30 November 1989 Ministerial Letter 58658 F - Related Persons and the Association of Corporations

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CRA.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ARC.

Dear Sirs:

Re:  Subsection 251(2) of the Income Tax Act

We are replying to your letter of September 6, 1989, concerning related persons and the association of corporations.

You have asked us to confirm that an uncle and his nephew are not related for the purposes of the Income Tax Act (the "Act").   As stated in paragraph 25 of the attached Interpretation Bulletin IT-513 "Personal Tax Credits", we agree that an uncle is not related to his nephew provided that neither is the parent or child of the other due to the extended meaning of parent and child in section 252 of the Act.

You have also asked whether certain corporations would be associated within the meaning of subsection 256(1) of the Act in the following hypothetical situation:

(1)       Brother 1 and Brother 2 own all the shares of Company A.

(2)       Each of Brother 1, Brother 2 and Brother 1's son own 20% of the shares of Company B.

(3)       An outsider holds the remaining 40% of the shares of Company B.

It is a question of fact as to whether or not a corporation is controlled directly or indirectly in any manner whatsoever, by a person, group of persons or other corporation and thus, whether or not the corporation is associated with any other corporation.  We are not prepared to express an opinion with respect to whether or not a corporation is controlled by anyone without a complete review of all relevant information and documentation.  Accordingly, we are unable to confirm whether or not Company A and B are associated as defined in section 256 of the Act.

Should you have an actual situation with which you are concerned, you may wish to submit the relevant documentation and information to the local district taxation office to obtain their view.

Yours truly,

for Director Business and General DivisionSpecialty Rulings Directorate Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs Branch

Enclosure