Appeal dismissed: West Vancouver businessman to serve 29 months in jail for real estate tax evasion

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced today that Michael Curt Helmut Scholz of West Vancouver, British Columbia, was ordered to serve a 29-month jail sentence for tax evasion, after his sentencing appeal was dismissed by the British Columbia Court of Appeal, on September 26, 2022.

A CRA investigation revealed that Mr. Scholz submitted forged documents to obtain benefits relating to the construction of a West Vancouver home. Mr. Scholz forged a bare trust agreement to conceal the property’s true ownership and to support his claim of ineligible input tax credits related to the costs for the residence’s construction and design. Mr. Scholz also forged a lease agreement to decrease the CRA’s assessed value of the property in an attempt to reduce taxes owed.

Mr. Scholz was convicted of two counts of uttering forged documents under the Criminal Code, and three counts of committing tax-related offences under the Excise Tax Act. Mr. Scholz was sentenced on February 24, 2021, in the Provincial Court of British Columbia, to serve 29 months in jail and to pay a total fine of $644,975.71, representing 100% of the taxes evaded.

All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.

Tax evasion is a crime. Falsifying records and claims, wilfully not reporting income, or inflating expenses can lead to criminal charges, prosecution, court ordered fines, jail time, and a criminal record. From April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, there were 23 convictions, with court imposed fines totalling $3,303,110. These taxpayers were sentenced for wilfully evading payment amounts totalling $4,407,386 in federal tax. Out of the 23 convictions, 10 individuals were sent to jail for a total of 15.3 years.

In addition to the court imposed fines and/or jail sentences, convicted taxpayers have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA.

The CRA is dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s tax system, thereby contributing to the social and economic well-being of Canadians. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion, and false claims with all the tools available to it. The CRA works to make sure that individuals and businesses report all income earned and only claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action.

The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA’s enforcement efforts.

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Media Relations – Regional contact
Cheryl Yeung
Canada Revenue Agency
604-366-6966

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