ADVICE FROM DESJARDINS
Relocating for work or school? If you are moving to start a new job, run a business or study full-time at a post-secondary level, you may be eligible to deduct some of your moving expenses from your income taxes.
Eligibility rules are the same for both the Canada Revenue Agency and Revenu Québec. If you want to deduct moving expenses, your new home must put you at least 40 km closer to your workplace or school.
Expenses you can deduct:
- moving company fees
- rental fees for a truck or trailer
- storage costs for your household belongings
- food and lodging expenses for you and your family during the trip to your new home
- the cost of selling your old home or cancelling your lease
- the cost of upkeep for your old home if it remains vacant for a time despite reasonable efforts to sell (maximum $5,000)
If you’re a student, you must be registered full-time in a post-secondary educational program (college, university or other).
Workers can deduct eligible expenses from the income from their new job. If you don’t claim your moving expenses the year you move, you can carry them forward to another year.
Students can deduct eligible expenses from any financial aid they have to declare as income for the year (e.g., some scholarships and research grants). If your moving expenses are greater than the amount of financial aid you must declare, you can carry forward the unused portion to another year.
Some moving expenses are not deductible: the cost of forwarding your mail, job-hunting expenses, any loss from the sale of your home, etc.
For more tips and tricks, visit www.desjardins.com/co-opme.
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