Greater Sudbury taxpayers need an organized response when CRA starts an audit
A CRA audit letter can create real pressure for a Greater Sudbury taxpayer when it asks for records from personal returns, a business, corporation, rental property, GST/HST account, payroll account, or several years at once. The request might refer to a single deduction or transaction, but CRA can compare the response with other accounts, banking activity, property information, third-party slips, and earlier returns. The first useful step is to understand exactly what CRA is reviewing and the deadline before documents are sent without a plan.
Tax Help Canada helps Greater Sudbury taxpayers manage CRA audits from the initial request through a proposal, reassessment, objection, or payment decision. We review the years, accounts, record request, correspondence, deadline, filed returns, and potential exposure. We help organize evidence, reconcile figures, prepare schedules and factual explanations, and communicate with CRA where authorized. If CRA has already made an adjustment, we examine it before the taxpayer decides whether to provide more records, object, seek relief, or plan for payment.
Start with the actual CRA request
The audit letter normally identifies the taxpayer or business, years or periods under review, relevant CRA account, documents requested, auditor contact details, and a due date. A request for invoices may concern a business deduction, sales, GST/HST credits, rental costs, or corporate transactions. A request for banking may concern deposits, reported income, shareholder activity, or an amount CRA cannot match to the return. Those details should direct the response.
CRA may select a return because of third-party information, a deduction needing proof, a difference between income tax and GST/HST reporting, property data, or transactions that need clarification. Audit selection is not proof that a taxpayer made an error. It is a request for evidence. We compare the letter with filed returns, books, and account history so the response addresses CRA’s real concern and considers related accounts.
Common CRA audit issues include:
Contractor, professional, business, vehicle, home office, travel, meals, equipment, and expense claim reviews
Corporate income, shareholder loans, benefits, bonuses, dividends, management fees, and personal costs paid by a corporation
Rental income, repairs, capital improvements, principal residence claims, and property sale reporting
GST/HST collected, input tax credits, taxable sales, registration, and revenue reconciliation
Payroll source deductions, T4 filings, worker classification, and payments to employees or contractors
Foreign income, foreign property, T1135 reporting, lifestyle questions, net-worth calculations, and possible penalties
The evidence should explain how the return was prepared
CRA needs a clear link between source records and reported figures. For a business audit, contracts, invoices, deposits, expenses, HST, and worker payments should reconcile. For a corporation, books and banking should align with shareholder loans, payroll, HST, and the shareholder’s personal reporting. For a property file, the record may need to show acquisition, ownership, use, rental income, financing, repairs, improvements, and sale. A clear evidence package lets CRA assess the actual facts rather than make assumptions from partial records.
We may review bank and credit-card statements, invoices, contracts, supplier records, accounting reports, CRA slips, ledgers, corporate records, shareholder loan schedules, HST returns, payroll reports, rental agreements, and property documents. The relevant material is organized by year and issue, and key figures are reconciled to what was filed. If old receipts or bookkeeping files cannot be found, credible alternate evidence may support a reconstruction. It must be factual and consistent with the full CRA file.
Business and corporate audit questions can overlap
Greater Sudbury contractors, consultants, professionals, and business owners may be asked to support sales, vehicle and home-office claims, equipment, travel, meals, and worker payments. CRA can compare invoices to deposits and compare income tax reporting with GST/HST and payroll reports. Expenses need a business purpose, and personal portions need a reasonable allocation. Clear schedules can demonstrate the full business activity without letting individual records determine the outcome.
For owner-managed corporations, CRA may review shareholder loans, benefits, dividends, bonuses, management fees, vehicles, related-party payments, and personal expenses paid by the business. It can compare corporate books and banking with the shareholder’s personal return, HST filings, payroll reports, and third-party information. We organize transactions by period to determine whether a difference is a bookkeeping issue, a supportable corporate transaction, or a possible tax adjustment needing further attention.
Property, GST/HST, and payroll need distinct evidence
Rental and property audits can involve income, mortgage interest, repairs, improvements, ownership, personal use, principal residence claims, and sales. The facts can determine whether a cost is a repair or an improvement. GST/HST audits can focus on taxable sales, tax collected, input tax credits, registration, invoices, and revenue reconciliation. Payroll reviews can address source deductions, T4s, worker classification, and remuneration.
These accounts have separate rules, but CRA may compare the supporting records. We organize the evidence by account and period so a legitimate explanation is clear before an adjustment is finalized.
Review a CRA proposal or reassessment before accepting it
CRA may send a proposal before finalizing an adjustment or issue a Notice of Reassessment after the audit. The result can include added income, denied deductions, GST/HST or payroll assessments, interest, and penalties. Before agreeing, the taxpayer should understand the calculation, evidence, factual assumptions, and deadline for more information or a Notice of Objection.
We review the outcome line by line and consider the next appropriate response. It may be additional evidence, a factual correction, an objection, taxpayer relief where appropriate, or payment planning after the correct balance is known. The goal is an outcome based on actual facts rather than an estimate created by gaps in the response.
Why Greater Sudbury taxpayers choose Tax Help Canada
CRA audit work requires organized evidence, careful deadlines, and an understanding of how personal, business, corporate, GST/HST, payroll, and property accounts interact. Tax Help Canada focuses on CRA tax resolution work, including audits, reassessments, objections, unfiled returns, voluntary disclosures, GST/HST, payroll, taxpayer relief, collections, corporate tax, rental tax issues, and foreign reporting.
If you are in Greater Sudbury and CRA has requested records, opened an audit, proposed an adjustment, or issued a reassessment, a confidential review can help you understand the scope and prepare the next response properly.