@agtaxman
Excellent tip.
I have found CCA and fixed asset tracking to be pet topic since it can have large implications for taxpayers if claimed incorrectly or sub-optimally.
I have found asset recording and tracking to be one of the weakest areas in both PC accounting apps such as Simply Accounting/Sage 50, QuickBooks Desktop, QBO, and Xero. I have workarounds with an asset continuity in excel.
Although Profile and Taxcycle have improved the CCA schedules over the years, these too are imperfect and have much room for improvement. From time to time the year over year carry forwards don’t work as they should.
Early in my tax career I supported two difficult CRA GST Trust Examiner reviews which focused on capital assets - business use, proof of cost, proof of business use. These had initially been simple compilation engagements with no bookkeeping and missing documentations. The long haul trucker’s CRA GST Trust Examiner review took six weeks to settle successfully. The lighting refit installer, traveling throughout Alberta, pulling his inventory in a trailer, and residing in an RV in remote campsites most of the year took 3 weeks to settle successfully. Since these were early clients I provided this work as part of my warranty. These were costly and painful lessons in my first year solo.
Since then I maintain excel continuities and yearly calculations in Excel with source docs and lead sheets. I complete these yearly and scan to a CCA Continuity bundle. I use the tax schedules to verify my calculations and tax claims. I do not rely on the tax software to do my thinking for me, nor to be year over year record. I found that the schedules change. Sometimes the year over year carry forwards don’t work properly. Even when they do work they are not sufficiently robust to defend a CRA Review or CRA Audit or some calculations such are terminal loss or recapture.
Over the many years I have used Profile and now Taxcycle for my own practice, and, CanTax, Profile, TaxPrep, Visual Tax, and Taxcycle while sub-contracting to others. I have learned to double check all carry forward amounts. I have learned to create my own continuity and reconcile that against the tax software.
For me it is a matter of risk mitigation and control of the timing of my work product, even though this eats into my profit. I choose to understand my original record, where that is entered in to tax sw, what calculations are made, and how the numbers pull to the tax returns. I hate making mistakes. Of course we are human and we all make mistakes. However, I do my utmost to avoid errors and reconcile carry forward amounts whenever possible. For me this means maintaining a separate Fixed Asset and CCA Claim Continuity in Excel. Otherwise, I might miss something or make a recording or transposition error. Over the years I have found errors in the software forms and errors in the CRA assessments. It gives me confidence and my clients satisfaction that I know where my numbers come from. That way, if an error occurs, I can resolve the matter relatively quickly.