Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada offers free financial literacy webinars for Canadian newcomers

BY PAUL JUNOR

There has been an emphasis on the importance of financial literacy among Canadians from elementary schools to high schools in the education systems. Attention is now focused on newcomers to Canada by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada) to ensure that they achieve a high level of financial literacy.

According to the website: https://www.cpacanada.ca, CPA Canada is a not-for-profit national accounting organization whose mission is to enhance the: influence, relevance and value of the accounting profession by: acting in the public interest, supporting CPAs who are members of the CPA Canada, and contributing to economic and social development. It is source of up-to-date information regarding Canadian tax, new and changing tax laws and works in conjunction with the Canada Revenue Agency to provide clear answers to any tax-related questions,

CPA Canada offers several virtual sessions focused on navigating around the Canadian banking system and helping new Canadians learn how to successfully manage their money.

There was a free financial literacy webinar held on Wednesday, March 29^th, 2023, from 12:30 – 1:30 pm for Canadian newcomers. It focused on everything  you need to know about banking, taxes and credit. The webinar was available on-demand and captioning was available for two weeks after March 29^th, 2023, to April 13^th, 2023. There were two speakers who presented in the webinar: Nancy Russell, Senior Vice-President and Chief Internal Auditor at Great-West Lifeco Inc., and Amy Lin, Associate Manager with Canada’s Life Internal Audit team.

At the Financial Literacy Webinar, Canadian newcomers learned about the following:

• The Canadian banking system and why a bank account is required
• The basics of credit and taxes and building credit history
• How to file an income tax return
• Understanding a pay cheque
• Where to get support if needed

In preparation for the tax season, there will be a “Slay Your Taxes,” webinar planned for April 1^st, 2023. The presenters will be Amy Lin and Bertram Richards (Director of Finance at Canada Life). The webinar intends to answer questions such as: Do you understand your taxes, and how do you file tax returns? Are you a student or recent grad wondering about tax-saving options?

Registered participants will learn about:

• What are taxes, why we file them and where they go
• Credits, deductions and special rules for students
• The difference between an RRSP and a TFSA
• The benefits of filing taxes and how to successfully file an income tax return
• Top questions asked by other young adults

Another virtual session, “Disability-accessing your benefits,” was held on March 8^th, 2023. In this webinar, registered participants learned all about the eligibility criteria, and requirements when it comes to accessing disability benefits. The speakers were Amy Lin and Ann Hebert (Manager at Fidelity Canada’s Fund Tax Group).They learned about:

• Criteria for qualifying for benefits
• How benefits are applied to an income tax return
• How to determine which dedication are of greater benefit to taxpayers
• How to claim medical expenses
• Registered Disability Savings Plans, including contributions and benefits
• Preparing for critical events and steps to set up and maintain

Anyone interested in learning about CPA Canada can check the following social media  https://www.cpacanada.com