The Trudeau government recently said that employee discounts will not be taxed despite a CRA document, which stated that they would indeed be taxed. The Retail Council of Canada, political rivals and business lobby groups have voiced a very strong concern that the new wording found in a government document could impact retail workers in a negative way. Retail workers, who already receive low wages, could see higher taxes if this change to employee discounts was implemented.

Read more: Feds say employee discounts won’t be taxed after CRA document suggests they will

There has been unprecedented opposition to the tax changes that were proposed on July 18, 2017. Despite the criticism and concerns, the Liberal government is still trying to sell the proposals as tweaks to the existing tax system that will only target the rich. The media and business owners of all sizes are concerned that changes are problematic, are significant changes and have other adverse consequences. Given that there was only a short 75-day consultation period, there is a need for Ottawa to slow down the process of reforming the tax system and thoroughly investigate the tax proposal in order to get it done right.

Read more: Ottawa’s new tax proposals: Slow down and get them right

Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau proposes changes to taxing small businesses that can cause businesses to close or force owners to spend their savings. This will cause business to raise their costs, ultimately forcing Canadian citizens to pay more money for goods and services. The proposed changes don’t accurately represent the facts of how they will impact Canadians. As the author says, “In many cases you’re not simply changing the rules; you’re changing the entire game.” There’s a big difference between an employee and someone who has taken a chance to start a business. The current system has worked for 45 years, and we should continue to honour this system because it recognises those differences.

Read more: Look At The Numbers: There’s No Justifying A Tax Hike On Employers

Finance Minster Bill Morneau has released his plans to crack down on what the government calls “tax loopholes.” The victims in this are millions of Canadian small-business owners. The government views the lesser taxation on small business as unfair, and they wish to eliminate legislation that previous governments put in place to help small businesses grow and to help mitigate some of the much higher risk that entrepreneurs take on when starting a business. The result would be that even big business will be on the same playing field as small businesses. In specific, they’re looking at the practice of income sprinkling (where a family member receives a salary or dividend to reduce the business’ total tax burden); passive investment retention (where a owner’s investment that isn’t immediate reinvestment into the business); and income conversion to capital gains (declaring income in a lower tax form). There will be unintended collateral damage due to Morneau’s proposed changes.

Read more: Morneau’s tax changes will hurt those Liberals claim to help

Proposed new tax reforms by the Canadian government could affect highly paid professionals as well as farmers. About 25% of all farms are family owned, and the number has gone up in recent times due to tax advantages. The government states that the reforms are aimed at wealth tax avoiders. Something that will adversely affect farmers is limiting of capital gains exemptions allowed. This could significantly increase the tax burden on family farms which use family members to reduce capital gains tax when selling land to their children.

Read more: After the fall harvest, Canadian farmers could face huge tax hit from new rules

The Canadian Department of Finance recently released a proposal that will eliminate income splitting strategies, a tactic many small businesses use. In the future, family members may be required to show that a dividend is reasonable, and the application of the reasonableness test will be even stricter if the person is 18 to 24 years old. As of right now family members, including minors, serve as beneficiaries of corporate trusts and pay a tax on the income. The new proposals will only allow adult beneficiaries to receive benefits, such as the lifetime capital gains exemption.

Read more: Canada: Sweeping Proposed Tax Changes To Private Corporations

While the Canadian government’s proposed tax changes may appear to target large businesses in the act of evading taxes or using questionable tax practices, the reality is that the new legislation would affect neighbourhood coffee shops, chiropractors, farmers and dry cleaners. These businesses have relied on legitimate small business tax rules from previous Liberal and Conservative governments to enable them to grow and expand. They have been following the rules, filing when they were supposed to and being lawful for the most part. However, all of this may change if some of the rules (that mitigate the higher risk of entrepreneurship for small businesses) are now being thought of as loopholes for these small business evildoers, which is not the case.

Read more: Your Neighbourhood Small Business Owner Isn’t A ‘Fat-Cat Tax Cheat’

Bill Morneau has proposed looking at small businesses for new tax revenue and has missed the boat on what it takes to be a business owner. The paper does not take into account the fact that many self-employed people are small-business owners with overhead that offsets tax breaks. Furthermore, employees reap benefits such as paid leave types and retirement programs that owners do not receive. Small businesses that are forced to pay a higher tax rate will eventually offset that cost through the consumer.

Read more: Look At The Numbers: There’s No Justifying A Tax Hike On Employers

Income tax in Canada has now turned 100 years old. The bill which started income tax collection came into effect on July 26, 1917, and was originally created as a way to raise money during the First World War effort. In just the first year approximately $118.6 million was raised.

Money from income taxes is vital to government projects throughout Canada. In recent years, tax collection has grown to $148.5 billion, and personal income tax accounts for just under half of all federal government revenue.

Read more: Income tax in Canada turns 100: here’s how much money Canadians have paid since 1917

With another tax season complete, scammers are now trying to trick Calgarians by pretending to be the Canada Revenue Agency. If they are calling about a refund, scammers will call people saying that they need personal and financial information in order to return the money owed. If they owe unpaid taxes, they’ll ask for payment via prepaid credit cards, gift cards or wire transfer.

Calgary Police are warning people to be aware of this scam, and to call them on 403-266-1234 if they have lost money or feel threatened by scammers. Police have stressed that Revenue Canada will not ask for this type of information nor ask Canadians to pay them in that way.

Read more: Calgary police warn Calgarians not to fall victim to tax scams