withabix

Safety Boots are NOT tax deductible unfortunately. Also, remember those miles you drive from home to your usual office are personal miles....although 'apparently' if you take or make a business telephone call during that journey, it supposedly becomes business mileage....Our MD makes a business call on his drive to and from work every day - to his Secretary or a Manager.

Tolls would be deductible IF it was a business journey and not commuting to usual workplace.

There is a handy BDO leaflet about this here:

http://www.bdo.ca/en/Library/Service...ordkeeping.pdf

I'm not sure but your car allowance would probably be used to calculate the 55c/49c reasonable allowance figures...

I'm fortunate to get a 4-door truck, all my work and private gas, tolls, car washes and screenwash as part of my job package. Not bad for a tax bill of about $15-20/week...Just the insurance would cost me that if I ran my own truck. I elected to overpay the tax through payroll last year and am due about $1500 tax rebate as a result (it's that much because my private mileage was only about 16% of the total - much less than I anticipated).

That Medical Insurance you probably paid to cover your first 3 months here apparently IS deductible, either in the year you incurred that cost or the year after. There's stuff on't internet about that...

Steve_

Yes it does: HMRC tax error could affect up to 15 million | Money | The Guardian

This is one of the things I truly loathe about the UK, hidden taxes. For example, most people are unaware that the tax is withheld on the interest paid on their bank accounts (or at least unaware of the amount). So they never see the true payment. Also, VAT is included in the retail price. Then you've got PAYE and also now RTI so they calculate your tax to the last penny.

The net effect being a lot of people (most people probably) are unaware or only vaguely aware of just how much tax they're paying. I see people on here moaning about the lack of convenience of the Canadian system but I much prefer it because you see how much tax you are paying.

Did you ever truly understand your HMRC assigned tax code? I know I never did. But in Canada, you have to state it all on TD1 when you start work and there are only 11 payroll codes, total.

So yes you have to add on GST/HST when you buy something, and yes you have to do a T1 every year and collect up tax slips, etc. but the tax system is transparent and it forces you to take notice of how much tax you are paying. It compels you to use your brain.

ChrisBan

The British public using their brain? Sounds dangerous!

BristolUK

No, it just forces me to add something to the advertised price.

It really makes no difference whether something costs 113 monetary units including tax or if it costs 100 units plus 13 tax.

So long as the tax is the same whether it's included or added it makes no damn difference. I may feel it's too much but there's bugger all I can do about it whereas there is something I can do about the price of 113.

How about airline prices? Do you like to see a fare quoted as a total or do you like to see a figure which is increased due to airport tax, other tax, other fees, meals costs, checked baggage costs etc?

scrubbedexpat091

Finally got all my T4's, can't file though as I cannot access my CRA account and thus far they have not been helpful. Can't remember my username and they won't let me open another account....

Maybe just file the old fashioned way by paper and mail?

I had some transit monthly passes but it's about the most useless deduction for us, doesn't change anything....

ChrisBan

Still waiting on mine. Employer doesn't even appear to have lodged them with CRA yet as nothing is showing on my CRA account. Now back in the UK, I suspect they won't forward as promised/it'll go missing in the mail so will have to go off info online. Didn't show up online last year until 2nd week of March

beckiwoo

When do you get a CRA account? Is it after you have filed your first return?

I'm good to go but just waiting on my last T4. I emailed them on Tuesday and they said they were still working on them - why do they leave them to the last minute.

I'll just file and print and send. It says I'm expected around $1000 in return as a non resident but not sure how true that is so ill just take the risk.

Also have 3 monthly transit passes included as well

Almost Canadian

IIRC you apply online and they mail a password to you. It takes about 6 weeks.

beckiwoo

Do I do this before or after I have filed my return?

MarkG

It does when some politician comes on TV saying 'vote for me, and I will give you free stuff! And I will only increase sales tax to 20% to pay for it!'

I don't know about you, but when I went to buy something that cost a few thousand pounds and the seller then added nearly another thousand pounds of VAT on top, it gave me yet another reason to despise politicians. Most people didn't even think about the other taxes hidden in the basic pre-VAT price.

dishwashing

Yep.

dishwashing

You need a CRA account to lodge a return?

Crap.

beckiwoo

I'm filling me first return this year and I have to do it by mail but I don't know anything about this CRA account

BristolUK

I'm not sure if a CRA on line account is needed in order to Netfile, but why not have one anyway? It's free, gives access to past years, lets you know if the latest has been received and cleared and the various refund details are there.

We had ours before we started Netfiling.

JonboyE

No, unless the CRA have your details on file for some other reason you will have to file your first returns on paper.