments made
- Payroll remittances made
- Instalments paid toward corporate tax
The owner
- Money you put into the company (loans, share purchases)
- Money you took out (salary, dividends, repayments, personal expenses paid by the company)
- Personal use of company assets, such as a vehicle
Assets
- Anything the company bought or sold during the year that lasts more than a year: equipment, vehicles, computers, property
- The list of assets from last year, if you have it
If the books are not up to date
Bring the bank and credit card statements and whatever receipts exist. We can bring the records up to date first, then prepare the return. Say so when you call and we will quote for both parts.
Why the owner transactions matter
The most common surprise at year end is money that moved between the owner and the company without a record of what it was. Was it salary, a dividend, a loan repayment, or a personal expense paid from the company account? Each is treated differently. A short note for each transfer, made at the time, saves a long conversation later.
Keep the records
The CRA expects a corporation to keep its records, generally for six years from the end of the tax year they relate to. Keep the year-end package together once the return is filed.
Official sources
This guide is general information, not advice about your situation. It reflects the rules for the 2025 and 2026 tax years. It has not yet been reviewed by a practitioner. The information was checked against the official sources listed above on the date shown. Rules change. Check the official sources above or ask us. How we prepare these guides.