The general public is not aware that many of their moving expenses can be used as tax deductions. The following information is found at Canada Revenue Agency and should answer any questions you may have regarding eligible deductions:
Canada Revenue Agency
T1-M E (10) (Page 1 of 4)
Information About Moving Expenses
This information sheet will help you complete Form T1-M, Moving Expenses Deduction.
Are you employed or self-employed?
If you are employed or self-employed, you can deduct eligible moving expenses from employment or self-employment income you earn at the new location, including amounts received under the Wage Earner Protection Program in respect of employment at the new work location.
If the moving expenses that you paid in the year of the move are more than the net eligible income (line 19 of Form T1-M) earned at the new location in that same year, you can carry forward and deduct the unused part of those expenses from employment or self-employment income earned at the new location in the following years. You cannot deduct your moving expenses from any other type of income, such as investment income or Employment Insurance benefits, even if you receive this income at the new location.
Did you receive a reimbursement or an allowance?
Did you receive a reimbursement or an allowance for eligible moving expenses (see “Expenses you can deduct” below) that is not included in your income? If yes, you can only deduct moving expenses if you include the amount you received in your income or if you reduce your moving expenses by the amount reimbursed. You may be asked to provide a letter from your employer stating that you were not reimbursed for the moving expenses you are claiming.
Expenses you can deduct
You can deduct reasonable amounts that you paid for moving yourself, your family, and your household effects. Not all members of your household have to travel together or at the same time.
Eligible moving expenses include:
- transportation and storage costs (such as packing, hauling, in-transit storage, and insurance) for household effects, including items such as boats and trailers;
- travel expenses, including vehicle expenses, meals, and accommodation, to move you and members of your household to your new residence (you can choose to claim vehicle and meal expenses using the simplified method-see the Note on this page);
- costs for up to 15 days for meals and temporary accommodation near either residence for you and the members of your household (you can choose to claim meal expenses using the simplified method-see the Note on this page); and
- the cost of cancelling a lease for your old residence, except any rental payment for the period during which you occupied the residence.
When your old residence is sold as a result of your move, eligible moving expenses also include:
- legal or notarial fees for the purchase of the new residence, as well as any taxes paid (other than GST/HST or property taxes) for the transfer or registration of title to the new residence, if you or your spouse or common-law partner sold the old residence;
and
- the cost of selling your old residence, including advertising, notarial or legal fees, real estate commission, and mortgage penalty when the mortgage is paid off before maturity.
If you moved, and your moving expenses were paid in a year after the year of your move, you can claim them on your return for the year you paid them against employment or self-employment income earned at the new location.
The same possibility is also extended to students reporting a taxable amount of scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants.
This may apply, for example, if your old residence did not sell until after the year of your move. If this is the case, you may be asked to submit this form with the receipts and explain the delay in selling your home.
You can carry forward any unused amounts and deduct them only against eligible income earned at the new location in the following years.
However, you cannot carry back moving expenses to a previous year. For example, if you paid moving expenses in 2011 for a move that occurred in 2010, you cannot claim the expenses paid in 2011 on your 2010 return, even if you earned employment or self-employment income at the new location in 2010.
Keep all your receipts and supporting documents.
Note
Instead of claiming your actual expenses (the detailed method), you can choose the simplified method of claiming vehicle and meal expenses. Although you do not have to submit detailed receipts for actual expenses if you choose to use the simplified method, we may still ask you to provide some documentation to establish the duration of temporary lodging. To find out the amounts that apply to you, go to www.cra.gc.ca/travelcosts or call our Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS) at 1-800-267-6999.
Incidental costs related to the move
You can claim the cost of changing your address on legal documents, replacing driving licences and non-commercial vehicle permits (not including insurance), and utility hook-ups and disconnections.
Costs to maintain your old residence when vacant
You can claim, to a maximum of $5,000, the cost for interest, property taxes, insurance premiums, and heat and utilities expenses you paid to maintain your old residence when it was vacant after you moved, and during a period when reasonable efforts were made to sell the home.
The costs must have been incurred when your old residence was not ordinarily occupied by you or any other person who ordinarily resided with you at the old residence just before the move.
You cannot deduct these costs during a period when the old residence was rented.
