self-employed and business expense

[Kkc]

hi everyone

im just wondering what kind of issues to expect when it comes to being self-employed and having legitimate business expenses. Basically I am a professional, so there are very obvious expenses that I need to operate my office, where I am looking at are the following

every so often I have to redecorate my office to keep it fresh for clientele and pharmaceutical reps

this should be an added 2-3k this year

In addition, my divorce is very messy and there is medical documentation that I have to stop running the entire corporation by myself (on top of working 60 hours + a week, there is a lot of background work that no one sees (bookeeping, updating charts to maximize revenue). I will be having a family member doing legitimate work which will be kept in extremely high detail.

I am just reading about how stacked the deck is against me, I am not looking for any sympathy, I am not looking to negate my obligations, I am just looking for advice or strategy other individuals have employed. I am running my business the exact way I always have throughout the entire marriage (with the exception of hiring my family member to do legit work because I cannot) and looking to not get burned.

[arabian]

You will likely be required to exchange financials with your ex every year (typically June or July as corporations have to mid-June to file taxes). Make sure your business has appropriate set of books (I'd recommend Simply Accounting software). It is those expenses that you have actually paid that will be taken into consideration for determining income for purpose of determining support. Always keep in mind that allowable CRA expenses are not necessarily the same as those allowed by family court. For example, as a physician expenses to attend symposia or maintenance/janitorial for your office would be allowable CRA general operating expenses (as would fuel and maintenance expenses for a trucking company), other expenses such as lease payments for a vehicle may also be ok CRA expenses but may not be acceptable to family court unless you use vehicle to routinely travel to hospital or other clinic. (This is just one example). Best to keep scrupulous accounting records. There is nothing wrong with hiring a family member in your corporation if they have qualifications to do the job (CA, CPA - accountant, for example). Just because your ex was a nurse and worked for your practice as receptionist doesn't mean you have to hire another nurse. It really comes down to common sense. Have your accountant check out if you can claim working from home (and % of home use). That can be a nice deduction but because you have an office elsewhere I'm not sure if it would be legit for CRA a/or family court.

[Kkc]

Always great for advice
Again it's not like I'm claiming a crazy amount

Also..I do think bc my lawyer fees directly stem from corp related things (figuring out finances, severing it) I'll put those for family law bc they are legit. I get my cc brief today and it will be epic

[denbigh]

updating charts to maximize revenue

what does this mean?

[Kkc]

You can get extra compensation for making sure you see all your diabetics every 3 months and making sure everyone gets cancer screening. It is extremely tedious and time consuming.