Children’s Fitness Tax Credit

By Inst. of Chartered Accountants —— Bio and Archives February 6, 2009

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“As parents we hear requests like these all the time,” says Chartered Accountant Rosa Maria Iuliano, Tax Partner, Collins Barrow Ottawa LLP. “Our children want to be active, and the Government of Canada is supporting families through a non-refundable tax credit to parents who pay to register their children in prescribed programs of physical activity.”

Under the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit, you can claim up to $500 per year for eligible fitness expenses paid for each child, as long as your child is under the age of 16 or, if eligible for the Disability Tax Credit, under the age of 18 at the beginning of the year in which the expenses are paid. Iuliano explains that eligible expenses must be for the cost of registration or membership in programs that are ongoing (either for a minimum of eight consecutive weeks or, for children’s camps, five consecutive days). These programs must also be supervised and suitable for children, as well as include a significant amount of physical activity. The expenses include amounts paid by you or your spouse/common law partner in the taxation year, regardless of when the activity actually takes place. “To claim the credit on your tax return, you must have a receipt from the organization stating the amount of eligible expenses paid in the calendar year. The receipt must also have the organization’s name and address, name of the eligible program or activity, amount received, date received and amount that is eligible, full name of the payer, full name of the child, the child’s year of birth and an authorized signature,” Iuliano advises. While the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit gives parents a few extra dollars for more activities, the jury is still out on whether it will make those crack-of-dawn hockey practices any easier! Brought to you by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario.