UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA ALBERTA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS DEPARTMENT OF ACCOUNTING AND OIS Accounting 468/668 - Corporate Income Tax
Winter 2018 – Lecture B1
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Instructor: Terence Wong, CPA, CA Office: 2-33
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: By appointment
Typically, I will be available immediately after class for any questions you may have. If that time is not convenient for you, you may email to make alternative arrangements for another time.
Course Objectives:
This is the second of two courses in federal income tax law designed to provide students with the abilities to:
• understand the theoretical concepts behind the specific provisions of the Canadian federal income tax law;
• apply the Canadian federal income tax law in various practical settings; and
• learn about basic tax planning concepts for Canadian owner managers through case studies.
Required Materials:
Textbook: C. Byrd, I. Chen. Canadian Tax Principles, 2017-2018 Edition, Prentice Hall Canada Inc., Scarborough, Ontario. You must use this version of the text. Tax rules are subject to change annually and previous versions of the text may be outdated.
Course Notes: All classroom materials will be posted to ULearn. Please download and/or print the notes prior to coming to class.
Evaluation:
Your grade in this course will be based on the marks you obtain on one midterm exam, one hand in assignments, and a final exam. These marks will be weighted as follows to determine your percentage mark in the course:
• Midterm I Wednesday, February 14 in class - 25 %
• Midterm II Wednesday, March 14 in class - 25 %
• Final exam Friday, April 20, 9:00am - 50 %
These grades represent the only marks available to students. No additional work or extra credit is available.
All exams are closed book. For each exam, you will be provided with a formula sheet that will be distributed at the exam. A copy of the formula sheet will posted on the course website on a timely basis before the exam so you can use it for studying. The exam formula sheet provided must be signed and returned after each exam; failure to do so may cause an appropriate reduction to your exam mark.
Absences:
If you are absent from a midterm exam for an acceptable reason (illness or family emergency) you are required to submit in writing, on a timely basis, informing me that you were unable to attend the midterm and explaining the nature of your difficulty. I may, at my discretion, require proof supporting your stated reason for missing the midterm, either in the form of a statutory declaration or other supporting documentation.
If the reason is proven to be acceptable, no make-up exam will be provided, the credit for the missed midterm will be allocated to the final.
If you miss the final exam, you must apply to the undergraduate office for an exam deferral. In the event you are granted a deferral, arrangements will be made for you to attend a deferred exam.
A job interview, whether in Edmonton or outside of Edmonton, is not considered a valid reason for missing an exam. Also, please remember that it is your responsibility to ensure that any travel arrangement at any time during the term does not conflict with your exam schedule.
Once an exam is written, there will be no re-allocation of marks regardless of reasons provided after the fact.
Grades in the Course:
Traditionally, university average grade distribution is based on all courses across campus including courses of varying levels of difficulty. A curve will be used to determine the final grade distribution for this course with natural break points used to distinguish between various grades. The distribution of grades in this course may not necessarily coincide exactly with the University average distribution. Traditionally, the median grade in this course has ranged from a B to a B+.
Preparing for classes:
The assigned text readings should be done before class. In the event that time pressure prevents you from doing the assigned readings before class, a review of the posted notes will significantly enhance in-class learning.
Attendance:
It is each student’s responsibility to attend classes. Students are responsible for all information provided in class (announcements, lectures, problem analysis, etc.). If you cannot attend a class, it is suggested that you arrange for someone else in the class to provide you with the information you missed. It is my policy to provide all information within the classroom context only and I shall not repeat such information outside of the classroom.
Classroom etiquette:
Courtesy to everyone in the classroom is an important part of every class. It is expected that every individual (including myself) will avoid behavior which will distract others within the class. Good classroom behavior should include:
• arriving at each class on time;
• staying at each class until it is over;
• avoiding leaving or re-entering the classroom;
• avoiding conversations during lecture periods; and
• avoiding the use of personal communication or entertainment devices except as noted below.
If an individual’s behavior is disruptive to the class, the individual will be asked to leave the classroom.
Use of electronic devices:
Electronic communication devices such as cellphones should be turned off for the duration of the class. If there is a need to keep such device active (i.e.
an expecting parent), you may do so but please do keep the device on silent as a ringing or vibrating device will distract others within a classroom. The use of laptops/tablets for notes taking purposes is permitted as long as the use is not disruptive (i.e. keyboard noise should be minimal with no machine generated noises). Recording of a lecture is never permitted.
Listing of applicable reading and problems:
A detailed reading list and applicable self-study/assignment problems will be posted on the course website shortly after classes start in January.
