Seven Things to be aware of when filing your taxes

Seven Tips to be Aware Of This Tax Season

Use our Tax Information Checklist

To start gathering your income tax details, click here to download our checklist. This will help you organize your information to bring into our office.

The deadline

Usually, the filing deadline is April 30, but because it falls on a Saturday, May 2 is the deadline. For those who had self-employed income, June 15 or earlier is when you must file your return. Regardless of when you file, any balance owing must be received by the CRA or processed at a Canadian bank on or before the May 2 deadline.

COVID-19 benefits

COVID-19 benefits, like the Canada Recovery Benefit, must be reported as income. A T4A tax slip from the government will have been sent to you in February.

One-time payment for seniors

Taxpayers eligible for the OAS (Old Age Security) pension in June of 2021, born on June 30, 1947, or before, received a one-time $500 payment in August 2021. This will need to be included in your return. You should be in receipt of a T4A slip for $500 by now. Some slips may have been delayed until the week of March 14.

Home-office expenses

If you worked from home in 2021 due to COVID-19, you may be eligible to claim a deduction of up to $500 for home-office expenses using the temporary flat rate method, or you may be able to claim actual expenses under the detailed calculation.

Eligible Educator School Supply Tax Credit

Teachers can claim a 25% refundable tax credit for purchases up to $1,000 on eligible teaching supplies purchased in 2021. The list of eligible supplies was expanded to include devices such as calculators, digital timers and tools for remote learning.

Digital news subscription tax credit

If you have paid for the digital newspaper subscription, you may be able to claim a tax credit for the cost. On qualifying expenses of up to $500, you can claim a 15% tax credit for amounts paid in 2021. The subscription must have been to a qualified Canadian journalism organization with content of primarily written news. If the subscription included print copies of the paper and digital access, only the cost of the digital portion is eligible.

If you have any questions about your taxes, contact our office, and we will make sure you receive every benefit you are entitled to.