About

James is a Chartered Professional Accountant who specializes in personal tax returns, small to medium business accounting and tax needs as well as business start-ups and entrepreneur mentoring.  He has been working in accounting in Victoria since 2005 and previously worked with two firms operating in the Victoria area prior to launching his own Practice.  His experience has included the preparation of thousands of personal tax returns and the preparation of a multitude of financial statements and related tax planning for many local corporations including professionals such as dentists and doctors, in addition to service industry companies and trades including plumbing and electrical contracting, not for profit entities, investment and property management companies.

James currently serves on the Pacifica Housing Board as treasurer and vice-chair. Pacifica Housing is a not-for-profit organization focused on assisting people without homes or facing personal challenges, to transition into low-cost housing. To learn more about Pacifica Housing, view their Annual Community Report or donate here.

James has also been proud to work with the CA School of Business in helping to train the next generation of Chartered Accountants.

Prior to entering the accounting field, James worked at both the Federal and Provincial levels of government and also managed a network of retail businesses in the Victoria area.  His combined experiences and formal accounting training provide a solid basis for providing insight and advice to Victoria businesses and individuals.

As a resident of Oak Bay and Victoria, James is committed to his local community and is happy to donate his time to many worthwhile causes and organizations that he is associated with.

As a CPA and CA, James believes strongly in a client-first approach, which aims to understand the goals and ambitions of the client in order to provide relevant and timely advice.

Tax Fraudsters Beware!

Written by: by Anjuli Gustafson, Sept., 2020 Over the past few months, the CRA has successfully prosecuted a number of individuals found to have committed tax fraud. In May of 2020, the CRA announced that Damien Edward Reynolds was sentenced to a conditional sentence...

Behind in your taxes? There are remedies. You can do this!

What happens when you fall behind in filing your taxes? How can you catch up if you have not filed for a few years? Gustafson Accounting wants to help you figure out how to catch up on your filings when you are behind. We know that people are busy and that things can...

Budget 2019 Tax changes of Note

The Department of Finance introduced a number of changes to the tax laws in 2019, here are some things you may need to know about the 2019 budget: Enhanced Canada Pension Plan: The Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) is gradually being enhanced as of 2019. This means that the...

The End of Tax Integration?

As many of you have no doubt read or heard by now through various media sources, the Federal Government is in the midst of proposing changes to the Canadian Income Tax Act that have been described by others as the most significant in the last 50 years. In all my years...

New Tax Measures Provide Planning Opportunity for Families

Its always nice to get good tax news to pass along, such as those impending tax changes recently announced by Government, but not yet enacted. For the first time, families will have direct access to income splitting savings that have heretofore been restricted to...

CRA cries Mea Culpa

I suppose this belongs in the category of 'we didn't need a report to tell us that', but the Canada Revenue Agency recently released an internal report that found its own communications were "poorly organized, confusing, unprofessional, unduly severe, bureaucratic,...

Never Too Late to File Your Taxes

Over the years I have helped many people to catch up on their taxes, in some cases going back the maximum allowable of ten years.  Yes, you can file tax returns as far back as 10 years and they will be accepted by the CRA. In many cases I have met people who had...

Year end is Donation time

It is year-end time again but it is not too late to make your 2012 donations. Any donation receipted by a registered Canadian charity on or before December 31 will be eligible to claim on your 2012 tax return.  If you are uncertain as to the eligibility of the charity...

Good news for new OAS Applicants

new oas rules to benefit those now turning 65

Clarity at last for US citizens in Canada that have not filed their tax returns

Fear and Uncertainty.  These two words were very representative of the general environment of US citizens in Canada that needed to catch up on US income tax return filings.  Until recently, that is. If you are a US citizen living in Canada and have not filed your US...