The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced, that on September 30, 2020, Jane General Services Ltd (JGSL), 2322944 Ontario Ltd, operating as Tri-Han Staffing Solution (TSS), and their shareholder, Vanessa Jane Canlas (Canlas) of Toronto, received a prison sentence of two and a half years and a fine of $833,238, in the Toronto Superior Court of Justice. On June 5, 2020, JGSL, TSS and Canlas pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud under the Criminal Code related to income tax evasion and goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) evasion on their corporate tax returns. Canlas also pleaded guilty to one count of fraud related to income tax evasion on her individual tax returns.
A CRA investigation identified that Canlas and the two employment agencies, JGSL and TSS, deliberately caused the Government of Canada to be defrauded of taxes totalling $1,666,476. Canlas hid or suppressed the amount of income being earned by not including all of the sales invoices in spreadsheets provided to her accountant for the filing of corporate tax returns. Canlas also suppressed the sales on the GST/HST returns she filed for the two corporations, defrauding the government of GST/HST funds. The investigation further revealed that Canlas used the corporations’ unreported income for her own personal benefit.
All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.
Tax evasion is a crime. Falsification of records and claims, wilfully not reporting income, or inflating expenses can lead to criminal charges, prosecution, jail time, and a criminal record. From April 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020, there were 32 convictions, with 13 taxpayers sent to jail for a total of 18.5 years. These individuals were sentenced for wilfully evading payment of $7,427,090 in tax.
The CRA remains dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s tax system, as well as the social and economic well-being of Canadians during these unprecedented times. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion and false claims with all tools available to them. The CRA is continuously working towards making sure that individuals and businesses claim income earned, eligible losses, and benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. As a result of COVID-19, we are seeing the increased importance of these benefits, and are working to make sure that they continue to be available to Canadians. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled, including ineligible claims for COVID-19 benefits, may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action.
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