Financial Management
- Identify what assets and liabilities the client has in Canada and abroad.
- Gather all relevant information regarding the client’s current marital status, current family including “extended” family members and obligations with respect to prior relationships and family members that are or could be financially dependent upon the client including disability of any member of the family.
- Obtain information relating to the business interests of the client, personal guarantees that have been provided and type and structure of the business interest.
- Identify type of ownership and beneficiaries on all appropriate assets.
- Gather specific financial information relating to income, salary and pensions.
- Gather information on all sources of income, including interests in any trusts, income from investments or business and all respective tax issues concerning income, in order to determine “net” income.
- Gather details of all debt including interest rate and repayment schedule.
- Identify participation in employer-sponsored plans, including stock options, pensions, profit sharing and registered and non-registered savings plans.
Investment Management
- Review information necessary to prepare a detailed statement of investment holdings.
- Determine the client’s current asset allocation.
- Determine positive cash flows (if any) that could be earmarked for investing.
- Determine the tax position of client and spouse, relative to types of investment income.
- Obtain information relating to the investment the client has with business interests to ensure these are considered in the overall asset allocation.
- Prepare financial reports to document the client’s current financial position.
- Identify the client’s general attitudes and biases towards investments and investment risk.
- Determine the client’s level of investing sophistication (knowledge and experience).
- Identify the client’s lifestyle and personal values.
- Consider objectives for business owners.
- Determine the client’s investment objectives.
- Identify the client’s time horizon.
- Formulate financial objectives on the basis of the client’s situation and preferences.
Tax Planning
- Assemble the necessary documents to determine the client’s tax situation.
- Identify the tax deductions and credits that apply.
- Identify short-term and long-term tax liabilities.
- Identify all participants involved in your tax situation.
- Assess the current value of assets to determine potential tax liabilities on disposition.
- Review prior years’ tax returns. Notices of Assessment and other tax documents.
- Identify potential tax strategies and structures.
- Evaluate the suitability of existing tax strategies and structures.
- Identify situations when engaging a tax expert would be appropriate.
- Identify situations when the use of insurance would be a solution for tax problems.
- Consider the taxable events that can result from the death of the client.
- Consider corporate taxation, small business deductions, corporate distributions, corporate reorganizations ans share-holder taxation.
- Consider the taxation of critical-illness insurance and long-term care insurance and disability insurance, including both personally and corporately owned.
- Explore tax-savings strategies and quantifying the taxes and other liabilities that will be borne by the estate.
- Consider the tax returns that can be filed as a result of the death of the taxpayer.
- Consider taxation issues around business succession planning.
- Consider income tax rules as well as general gifting strategies, in particular as they apply to life insurance and annuity products.
- Consider the capital gains exemption.
- Consider the implications of estate freezes.
- Consider a number of strategies available to defer or minimize capital gains tax.
- Consider the application of the capital dividend account.
- Assess the advantage of any tax deferrals or rollovers provided under the Income Tax Act to minimize taxes payable on death.
Risk Management
- Gather all the particulars on the client’s prevailing insurance coverage.
- Identify the financial risks associated with a loss of life, livelihood, or standard of living, including income tax consequences on death or the disposition of any asset.
- Assess exposure to financial risk.
- Compare the client’s risk exposure to current coverage.
- Assess the implications of changes to insurance coverage.
- Identify the business needs met by life-insurance products.
- Prepare financial reports to document the client’s current financial position, obligations and risks.
- Gather relevant information regarding the client’s health, such as per-existing conditions.
- Identify the client’s general attitudes towards saving, spending, debt, risk tolerance and the use of insurance to transfer risk.
- Consider objectives for business owners.
- Determine the client’s risk-management objectives.
- Determine the client’s tolerance to risk exposure.
- Determine the client’s willingness to take active steps to manage financial risk.
- Prioritize the client’s risk-management needs.
- Formulate financial objectives on the basis of the client’s situation and preferences.
