Tax Tips
Tax Deductions
Here are some popular family tax
deductions:
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Tax Credits:
Tuition Tax Credit. If you pay $100 or
more for tuition fees. Claim a tuition fee tax credit, equal to 15% of the tuition fees
that you paid.
Childcare expenses. These are
deductible from income where one or
both parents are working or where one
spouse/ partner is attending school for
all or part of the tax year. Child care
expenses can include child care fees,
boarding school, or summer camp fees.
Interest paid on Canada Student Loans. If your child gets certain student
l oans under the Canada Student Loans Act for example, they can claim most of
the interest paid as a tax credit. If they do not use the credit, they can carry it
forward for five years. The tax credit cannot be transferred to anyone else, even if
someone else paid the interest on the loan. They cannot claim interest paid on
any other kind of loan such as a personal loan or line of credit. Unused amounts
can be transferred to other family members. This means that as parents, you can
take advantage of the tax savings. However, amounts carried forward by the
student cannot be transferred.
Children’s Fitness and Arts Tax Credit. These credits are based on eligible
fitness, or eligible arts, cultural, recreational or developmental activity expenses
paid by parents to register a child under the age of 16 in a prescribed program of
activity.
These two tax credits will be eliminated by 2017.
Medical expense deduction. This is a non-refundable tax credit for medical
expenses over a certain amount. It’s best to combine all of the family’s medical
expenses on one return, usually of the lower income earner, to get the best
deduction. You can choose expenses paid in the year or in any 12 month period
that ends in the year (as long as not previously claimed and not covered by
insurance). You can accelerate or delay expenses in order to get over the
threshold.
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