🇨🇦 Canada
Canadian tax and accounting terminology — CRA, provincial filings, PIPEDA, CASL.
- T1
- Canadian personal income tax return. Filing deadline: April 30 of the following year (June 15 for self-employed individuals, but balance owing is still due April 30). Penalties for late filing are 5% of balance owing plus 1% per month up to 12 months. In MyCPACRM: tracked as a filing type with personal client linkage; T1 Tracker module surfaces the entire personal-tax season as a focused workflow.
- T2
- Canadian corporate income tax return. Filing deadline: 6 months after corporate year-end. Balance owing due 2 months after year-end (3 months for CCPCs claiming the small business deduction). Penalties: 5% of unpaid tax plus 1% per month up to 12 months, doubled for repeat late filers. In MyCPACRM: deadlines auto-calculated from the year-end date and CCPC status. Both filing deadline and balance-owing deadline tracked separately on the same filing.
- T3
- Canadian trust income tax and information return. Filing deadline: 90 days after trust year-end. For trusts with a calendar year-end (the most common), the deadline is March 31. Required for testamentary trusts, inter vivos trusts, and bare trusts (with new bare-trust reporting rules effective 2024).
- T4 / T4A
- Canadian payroll information returns. T4 reports employment income for employees (salary, deductions, CPP, EI). T4A reports payments to contractors, pension, scholarships, and other non-employment income. Filing deadline: February 28/29 of the following year.
- T5
- Canadian investment income information return. Reports interest, dividends, and other investment income paid by corporations to shareholders. Filed annually.
- T2125
- Statement of Business or Professional Activities. Schedule attached to the T1 return for self-employed individuals to report business or professional income and expenses. Often the longest-running paperwork item for sole proprietors.
- T183
- Information Return for Electronic Filing of an Individual's Income Tax and Benefit Return. Required signed authorization for tax preparers to e-file a T1 return on a client's behalf. Must be retained for 6 years. In MyCPACRM: T183 is a first-class e-signature workflow. Pre-filled from client data, sent for e-signature, captured signed copy stored on the filing.
- T1013 / AUT-01
- CRA authorization form to act as a representative for a taxpayer. Required to access CRA Represent a Client. T1013 is being phased out in favor of AUT-01 (effective 2023). Different forms apply to individuals, businesses, trusts, and non-residents. In MyCPACRM: stored on each client with expiry tracking; renewal reminders configurable.
- GST/HST
- Goods and Services Tax / Harmonized Sales Tax — the federal value-added tax. 5% GST in non-harmonized provinces (BC, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, Yukon, NWT, Nunavut). 13% HST in Ontario, 15% HST in NB, NS, NL, PEI. Filing frequency: annual under $1.5M revenue, quarterly $1.5M-$6M, monthly over $6M. In MyCPACRM: filing frequency auto-detected from revenue threshold; deadlines calculated accordingly.
- PST
- Provincial Sales Tax. Charged in BC (7%), Saskatchewan (6%), and Manitoba (7%). Quebec has its own equivalent (QST). Other provinces are harmonized (HST) or have no provincial sales tax (Alberta, territories).
- QST
- Quebec Sales Tax. Quebec's provincial sales tax (9.975%), administered by Revenu Québec separately from federal GST. Quebec businesses register and remit QST and GST together via Revenu Québec.
- WSIB
- Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (Ontario). Premium reporting and remittance for workplace injury insurance. Mandatory for most Ontario employers. Premiums based on payroll and industry rate group.
- EHT
- Employer Health Tax. Annual return required when payroll exceeds threshold. Ontario: exemption on first $1M of payroll; rate 0.98%-1.95% on excess. BC and Manitoba have variants with different rules and thresholds.
- MRQ
- Ministère du Revenu Québec — Quebec's tax authority, parallel to CRA for Quebec residents. Quebec residents file separate provincial tax returns (TP-1 for individuals, CO-17 for corporations) in addition to federal CRA returns.
- OBR
- Ontario Business Registry. Annual filing required for Ontario corporations to maintain active status. Replaced the old Corporations Information Act annual return process. Filed via the OBR online portal. Other provinces have equivalents (BC corporate annual return, Alberta annual return, etc.).
- EFILE
- The CRA's electronic filing system for tax preparers to transmit returns on a client's behalf. EFILE has an annual open and close window each season, so returns can only be transmitted while it is open. A workflow can hold a "transmit" step with a not-before date so it never goes early. The US analogue is IRS e-file.
- Two-Eyes Review
- A quality-control practice where a second person reviews work before it is finalized, separate from a manager or partner approval sign-off. Common on tax returns to catch errors before filing. In a workflow these are two distinct gates: review (a second pair of eyes) and approval (an authority signs off).
- WIP (Work in Progress)
- The accumulated, unbilled time and cost on a client engagement before it is invoiced. Tracking estimated versus actual hours per task lets a firm value its WIP and bill more accurately, instead of guessing at write-ups and write-downs.
- CCPC
- Canadian-Controlled Private Corporation. Tax classification with significant benefits including the small business deduction (lower corporate tax rate of approximately 9% federal + provincial on first $500K of active business income) and the lifetime capital gains exemption ($1M+ for qualified small business corporation shares).
