The shares of ACo were held equally by BCo and CCo, so that ACo’s purchase for cancellation of the shares held by BCo on November 1, 2020 resulted in an acquisition of control (“AOC”) by CCo, the commencement of a new taxation year for ACo and the payment of a deemed dividend under s. 84(3). Will the resulting dividend refund to ACo arise in such new taxation year or in the taxation year preceding the AOC, and would the answer be affected by whether ACo elects under s. 256(9) for the AOC to occur at the time of its actual occurrence rather than at the beginning of the day?
CRA indicated that, either way, the dividend refund to ACo with respect to the deemed dividend computed under s. 129(1)(a) would be for its new taxation year.