Overview

Welcome to TAXX 301: Taxation I, a three-credit, senior-level course at Athabasca University.

The primary emphasis in this course is the determination of Net Income For Tax Purposes. The course gives detailed attention to the components that make up this figure, including employment income, business and property income, and capital gains. Detailed attention is also given to both the Taxable Income of individuals and Tax Payable for individuals. The course also provides an introduction to Taxable Income and Tax Payable for corporations.

While limited attention will be given to provincial income tax procedures, this course is largely concerned with federal income tax legislation.

TAXX 301 is an option in Athabasca University's Bachelor of Commerce degree program, as well as a required course in the University Certificate in Accounting. It meets the requirements of all three professional accounting bodies in Canada (CA, CGA, CMA) with respect to a first course in taxation. The prerequisite for this course is Accounting 253: Introductory Financial Accounting, or an equivalent introductory financial accounting course from another college or university.

Outline

The course consists of the following.

Evaluation

Your final grade in this course will be based on four written assignments, a Midterm Examination, and a Final Examination.

To receive credit for this course, you must achieve an overall course grade of at least “D” (50 percent). In addition, you must achieve a grade of at least “D” (50 percent) on each examination. If your grade on either the Midterm Examination OR the Final Examination is below the minimum passing grade, you will not receive credit for this course, even if your overall course grade exceeds “F”.

Completion of the assignments is not required in order to pass the course, and you may write examinations prior to completing the relevant assignments. However, the assignments have been designed to assist you to prepare for the examinations; students who choose not to complete the assignments often experience difficulties with the examinations. Keep in mind that if you fail to submit an assignment before your contract date, you will receive a grade of nil for it.

The following table summarizes the weights that will be applied to each assignment and examination in determining your final grade.

Note: Students planning to transfer this course to a Professional Accounting designation (i.e., CMA, CGA, CA) are advised that they will be required to achieve a grade higher than the minimum passing grade. See http://business.athabascau.ca/profAcct/ for details.

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.

Course Materials

Textbook

Byrd, C., & Chen, I. (2010). Canadian Tax Principles– 2009/2010 Edition, Toronto: Pearson ISBN: 9780138006464

Other Materials

Byrd, C., & Chen, I. (2010). Canadian Tax Principles–Study Guide 2009/2010 Edition, Toronto: Pearson Education.

All other materials will be available to students online.

The course materials for this course are shipped as a shrink-wrapped package. If the shrink wrap is broken, the materials are not returnable.