- CRA
- Canada Revenue Agency. Federal tax authority responsible for administering tax laws, collecting taxes, and managing benefit programs. CRA's web portal "Represent a Client" (RAC) is the primary interface for authorized representatives accessing client tax data.
- CRA Represent a Client (RAC)
- CRA's online portal where authorized representatives can access client tax information — Notice of Assessments, account balances, instalment status, prior-year returns, etc. Requires T1013 or AUT-01 authorization on file.
- CPP
- Canada Pension Plan. Mandatory pension contribution program. Employees and employers each contribute 5.95% (2026 rates) up to a maximum on pensionable earnings. Self-employed individuals pay both portions (11.9%) on net business income.
- EI
- Employment Insurance. Federal program providing temporary income support during unemployment, sickness, parental leave, etc. Employees pay 1.66% (2026 rate, Canada outside Quebec); employers pay 1.4× the employee rate. Quebec has lower rates due to QPIP (Quebec Parental Insurance Plan).
- PIPEDA
- Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act. Canada's federal privacy law for commercial activities. Mandates how organizations collect, use, and disclose personal information in the course of commercial activity. Requires consent, accountability, and security safeguards.
- CASL
- Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation. Governs commercial electronic messages (CEMs). Requires sender identification, mailing address, and functional unsubscribe in every email and SMS. Penalties up to $10M per business, $1M per individual. In MyCPACRM: every outbound email and SMS automatically includes all three CASL requirements; bulk sends respect consent flags on each client record.
- CPA
- Chartered Professional Accountant. Canadian designation for accounting professionals (replacing the legacy CA, CGA, and CMA designations as of 2014). Provincial CPA bodies (CPA Ontario, CPA BC, CPA Alberta, etc.) regulate the profession in each province.
- Notice of Assessment (NOA)
- Document issued by CRA after processing a tax return. Confirms accepted return, calculates refund or balance owing, and notes any adjustments CRA made to the filing. Important reference document — should be saved for at least 6 years (CRA's audit retention period).
- Year-End
- The last day of an entity's fiscal year. For most Canadian individuals it is December 31. For corporations it can be any date — many CCPCs use December 31, but year-ends spread throughout the calendar are common (e.g., July 31, March 31). In MyCPACRM: year-end stored on each corporate/trust client; filing deadlines auto-calculated from this date.
- Filing Frequency
- How often a return must be filed. For GST/HST, frequency is determined by annual revenue: under $1.5M = annual, $1.5M-$6M = quarterly, over $6M = monthly. For payroll remittance, frequency depends on average monthly withholding amounts (regular, accelerated 1, accelerated 2, threshold 1, threshold 2, threshold 3).
- Instalment
- Periodic prepayment of expected tax owing. Required when prior-year tax payable exceeded $3,000 ($1,800 in Quebec). For T1, instalments due quarterly (March 15, June 15, September 15, December 15). For corporations, monthly or quarterly depending on size and prior-year tax owing. Late instalment interest charged by CRA.
🇺🇸 United States
US tax and accounting terminology — IRS, state filings, CCPA, GLBA, IRS Pub 4557.
- Form 1040
- US federal individual income tax return. Filing deadline: April 15 (extension to October 15 available via Form 4868). Quarterly estimated payments via Form 1040-ES due April 15, June 15, September 15, January 15 of the following year. The US analogue to Canada's T1. In MyCPACRM: tracked as a filing type with personal client linkage; the Tax Season Tracker module surfaces the entire 1040 season as a focused workflow.
- Form 1040-ES
- US Estimated Tax Vouchers for individuals. Required for self-employed and others with non-withheld income (rule of thumb: anyone expecting to owe $1,000+ at filing time). Quarterly cadence aligned with 1040 due dates. Underpayment of instalments triggers Form 2210 penalty calculations.
- Form 1120
- US C-corporation income tax return. Filing deadline: 15th day of the 4th month after fiscal year-end (April 15 for calendar-year corporations). Six-month extension available via Form 7004. The US analogue to Canada's T2. In MyCPACRM: deadlines auto-calculated from fiscal year-end. Both filing and payment deadlines tracked.
- Form 1120-S
- US S-corporation income tax return. Filing deadline: 15th day of the 3rd month after fiscal year-end (March 15 for calendar-year S-corps). Includes Schedule K-1 distribution to shareholders. S-corporations are pass-through entities — tax is paid at the shareholder level on personal returns.
- Form 1065
- US partnership return of income. Filing deadline: March 15 for calendar-year partnerships. K-1 distribution to partners reports each partner's share of income, deductions, and credits — partners then report on their personal returns. Multi-member LLCs file 1065 by default.
- Schedule C
- Profit or Loss from Business (sole proprietorship). Filed as part of Form 1040. Tracks self-employed business income and expenses. The US analogue to Canada's T2125. Single-member LLCs file Schedule C by default.
