As Canada’s tax deadline approaches, 4 things you may not know you can claim – National

For Canadians who are working on their submission, it’s a tough time.

Experts say as this year’s April 30 deadline approaches, there are many benefits Canadians are entitled to that they may not be aware of — but they shouldn’t feel like a rush to the finish line.

“We tend to think of tax filing as kind of a once-a-year event, and then everyone rushes as we get closer to the filing deadline,” said Jeet Dhillon, a senior portfolio manager at TD Wealth.

“This should not be a stressful event.”

Dillion said looking at your past returns can be a good starting point.

“Go down that list, go down line by line, and then think back to, ‘OK, what has changed for me in the past year that maybe wasn’t applicable last year, but might be applicable now?’

Ryan Minor, tax director at CPA Canada, said if there is missing or unconfirmed information, “now is the time to find it.”

“Make your best estimate and adjust when you have the information,” he said.

Here are four examples of things you may not know you can claim on your taxes.

In some cases, tutoring expenses may fall under the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) list of “other medical expenses,” which also includes vision care, prescriptions, and orthodontics.

This benefit applies to Canadian individuals or students who have learning disabilities.

“Tutoring services which are supplementary to the primary education of a person with a learning disability or mental impairment, and which are paid to a person in the business of providing such services to individuals unrelated to that person,” the CRA states.

“A physician must certify in writing that these services are necessary.”

“The insight is that it’s not intuitive because it doesn’t sound medical. There’s a provision for it,” Minor said. “So there’s a lot of things out there that are specific to the situation that people might not know.”

In order to claim, the CRA requires receipts and a written letter from an unrelated physician to prove that the tutor’s services are required.

Cra-to list of doctors it includes psychologists, behavior analysts, and speech pathologists, among others.

For Canadians who have sought medical treatment outside of Canada, Dhillon said it’s important to keep track of everything to see later what can be obtained through benefits.

“For people who have insurance coverage, yes, that’s definitely a good thing, but not everything is always covered there,” she said.

“If you’re going to have to pay something out of pocket, and especially if you’re going overseas, those are still medical expenses and you have to keep track of them.”

The CRA states that if “you travel outside of Canada to receive medical services, you can claim the amounts you paid to a doctor and a licensed public or private hospital.”

Some of the medical treatments may include surgeries, cancer treatment, and dental care, among others.

“The cost of travel expenses, including accommodation, food and parking, when a person must travel at least 80 km (one way) from their home to receive medical services,” the CRA says.

A “licensed private hospital” is categorized by the CRA as “a hospital licensed by the jurisdiction in which it operates.”

According to the CRAstudents can “claim the total amount of interest actually paid on the qualifying student loan in the current year or any of the previous five years.”

In addition, Canada Student Loans Act is a federal act that allows someone to claim a nonrefundable tax credit for student loan interest. As a result, the act provides an uncapped tax credit for interest paid on government student loans.

Any unused amount can be carried forward for up to five years.

Minor said this benefit “is one that is usually missing.”

“If you pay student loan interest on a student loan that qualifies, if they have the correct terminology, then it should be a student loan, not a blanket thing or a line of credit,” he said.

Students are also entitled to tax deductions such as childcare and commuting expenses.

Donations to registered charities are also eligible to be claimed on your taxes.

“If you or your spouse or common-law partner have made a gift of money or other property to certain institutions, you may be able to claim non-refundable federal and provincial or territorial tax credits when you file your income and benefits tax return.” the CRA states.

“Generally, you can claim some or all of it acceptable amount of your gifts, up to 75 percent of your net income for the year.”

Canadians can claim a tax credit for qualified donors such as registered journalism organizations, a registered national arts service organization, a registered Canadian amateur athletic association or universities outside Canada that typically include students from Canada who are registered with the CRA.

Minor stated that Canadians have a five-year deadline to claim these benefits.