Editorial standards and fact-checking policy

Our commitment to accuracy

Tax Simplified exists to give Canadians reliable, verifiable information about their taxes. A mistake on a CRA form, a missed deadline, or a misunderstood deduction can cost a taxpayer hundreds or thousands of dollars and years of stress. We take that responsibility seriously.

Every piece of content on Tax Simplified — guides, calculators, reference tables, news articles, and contributor columns — is subject to this policy. We do not publish content that we cannot verify against an authoritative source, and we do not allow contributors to make claims based on common knowledge or professional opinion alone.

Authoritative sources

All tax figures, rates, rules, deadlines, and procedures on Tax Simplified must be traceable to one of the following authoritative sources:

• Income Tax Act (ITA) — the primary federal statute governing Canadian income tax. Section numbers are cited where relevant.
• Excise Tax Act (ETA) — governs GST/HST. All GST/HST content cites the relevant ETA provision or CRA GST/HST memorandum.
• CRA publications — Income Tax Folios (replacing Interpretation Bulletins), Information Circulars (ICs), GST/HST Memoranda, and Guides (e.g., T4002, T4011, T4012). We cite the specific publication code and date.
• CPA Canada Handbook — used for accounting standards references (ASPE, IFRS, ASNPO) that bear on tax reporting.
• Finance Canada budget documents and technical notes — used for proposed and enacted budget measures, with clear notation of enactment status.
• Provincial legislation and publications — cited by statute name, section, and provincial ministry publication code.
• Tax Court of Canada and Federal Court of Appeal decisions — cited by case name and neutral citation.

We do not treat other websites, news articles, blog posts, or social media as authoritative sources for tax figures. We may use them to identify topics or trends, but any claim published on Tax Simplified is verified against one of the above.

Contributor eligibility and review process

To write for Tax Simplified, every contributor must hold one of the following active credentials:

• CPA designation (CPA, CA / CPA, CGA / CPA, CMA or post-unification CPA)
• Law degree (LLB or JD) with demonstrated practice in Canadian tax law
• Master of Taxation (MTax) or equivalent graduate tax credential
• CFA designation with demonstrated expertise in Canadian registered accounts and investment taxation

Contributors self-certify their credentials at the time of onboarding. We reserve the right to verify designations with the relevant provincial CPA body or law society before publication.

Every article submitted by a contributor goes through a two-stage review before publication:

1. Editorial review — our editorial team checks for completeness, clarity, and compliance with our submission guidelines. We may return the article to the contributor with questions.
2. Technical review — at least one additional CPA or tax lawyer (separate from the author) reviews the article for technical accuracy. Every dollar figure, rate, contribution limit, and deadline is verified against the cited source. No article is published without this sign-off.

Rate and limit verification

Canadian tax rates, contribution limits, thresholds, and dollar amounts change every year. We maintain a structured update schedule to keep every piece of content current:

• Federal budget season (March–April) — our editorial team reviews every article that references a rate, limit, or threshold affected by the federal budget. Updated articles are noted with a "Last verified" date at the top.
• CRA annual updates (October–January) — CRA announces inflation-indexed figures (RRSP limits, TFSA room, CPP maximum pensionable earnings, basic personal amount) in the fall. We update all affected content within 24 hours of CRA's announcement.
• Provincial budgets — all ten provincial budgets are monitored. Articles referencing provincial rates or credits are updated within 5 business days of a relevant provincial budget.

Proposed vs. enacted law

Canada's Parliament sometimes introduces budget measures that take years to receive Royal Assent. We clearly distinguish between law that is in force and measures that are proposed but not yet enacted.

• Enacted law is presented as fact with a citation to the statute.
• Budget proposals are clearly labelled as "proposed" or "subject to enactment."
• Draft legislation that has been tabled but not passed is labelled as "draft legislation."

We update articles when proposed measures receive Royal Assent, are withdrawn, or are materially amended.

Corrections policy

Despite our verification process, errors can occur. We are committed to correcting them transparently and quickly.

• Critical errors (wrong tax rate, wrong deadline, wrong dollar limit) — corrected within 24 hours of discovery or report. A correction notice is added to the top of the article noting what was changed and when.
• Material errors (missing nuance, incomplete information) — corrected within 5 business days with a note.
• Minor errors (typos, formatting) — corrected in routine editorial maintenance with no notice required.

Correction notices appear at the top of the relevant article in the format:
"Correction (October 2024): This article originally stated [X]. The correct figure is [Y]. We apologize for the error."

To report an error, email editor@taxsimplified.ca with the URL of the article and a description of the issue. Please include a source reference if you have one.

Conflicts of interest and promotional content

Contributors are required to disclose any material conflict of interest relevant to their article topic before submission. This includes but is not limited to: ownership of a firm that sells the product being discussed, a referral arrangement with a related service provider, or a significant financial interest in the subject matter.

No article on Tax Simplified may promote a contributor's firm or services. The contributor byline includes name, credentials, city, and a brief title — nothing more. CRA and legislative citations are permitted and encouraged; firm advertisements are not.

Tax Simplified does not accept sponsored content. All articles are independent editorial content.

Disclaimer

All content on Tax Simplified is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute personal tax advice, legal advice, or financial advice. Tax situations vary significantly by individual, province, and year. Readers with specific tax questions should consult a qualified professional.

Tax Simplified makes no representation that the information on this website is complete, current, or applicable to the reader's specific situation. While we take every reasonable precaution to ensure accuracy, readers use this information at their own discretion.

Need to find a qualified professional? Search our CPA directory to find a licensed accountant in your area.

Questions about this policy

Questions about our editorial standards or fact-checking process can be directed to our editorial team: editor@taxsimplified.ca.

If you are a licensed Canadian tax professional and are interested in contributing to Tax Simplified, learn about our contributor program.