- Form 1099 (NEC, MISC, INT, DIV, K)
- US information returns reporting non-employee income. Common variants: 1099-NEC (non-employee compensation, due Jan 31 to recipients and IRS), 1099-MISC (paper due Feb 28, e-file Mar 31), 1099-INT (interest), 1099-DIV (dividends), 1099-K (third-party payment processors — Stripe, PayPal). In MyCPACRM: tracked per-payer and per-recipient with deadline alerts.
- Form W-2
- US Wage and Tax Statement for employees. Due January 31 to employees and the Social Security Administration. The US analogue to Canada's T4. Reports wages, federal/state/local tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare, and 401(k) contributions.
- Form 2848
- IRS Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative. Authorizes a CPA, EA, or attorney to represent a taxpayer before the IRS — receive notices, sign documents, attend audits. The US analogue to Canada's T1013 / AUT-01. Can be e-signed. In MyCPACRM: stored on each client with expiry tracking; renewal reminders configurable.
- Form 8821
- IRS Tax Information Authorization. Less powerful than Form 2848 — authorizes information access only (transcripts, notices), not representation. Often used alongside 2848 by tax practitioners. Can be e-signed.
- EFTPS
- Electronic Federal Tax Payment System — the US Treasury's free electronic payment system for federal tax payments. Used for quarterly estimated taxes, payroll deposits (Form 941), and corporate tax payments. Mandatory for most business deposits; optional for individuals.
- EA (Enrolled Agent)
- Federally-licensed US tax practitioner authorized by the IRS to represent taxpayers in any state. EAs pass a three-part IRS exam covering individual, business, and representation matters. The CPA's federally-licensed counterpart for tax matters specifically.
- IRS
- Internal Revenue Service. The US federal tax authority responsible for administering the Internal Revenue Code, collecting taxes, and processing returns. The US analogue to Canada's CRA. The IRS's web portal "Tax Pro Account" and "e-Services" are the primary interfaces for authorized representatives accessing client data.
- IRS Publication 4557
- Safeguarding Taxpayer Data — the IRS's specific data-security guidance for tax practitioners. Outlines required administrative, technical, and physical safeguards for taxpayer information including written information-security plans (WISP), encryption, access controls, and incident response. Compliance is implicit in PTIN renewal.
- CCPA / CPRA
- California Consumer Privacy Act (and the 2023 California Privacy Rights Act amendments). Grants California residents rights over their personal data: access, deletion, correction, opt-out of sale/sharing, and limit on sensitive personal information use. Penalties up to $7,500 per intentional violation. Even firms outside California must comply if they serve California clients above thresholds.
- VCDPA
- Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act. Virginia's equivalent to CCPA, effective 2023. Several other US states have similar laws — Colorado CPA, Connecticut CTDPA, Utah UCPA, Texas TDPSA, with more enacted each year. Most CPA firms must navigate a patchwork of state privacy laws.
- GLBA
- Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. US federal law requiring financial institutions (including tax preparers) to safeguard customer information. The Safeguards Rule mandates a written information-security program with administrative, technical, and physical controls. Breach notification rules apply.
- CAN-SPAM
- US federal law governing commercial email. Requires accurate sender info, an honest subject line, location identification, and a clear opt-out mechanism. The US counterpart to Canada's CASL — but note: CAN-SPAM is opt-out, while CASL is opt-in. Penalties up to $51,744 per email. In MyCPACRM: every outbound US email includes sender ID, mailing address, and unsubscribe link.
- E-SIGN Act
- US Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (2000). Establishes that electronic signatures and records are legally valid for most transactions, including tax authorizations. Often paired with state-level UETA adoption. Audit trails capturing signer identity, timestamp, and document version satisfy E-SIGN requirements.
- UETA
- Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. State-level US law (adopted by 49 states + DC) that gives electronic signatures and records the same legal weight as paper. The US counterpart to Canada's UECA. Combined with E-SIGN, makes e-signed tax authorizations legally enforceable in all US states.
- Multi-State Nexus
- The legal connection between a business and a US state that creates a tax filing obligation. Sales-tax nexus rules shifted dramatically after South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018) — economic nexus thresholds (typically $100K revenue or 200 transactions) now apply alongside physical presence. CPAs serving multi-state clients must track nexus per state.
- SSN
- Social Security Number. US 9-digit identifier (XXX-XX-XXXX) used for individual tax filing on Form 1040. The US analogue to Canada's SIN. Field-level encrypted in MyCPACRM.
- EIN
- Employer Identification Number. US 9-digit federal tax ID (XX-XXXXXXX) for businesses, trusts, and estates. Required for filing 1120, 1120-S, 1065, payroll, and information returns. The US analogue to Canada's Business Number (BN). Obtained from the IRS via Form SS-4.
- K-1 (Schedule K-1)
- US tax form reporting each partner's, shareholder's, or beneficiary's share of income, deductions, and credits from a partnership (Form 1065), S-corp (1120-S), or trust/estate (1041). Distributed to recipients before they file their personal returns. K-1 distribution timing is a perennial bottleneck for personal-tax season.
- Tax Year
- The 12-month period a tax return covers. In the US, the calendar year (Jan 1 – Dec 31) is the default for individuals and most small businesses; fiscal year-ends are permitted for C-corporations under specific rules. In Canada, individuals always use calendar year and corporations may pick any fiscal year-end.