If you have children, you will have expenses. Child expenses/credits will vary from province to province. As a general rule, keep all receipts related to caregiving as relates to nursery schools, day care, educational institutions, day camps, fitness, recreation and culture as well as boarding schools. All may be useful for your accountants or for doing your own end-of-year tax filing. In most cases, the expenses must be incurred by third party organizations. If your child/children have disabilities, you will likely be able to expense additional fees/costs. Except in the case of children with disabilities, there are age limits. In the case of Revenue Canada, a child must be under 16 years of age.
If you are taking care of your own taxes, forms to fill in may only be available when creating your child’s /children’s profile(s).
1-Revenue Canada
While everything above is pertinent to one degree or another, daycare will likely be one of the major expenses allowed. While there are exceptions, in the case of a couple (married or common law) the daycare expense is to be used by the lower wage earner. Tax software (your accountant) will ask how much your spouse is earning. Exceptions may occur in certain cases including when the lower wage earner is in school, incapable of taking care of the child/children for other reasons or you and your partner were separated for a minimum period during the tax year and as of December 31st.
2- Revenue Quebec
Revenue Quebec does not have the same restrictions with regard to daycare expenses going to the higher income earner and will allow the transfer of expenses to your spouse. The general guideline is that the earner whose name is on the daycare receipt uses the expense (subject to allowing the transfer).
It is also important that the receipt indicate the identification number of the institution as well as its legal name and address.
Beasley folders to create (if you have expenses related to your children for daycare, camps, sports etc. and additional expenses related to disabilities):
1-Daycare
2-Other: Camps, cultural expenses, sports
3-Expenses related to disabilities.
4-Documents proving that you or your spouse were in school for part of the year with dates