Expenses you cannot deduct
Expenses you cannot deduct include:
- expenses for work done to make your home more saleable;
- any loss from the sale of your home;
- expenses for house-hunting trips before you move;
- the value of items movers refused to take, such as plants, frozen food, ammunition, paint, and cleaning products;
- expenses for job hunting in another city (such as travel expenses);
- expenses to clean or repair a rented residence to meet the landlord’s
standards;
- expenses to replace personal-use items such as toolsheds, firewood, drapes, and carpets;
(continued on back)
T1-M E (10) (Page 2 of 4)
- mail-forwarding costs (such as with Canada Post);
- costs of transformers or adaptors for household appliances; and
- costs incurred in the sale of your old home if you delayed selling for
investment purposes or until the real estate market improved.
Generally, you cannot deduct the cost of moving a mobile home. However, if you have personal effects in a mobile home when it is moved, you can deduct the amount it would have cost to move those personal effects separately.
Did you move from Canada?
Provided you met all other conditions and requirements described on Form T1-M (see “Can you deduct moving expenses?”), you can claim eligible expenses for a move from Canada if:
- you are a full-time student (including a co-operative student), or a
factual or deemed resident as defined below; and
- you moved from the place where you ordinarily resided to live in another place where you ordinarily reside.
You cannot claim moving expenses if you rent an apartment in another country where you are working temporarily and you maintain residential ties in Canada (for example, your spouse and children remain in your home in Canada), because your home in Canada is where we consider you to ordinarily reside.
Did you move to Canada?
Provided you met all other conditions and requirements described on Form T1-M (see “Can you deduct moving expenses?”), you can claim eligible expenses for a move to Canada if you are a full-time student (including a co-operative student), or a factual or deemed resident as defined below.
Did you move between two locations outside Canada?
Provided you met all other conditions and requirements described on Form T1-M (see “Can you deduct moving expenses?”), you can claim eligible expenses for a move between two locations outside Canada if:
- you are a factual or deemed resident (defined below); and
- you moved from the place where you ordinarily resided to live in another place where you ordinarily reside.
Are you a factual resident?
You are a factual resident if you keep significant residential ties in Canada while living or travelling outside the country. For information, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-221, Determination of an Individual’s Residence Status, or Pamphlet T4131, Canadian Residents Abroad.
Are you a deemed resident of Canada?
You are a deemed resident if, at any time in the year, you live outside
Canada, you do not keep residential ties here, and you are:
- a federal or provincial government employee posted abroad;
- a member of the Canadian Forces;
- a member of the Canadian Forces overseas school staff; or
- a person working under a Canadian International Development Agency program.
If you are the spouse, common-law partner, dependent child, or another related person of a deemed resident, other rules may apply. See “Were you a deemed resident of Canada?” in the General Income Tax and Benefit Guide for Non-Residents and Deemed Residents of Canada.
Full-time students
You can deduct moving expenses if you move to study courses as a student in full-time attendance enrolled in a program at a post-secondary level at a university, college or other educational institution. However, you can only deduct these expenses from the part of your scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants required to be included in your income.
If your eligible moving expenses are more than the scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants income you report for the year, you can deduct the unused part of those expenses from the same type of income you receive and report on your return for the following years.
You can also deduct moving expenses if you move to work, including summer employment, or to run a business. However, you can only deduct these expenses from employment or self-employment income you earned at the new location.
You can claim moving expenses you incur at the beginning of each academic period when you move to the educational institution, as long as you meet the 40-kilometre limitation outlined on Form T1-M and have income earned at the new location. You can also claim moving expenses when you move back after a summer break, or a work semester if you have income earned at the new location.
Complete a separate Form T1-M for each move and enter the total of all amounts from line 20 on line 219 of your return.
How do you change a return?
If you need to make a change to any return you have sent us, do not file another return for that year. You should wait until you receive your notice of assessment before requesting any change to a return that has not been processed. You can do so in one of the following ways:
By Internet
You can make changes yourself to your Income Tax and Benefit Return for the current and previous two tax years online by using My Account. For more information, go to www.cra.gc.ca/myaccount.
By mail
Send both of the following to your tax centre:
- a completed Form T1-ADJ, T1 Adjustment Request, or a signed letter
providing the details of your request (including the years of the returns you want us to change), your social insurance number, your address, and a telephone number where we can reach you during the day; and
- supporting documents for the changes you want to make and, if you have not sent them to us before, supporting documents for your original claim.
Do you need more information?
See Interpretation Bulletin IT-178, Moving Expenses. For more information, visit www.cra.gc.ca or call 1-800-959-8281.
Teletypewriter (TTY) users
Teletypewriter users can call 1-800-665-0354 for bilingual assistance during regular business hours.
