Who this is for
Residential and commercial agents in BC, with or without a PREC. The list is the same; a PREC adds the corporate items in our PREC year-end checklist.
The seven records
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Income statements. Every commission statement from the brokerage, referral fees paid to you or by you, and any T4A slips. Commercial agents: deals that closed this year, even if the work started last year.
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Marketing and signage. Photography, staging, print, online advertising, signs, open house costs, client gifts. Receipts, not just card statements.
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The vehicle log. Date, destination, purpose and kilometres for business trips, plus odometer readings at the start and end of the year, plus fuel, insurance and repair receipts. Our vehicle records guide explains the three-month sample rule.
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Phone, internet and home office. The bills, and a reasonable business percentage for each. For a home office, the area of the workspace and of the home.
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Licensing, dues and education. BCFSA licence fees, board and association dues, courses and conferences, errors and omissions insurance.
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GST returns filed in the year and the input tax credits claimed. The commission statements show the GST side.
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Equipment and software. Computer, phone, camera, lockboxes, and subscriptions. Equipment lasts years and is claimed through depreciation; subscriptions are claimed in the year.
One thing many people do not realize
Commission income earned as a self-employed agent is business income. The return includes a full statement of income and expenses, not just a slip. The expenses are only as good as the records. An agent with $80,000 of commissions and no vehicle log is an agent who cannot prove the single largest expense most agents have.
What to prepare
Bring the seven, in any order. If you work through a PREC, add last year’s T2, the corporate bank statements and a note of every payment from the PREC to you.
When professional help may make sense
A first year with a PREC, a year with both personal and PREC income, or a year when a vehicle was bought or sold. Each changes how the return is built.
How Rex Tax may be able to help
We prepare returns for real estate agents and PRECs and coordinate the corporate and personal filings. Our guide on realtor record retention explains how long to keep each item.
Official sources
- CRA guide T4002: Self-employed business, professional and commission income
- CRA: Motor vehicle records
- CRA: Business-use-of-home expenses
This guide is general information, not advice about your situation. It reflects the rules for the 2026 tax year. 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.