COVID-19 Impact on Tax Season

Update May 11, 2020

Thankfully New Brunswick has weathered the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in spectacular fashion. As our building remains locked, we are keeping our office closed to clients for the time being. Our staff continue to work hard to serve the needs of our clients, some from the office and others remotely. Please reach out for all of your accounting and taxation needs, and we will be pleased to help! We thank all of our clients for their ongoing support!

For deliveries, please call 862-1991 and someone will meet you downstairs. We recommend you phone ahead to let us know you are coming.

March 16, 5 pm:

In accordance with Public Health recommendations, our office is closed until further notice. Our staff will be working remotely from home, and will be monitoring e-mail and voice mail. We appreciate that these uncertain times are stressful for all, and we remain available to serve the needs of our clients via electronic meeting methods. We will continue to accept client documents received by e-mail or fax, and will attempt to process those received via mail. We will not be able to receive in person deliveries at this time.

March 13, 2020

Like you, we have been following the developments in the COVID-19 pandemic, and assessing the impact on our firm and the current tax season. Obviously developments in the past 24 hours have made clear that this is increasingly close to home, and the situation is evolving continuously.

In an effort to mitigate the risk and inconvenience to our staff and our clients, the following steps are being pursued:

• Most staff are able to work remotely should they feel ill or be required to self-isolate. We have asked staff and ask clients who have experienced flu-like symptoms to avoid the office.
• In order to minimize the volume of outside foot traffic in the office, we will attempt to minimize in-person meetings to those deemed most necessary. We will instead seek to leverage technology and ask that clients submit their data by e-mail or fax, or by mail if preferred. If necessary, we would be pleased to arrange for a local courier to pick up your tax package from your home. Feel free to call the office to discuss the easiest way for us to obtain your documents.
• We will also attempt to deliver as many completed tax returns and related forms electronically as possible so as to reduce the need for clients to come to our office to pick up. Alternatively, mail or courier can be arranged.
• To date, CRA has not indicated an extension to current filing deadlines, however we will continue to monitor should this occur.

We thank each of you in advance for your help and cooperation as we navigate these unknown waters, and wish everyone good health. Please continue to monitor our website for any changes as things evolve.