Canada Revenue Agency · Active business & the small business deduction
The restriction on business authorises real estate investment inside the operating corporation
What the rule requires
Rental and investment income is generally income from property, not active business income: it does not earn the small business deduction, and appreciating investment assets held inside the operating company put the qualified small business corporation tests at risk.
Authority: ITA s. 125(7) ("specified investment business"); s. 110.6 (QSBC)
What goes wrong
The business restriction expressly authorises real estate investment inside the same corporation that earns the commission income. Investment income is generally income from property and does not earn the small business deduction; at scale it is a specified investment business. More seriously, an appreciating investment property held here puts the QSBC tests at risk (90% of assets in active business use at the moment of sale, and more than 50% throughout the preceding twenty-four months) which is the usual way the lifetime capital gains exemption is lost.
What good looks like
The articles do not authorise an investment business inside the operating corporation.
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