Frequently Asked Questions

Key differences from ACB Tracking Inc. and similar services:

• Superficial loss detection - We automatically detect and apply the 30-day superficial loss rule. Many competitors do not.
• Permanent history - Your calculations are saved permanently, not deleted after 7 days.
• API access - Developers and professionals can integrate our calculation engine via REST API.
• Portfolio tracking - Track multiple securities across multiple portfolios with real-time ACB.

We use the same authoritative CDS distribution data for return of capital and phantom distribution adjustments.

Under the identical property rule (ITA s. 47(1)), if you hold the same security in multiple non-registered accounts (e.g. two brokerage accounts), the CRA treats them as a single pool for ACB purposes.

What this means:

• If you own XYZ ETF at Broker A and Broker B, you must combine all purchases across both accounts when calculating your ACB per unit.
• Our calculator computes ACB per CUSIP. If you hold the same security at multiple brokers, enter all transactions from all accounts in a single calculation or portfolio.

This rule does not apply to registered accounts (TFSA, RRSP), which are tracked separately.

While our calculator handles most common scenarios automatically, some edge cases may require manual review:

• Fund retractions - If you tender units to a fund under a retraction privilege (rather than selling on the open market), the settlement date may differ and distribution timing may be affected. Verify the settlement date matches your confirmation.
• Instalment receipts - Some historical IPOs used instalment receipts where the purchase price was paid in stages. Enter each instalment as a separate purchase using the actual payment dates and amounts.
• Rights offerings - Units acquired by exercising rights should be entered as a purchase. If you bought additional rights in the market, add that cost to the settlement amount of the units acquired when exercising.
• Taxable mergers - If a merger or acquisition was a taxable event (not a tax-deferred rollover), enter it as a sell of the old security at fair market value, and a separate buy of the new security. Consult the issuer's documentation for the tax terms.
• Affiliated person superficial losses - The superficial loss rule extends to "affiliated persons" (spouse, corporation you control). Our calculator checks your transactions only, not those of affiliated persons.

When in doubt, consult the documentation issued by the fund/trust involved, or speak with a tax professional.

Adjusted Cost Base is the total cost of acquiring an investment, adjusted for various factors over time. For Canadian tax purposes, your ACB determines your capital gain or loss when you sell.

Your ACB starts with your purchase price plus any commissions paid. It then gets adjusted for:

• Return of Capital (ROC) - distributions that reduce your cost base
• Reinvested distributions (DRIP) - increases your ACB and units
• Additional purchases - averaged across all units
• Partial sales - proportionally reduces your ACB

We support Canadian-listed securities that report distribution data through the Canadian Depository for Securities (CDS), including:

• Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs)
• Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
• Closed-end funds
• Income trusts
• Split share corporations

We currently do not support open-end mutual funds, as these report directly to unitholders rather than through CDS.

Our distribution data comes directly from the Canadian Depository for Securities (CDS), which is the authoritative source for security settlement and distribution information in Canada.

This includes the breakdown of each distribution into its tax components: eligible dividends, foreign income, capital gains, return of capital, and other categories reported on T3, T5, and T5013 slips.

For each transaction, you'll need:

• Settlement date - when the trade actually settled (not the trade date)
• Number of units - how many shares/units were bought or sold
• Price per unit - the price you paid or received per share
• Commission - any trading fees (optional, defaults to zero)

In Canada, settlement occurs two business days after you execute a trade (T+2).

Always use the settlement date. This is two business days after you execute your trade (T+2 in Canada).

The settlement date matters because distributions are paid to whoever holds the security on the record date, and ownership is determined by settlement, not trade date.

Reinvested distributions should be entered as purchases. When your broker automatically reinvests your distribution:

• Enter the number of new units received
• Enter the price per unit (from your statement)
• Use the distribution payment date as the settlement date
• Commission is typically zero for DRIP purchases

This increases both your unit count and your total ACB appropriately.

Return of Capital (ROC) is a portion of a distribution that represents a return of your original investment, rather than income.

Key points:

• ROC is not taxed when received
• It reduces your ACB, increasing your eventual capital gain (or reducing your loss)
• If ROC reduces your ACB below zero, the excess becomes a capital gain in that year

Our calculator automatically applies ROC adjustments based on CDS distribution data.

A phantom distribution occurs when a fund declares a taxable distribution but pays it in additional units rather than cash. You owe tax on the distribution even though you didn't receive money.

How they affect your ACB:

• The distribution is taxable as of the record date
• Your ACB increases by the value of units received
• Your unit count increases

These are common with Canadian ETFs and can significantly impact your tax situation if not tracked properly.

A superficial loss occurs when you sell a security at a loss and you (or an affiliated person) buy the same or identical security within 30 days before or after the sale.

The superficial loss rule:

• The loss is denied for tax purposes
• The denied loss is added to the ACB of the repurchased shares
• You'll eventually get the benefit when you sell those replacement shares

Our calculator automatically detects potential superficial losses based on your transaction dates.

Our database automatically adjusts for stock splits and consolidations. Enter your original purchases and sales as they appeared on your confirmations at the time - do not manually adjust for splits.

For example, if you bought 100 shares at $50 and later there was a 2-for-1 split, enter 100 shares at $50 (the original transaction). The calculator will apply the split automatically and show you the correct adjusted values.

If your broker only shows post-split adjusted history and you cannot find the original values, you may enter adjusted figures - the total ACB will be the same either way (e.g. 200 shares at $25 = $5,000).

Our calculations are intended to help you understand your adjusted cost base, but you should verify results against your broker statements before filing.

We recommend:

• Cross-reference with your annual tax slips (T3, T5, T5013)
• Verify transaction details match your brokerage records
• Consult a tax professional for complex situations

See our Terms of Service for complete disclaimers.

If return of capital distributions exceed your ACB, reducing it below zero, the excess is treated as a capital gain in that tax year - even if you haven't sold the security.

This can happen with securities that have consistently high ROC distributions over many years. Your ACB is then reset to zero going forward.

This is a situation where consulting a tax professional is strongly recommended.

Yes. Unlike some services that delete your data after a few days, your calculation history is permanently saved to your account. You can access past calculations anytime from your dashboard.

Yes. Professional and Corporate tier accounts have full API access for integrating ACB calculations into your own applications, trading platforms, or tax preparation software.

API features include:

• Security lookup by CUSIP or symbol
• Distribution data retrieval
• ACB calculation endpoints
• Bulk processing for Corporate tier

See our API documentation at /docs for details.

Retail (Free): Basic calculator access, limited calculations per month, calculation history.

Professional: Unlimited calculations, API access, portfolio tracking, activity logging (opt-in).

Corporate: Everything in Professional, plus bulk API operations, priority support, activity logging (default on), and higher rate limits.

Currently, we do not support:

• Short sales - selling before buying creates negative positions we can't track
• Options and derivatives - complex instruments with special tax rules
• Foreign securities - we focus on Canadian-listed securities
• Open-end mutual funds - these don't report through CDS

We update our distribution database as data becomes available from CDS. Most securities report their annual tax breakdown in January-March for the previous tax year.

For recently completed tax years, check that your specific security has reported before relying on distribution adjustments for tax filing. Late-reporting funds and data revisions are not uncommon. If a fund revises its distribution data after you've run a calculation, we will notify you by email (if notifications are enabled in your settings).

Our superficial loss detection checks your transactions only. The CRA's superficial loss rule also applies to purchases by "affiliated persons" (your spouse/common-law partner, or a corporation you control) within the 30-day window.

It is your responsibility to determine if any disposition triggers a superficial loss due to affiliated person purchases. If unsure, consult the CRA's guidance on superficial losses.