斗胆试着回答下哈,因为看着和俺们平时做的东西差不多哦。
一般的eligible dividend是看你的sch.53和sch.55. 也就是您说的GRIP balance. 但是最好先和CRA confirm the balance as of prior year end in SCH.53.
As long as the dividend is not greater than your balance in SCH.53, you can claim that amount as eligible dividend which will bear lower tax bracket. For tax purpose, you can still record dividend even if the R/E is negative. But that may generate a managerial problem between the managers and shareholders. And it may violate your debt-equity ratio requirement by lenders.