The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that joint accounts held by aged parents and their kids may qualify as a trust relationship, notably a bare trust, and thus be subject to complex new reporting requirements from the Canada Revenue Agency to verify exactly who owns what. The Globe's Rob Carrick writes that the suggestion for families struggling to comply with the new reporting rules: Use a power of attorney (PoA) to help aged parents manage their finances, not joint accounts. Reporting a trust to the CRA means filling out a complex form called a T3 Trust Income Tax and Information Return and a T3 Schedule 15. Joint accounts are often set up without a full understanding of the implications. A PoA for property gives a child or another individual carte blanche access and authority over your assets. A key advantage of a PoA is that you are acting as a decision-maker or agent for the true owner without having your name on the title of an asset such as a bank account. Using a PoA would not likely constitute a trust, and thus the CRA reporting requirements would not apply. Royal Bank of Canada says that if a PoA is approved and a lawyer is acting on banking matters, this person would receive an RBC client card.