Key takeaways from Ontario’s COVID-19 action plan

MARCH 26, 2020

Key takeaways from Ontario’s COVID-19 Action Plan

Implications form the Provincial announcement yesterday for entrepreneurs include:

· A proposed temporary increase to the Employer Health Tax (EHT) exemption. The exemption will be increased from $490,000 to $1 million for 2020. This will reduce the cost of labour within the additional $510,000 band by almost 2%. If you manage your own payroll rather than using an outside provider you should ensure that you take advantage of this.

· You have the option of deferring WSIB payments for 6 months. This is particularly important for manufacturers and construction industries with high rates.

· Providing a five-month interest and penalty-free period for the majority of provincially administered taxes (the most significant item being EHT for most of our clients; a few clients will benefit by delaying the fuel tax, gas tax and the sales tax on insurance contracts and benefits)

For the full release click here, please reach out to your RMT contact with any questions.

Cash flow planning

Many of our clients have rarely dealt with careful short term cash flow planning. We are working with some now on simple models that lay out the cash for the next 4 to 12 weeks. These are simple excel spreadsheets that you give you visibility on your key metrics. If you need help thinking this through please call a member of the RMT team.

Acts of kindness

We have heard some great stories but wanted to share one here. One of our many great clients emailed to ask yesterday if there was a tax-efficient way to support the cleaners who take care of their office space every day. Incredible to take the time to think about those with the least support in these challenging times. We are proud to be associated with our clients.