T1-M E (10) (Page 3 of 4)
Moving Expenses Deduction
Use this form to calculate your moving expenses deduction. Complete a separate form for each move. For more information, see the attached information sheet. Do not attach this form, or the receipts and documents supporting your claim, to your return. Keep them in case we ask to see them. If you are using EFILE, show them to your EFILE service provider.
Can you deduct moving expenses?
You can deduct eligible moving expenses from employment or self-employment income you earn at your new location if you move and establish a new home to be employed or carry on a business. You can also deduct moving expenses if you move to study courses as a student in full-time attendance enrolled in a program at a post-secondary level at a university, college or other educational institution. However, you can only deduct moving expenses from
the part of your scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants required to be included in your income.
Your new home must be at least 40 kilometres (by the shortest usual public route) closer to the new place of work or educational institution. You must establish your new home as the place where you ordinarily reside. For example, you have established a new home if you have sold or rented (or advertised for sale or rent) your old home. Generally, your move must be from one place in Canada to another place in Canada. For information and conditions regarding moves to or from Canada, or between two locations outside Canada, see the attached information sheet.
Tax year ^
Identification
Last name ^
First name ^
Social insurance number ^
Calculation of distance in kilometres
Line 1: Distance in kilometres between your old home and your new place of work or educational institution ^
Line 2: Distance in kilometres between your new home and your new place of work or educational institution ^
Line 3: Line 1 minus line 2. = ^
If the result on line 3 is less than 40 kilometres, you cannot deduct your moving expenses. Therefore, do not complete the rest of this form.
Details of the move
Complete address of your old residence ^
Postal code ^
Complete address of your new residence ^
Postal code ^
Date of move (Year/Month/Day) ^
Date you started your new job or business, or your studies (Year/Month/Day) ^
What was the main reason for the move? ^
To be employed or carry on a business ^
OR To study full time ^
Information about your employer, business, or educational institution after
the move:
Name ^
Complete address ^
Postal code ^
T1-M E (10) (Page 4 of 4)
Calculation of allowable moving expenses (keep all receipts)
Line 1: Transportation and storage costs for household effects ^
Name of mover (if applicable): ^
Travel expenses from old residence to new residence
Line 2: Travel expenses (other than accommodation and meals) ^
Number of household members in move: ^
Method of travel: ^
Number of kilometres: ^
Line 3: Accommodation ^
Number of nights: ^
Line 4: Meals ^
Number of days: ^
Temporary living expenses near new or old residence (maximum 15 days
Line 5: Accommodation ^
Number of nights: ^
Line 6: Meals ^
Number of days: ^
Line 7: Cost of cancelling the lease for your old residence ^
Line 8: Incidental costs related to the move (specify): ^
Line 9: Costs to maintain your old residence when vacant (maximum $5,000) ^
Cost of selling old residence
Selling price: $^
Line 10: Real estate commission ^
Line 11: Legal or notarial fees ^
Line 12: Advertising ^
Line 13: Other selling costs (specify) ^
Cost of purchasing new residence
Purchase price: $^
Line 14: Legal or notarial fees ^
Line 15: Taxes paid for the registration or transfer of title (do not include GST/HST or property taxes) ^
Line 16: Add lines 1 to 15 Total moving expenses = ^
Line 17: Enter any reimbursement or allowance that is not included in your income, and that you received for moving expenses that you claimed on line 16
^
Line 18: Line 16 minus line 17 Net moving expenses = ^
Net eligible income
- If you are an employee, this represents the amounts reported on your T4 and/or T4A slips that relate to the new work location and that are included on lines 101 and/or 104, minus any amount relating to the new work location claimed on lines 207, 212, 229, 231, and 232 of your return.
- If you are self-employed, this generally represents the net amounts earned at the new work location that are included on lines 135 to 143, minus any amounts claimed on lines 212 and 222 of your return.
- For a student, this represents the amount of scholarship, bursaries,
fellowships, research grants, and/ or certain prizes required to be included in income for the year.
Net eligible income: ^
Line 20: Enter the amount from line 18 or line 19, whichever is less.
Allowable moving expenses ^
Enter the result on line 219 of your return.
If line 18 is more than line 19, you can carry forward the unused part (line 18 minus line 19) and deduct it from the same type of eligible income for the years after you move (for more information, see the attached information sheet).
Privacy Act, Personal Information Bank number CRA PPU 005
All information was taken from the Revenue Canada Agency website. For more information or to order forms by phone from anywhere in Canada and the United States, call 1-800-959-2221 from Monday to Friday 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (local time).
Thank you for visiting Saskatoon Movers!
