CRA Is Calling Your Employees Behind Your Back
How electronic tips can create unexpected CPP and EI liabilities for employers – and why CRA may be gathering information from employees before contacting the business.
Show Notes
CRA may be calling your employees – not you – and asking questions about how tips are handled in your business.
Most owners don't even know this is happening.
And a court ruling many businesses have never heard of could mean payroll taxes on tips you thought weren't your responsibility.
In This Solo, We Cover:
• Why electronic tips are treated differently from cash tips
• How tips passing through your bank account create payroll tax exposure
• The court case that changed the rules for tipped businesses
• How CPP and EI can apply – even if you just pass tips through
• Common risk areas: tip pools, auto-gratuity, POS systems
• Why CRA may contact employees before contacting the business
This doesn't just affect restaurants – it applies to salons, spas, cafés, bars, and any business where tips flow through the employer.
And once CRA contacts your staff, some options – like voluntary disclosure – may already be off the table.
Most owners don't know this risk exists until it's too late.
📝 Related Articles

Do You Need A Holding Company In Canada? The 5 Signs
A holding company can save hundreds of thousands in tax – or add needless complexity. Learn the five signs it makes sense, from surplus cash and investments to asset protection and business sales.

The RRSP Trap: Why CRA Takes 54% Of Your RRSP When You Die (And How To Stop It)
A $1 million RRSP can trigger a $540,000 tax bill at death. Learn the little-known strategy that can legally reduce that tax burden and preserve more wealth for your family.
CRA's New Audit Powers — 2026 Update: What's Dropped, What's Still Coming
CRA's New Audit Powers — 2026 Update: What's Dropped, What's Still Coming
Update: the CRA's most-feared new power — compelling answers under oath — was dropped from Bill C-31, and the rest aren't law yet. Here's what's actually proposed (notice of non-compliance, a 10% penalty, stop-the-clock) and what the CRA can already do today.
🎬 More Episodes
SoloDo You Actually Need A Holding Company?
How a holding company can reduce taxes, protect assets, and improve long-term planning for some Canadians – while creating unnecessary cost and complexity for others.
- Holding Company
- Holdco Structure
- LCGE
SoloCRA Takes 54% Of Your RRSP When You Die (Unless You Do This)
How a $1 million RRSP can create a $500,000+ tax bill at death – and the little-known planning strategy that may help families keep far more of their wealth.
- RRSP
- Family Trust
- Beneficiary Designations
SoloYour Family Can Save 12K A Year Through This Tax Strategy
How Canada's 3% prescribed-rate trust strategy can legally shift investment income to children – but new AMT rules may now reduce or even reverse the tax savings.
- Family Trust
- Tax Planning
SoloEstate Planning Explained: Will vs. Trust In Canada
How wills, beneficiary designations, joint ownership, and trusts actually control your assets in Canada – and why many families discover critical estate planning gaps only after a crisis occurs.
- Estate Planning
- Family Trust
- Income Splitting
SoloThe Airbnb Tax Nobody Knows About
How Airbnb income can quietly transform your home into a taxable commercial property – triggering unexpected HST, loss of principal residence treatment, and massive tax exposure on sale.
- Business Owners
- Business Sale
- Legal Perspective
EpisodePoliticians Keep Lying About Tax Cuts
How government headlines hide the fine print—and why your “tax cut” might actually be a retroactive tax hike in disguise.
- Penalties & Interest
- Business Owners
- Founders & Entrepreneurs
Need more than a podcast? Cedar Group handles tax planning, restructuring, and sale-readiness advisory for founders.
CEDARGROUP.CA →