- Determine characteristics of existing insurance coverage as well as post-retirement benefit coverage, if any.
- Identify potential risk-management vehicles.
- Consider the complex taxation rules around life insurance, annuities and related products.
- Consider the taxation of disability income and living-benefits products.
- Consider the main uses of insurance in the context of insurance in the context of estate creation and asset preservation for an individual or company.
Estate Planning
- Review the legal agreements and documents that impact estate planning, including type of ownership, beneficiary designations, wills, trusts, enduring powers of attorney and personal directive or documents related to personal care.
- Consider the estate planning addresses not just the issues of leaving a legacy or succession solutions, but also issues that arise from premature death, longevity or becoming disabled or seriously ill.
- Determine health-care planning through living benefits, disability, critical illness, long-term care plans and financial issues that could affect an individual’s estate plan.
- Determine issues of creditors and claimants of estate.
- Identify the client’s general attitudes towards estate planning.
- Ensure the estate plan doesn’t conflict with other plans.
- Consider other estate-planning objectives.
- Ensure all appropriate individuals are involved in discussions, including those who are affected while not being directly involved.
- Consider determination of residency and its impact on income tax planning and estate planning.
- Project net worth at death.
- Identify constraints to meeting the client’s estate-planning objectives.
- Identify potential estate-planning vehicles.
- Consider probate planning and implications to the estate plan.
- Consider other estate-planning tools that can complement the need for a will.
- Consider the potential issues with transferring property into joint ownership.
- Consider the role that trusts can play in estate planning.
- Determine if the estate will be sufficiently liquid to pay off estate liabilities and meet the client’s estate-planning objectives.
- Identify ways to preserve or expand the estate through the use of life insurance or other estate-planning strategies.
- Educate the client about the important role that an executor plays in administering an estate and ensuring the appropriate people are appointed.
- Review all beneficiary designations under the life insurance and registered assets to ensure these assets are flowing to the correct people upon death.
- Address the needs of the spouse and other family members within the context of business succession planning.
- Consider buy-sell arrangements that can be implemented when there are life-altering events for self, partner or family member.
- Determine how to address business succession within the family, outside the family and when there are no successors.
- Consider a number of strategies available to defer or minimize capital gains tax.
- Determine the appropriateness of an estate freeze.
- Calculate potential expenses and taxes owing at death.
- Assess the specific needs of survivors.
- Assess the liquidity of the estate at death.
- Assess the potential benefits of establishing testamentary trusts.
- Assess the benefits of a life-insurance trust.
- Assess the potential benefits of having multiple wills.
Retirement Planning
- Identify current insurance holdings, including group insurance as well as post-retirement benefit coverage, if any.
- Identify and clarify pension arrangements of client.
- Determine potential sources of retirement income.
- Estimate retirement expenses.
- Identify member benefits and payment of early benefits.
- Determine the value of RPP benefits and purchase of prior service.
- Gather relevant information regarding the client’s health, including existing health issues and health issues that run in the family as this may have some bearing on retirement planning.
- Identify the client’s general attitudes and objectives around retirement.
- Identify the client’s lifestyle and personal values, now and in retirement.
- Discuss what business succession plans are in place or contemplated with business owners.
- Consider how the client can live comfortably in retirement.
- Formulate financial objectives on the basis of the client’s situation and preferences.
- Identify potential retirement planning vehicles.
- Develop financial projections based on current financial position.
- Consider other financial objectives, including charitable bequests, providing for disabled beneficiaries, protecting estate assets from creditors, and ensuring sufficient estate liquidity.
- Develop income-splitting techniques.
- Analyze alternative sources of income at retirement to reduce OAS clawback.
- Consider the implications of higher spending in early years of retirement.
- Assess financial requirements at retirement date.
- Assess the impact of changes in assumptions on financial projections.
- Assess trade-offs necessary to meet retirement objectives.
- Consider conflicts and any estate-planning deficiencies.
- Formulate an initial retirement plan integrating registered and non-registered accumulations as well as public and private pension funds.