I was a little behind in getting my personal (9 months) and corporate (2 years) tax filings done. Yes I owed a little on the corporate site, but I got a huge refund on the personal side. It all balances out in the end.
While I was there, I made some comments to the Accountant and his staff. Jaws dropped. Apparently they worship rules-and-regulations and wouldn’t think someone would say such things as
1. You don’t need to file personal taxes every year. I went 4 years one time without filing. A mini protest against Chrietien etc. When I did file, they owed me something like $200 so big whoopee.
2. The government won’t put you in jail if you get them some sort of payment, even if it isn’t in full, when they whine long enough to finally get under your skin. Making payments shows you’re trying to make amends. Plus it takes them 2-3 years to figure out that maybe you didn’t file and they should maybe look into it… Besides. They aren’t going to do very much if what you owe is < 5K and you come up with that or a part of it eventually.
3. Credit card companies, the banks, etc hardly ever check signatures. That’s why mine is a scrawl and looks different sometimes from one instance to the next. At self serve checkouts at Home Depot for example, you can put a giant X on the signature pad. Nobody ever called me about that. I’ve done it at least 2x now.
4. When paying a fine or taxes or whatever, go ahead and short them a penny or a dollar from time to time when writing cheques. I’ve done this to the feds. All they do is send a letter with an adjustment saying they are writing it off. Probably cost them a buck or two for the penny I shorted them that one time.
Yes, I said all that, or sentiments close to that, while I was there signing cheques and statements and forms today. Yes their jaws hit the floor more than once. Yes, I’m going to regret it some day but… for now… whatever.
