October 22nd, 2024
Tax Planning: 2024 Year-end Considerations for Businesses and Individuals
This tax planning guide for 2024 and beyond reflects considerations that may create risk or opportunity for Canadian businesses and individuals.
Posted on March 18th, 2022 in Domestic Tax
With numerous COVID-19 benefits being based on employment and remuneration levels, the federal government has likely become increasingly concerned with falsified employment records. However, this is not a new issue. In particular, the government already has experience dealing with false records used to increase access to employment insurance (EI) benefits.
Employers can face penalties of up to the greater of $12,000 and the total of all claimants’ penalties in relation to the offences. In addition, false claims by the applicant would result in an increased number of required hours to qualify for EI benefits in the future, with the specific number dependent on the value of the EI overpayment.
A September14, 2021, Federal Court case addressed a $15,277 penalty that was assessed for a single employee’s records. In respect of COVID-19 subsidies, employers may be subject to penalties including the following:
ACTION ITEM: Maintain supporting employment activity documentation as the government will be looking for situations in which employment records were falsified.
Article originally published in: Tax Tips & Traps 2022 First Quarter – Issue 137
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