Simplified northern residents travel deduction

For 2023, a range of changes have been made to make it easier for you to claim a northern residents travel deduction and determine a lowest return airfare (LRA). 

Airfare table

A new tool, the airfare table , lets you determine the LRA for all eligible airports. The availability of the airfare table is the result of a pilot project launched for the 2022 tax season. Each table published will contain more than 135 airports, almost all of which are operating in the prescribed zones. Eligible airports all offer regularly scheduled flights to a designated city.

You can use the amount you find in the airfare table as part of your calculation for the travel deduction as indicated on Form T2222, Northern Residents Deductions. If you choose to use the table to determine your LRA and claim a travel deduction, you do not have to get a quote or send any documents to support the amount claimed as the LRA. If asked, you can specify that you used the airfare table amount.

If you want to use an amount that is different than an amount given in the airfare table, keep your receipts and any documents to support the amount claimed for the LRA in case the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) wants proof for your claim. If you must fly by charter, you may want to use this method. The cost for charter flights is not part of the airfare amounts found in the lowest return airfare tables.

All airfare tables will contain airfare amounts that represent the lowest level of economy fares that are ordinarily available for the specified period of time. The CRA works with a business travel service provider to identify the airfares for airlines operating in the prescribed zones, using prices for flights between eligible airports and designated cities. To reflect fare adjustments that the airlines make, the CRA will add a new table every April and every October when a new period begins.

How to use the airfare table

The table will help you identify the lowest return airfare that can be used to complete Form T2222. Follow these steps to determine your LRA using the airfare table:

1. Navigate to this page: Lowest return airfare table
2. Find and open the table that matches the period of time when travel began for the trip being claimed. For example, if you travelled in November of 2022, find the table for the period of October 2022 to March 2023.
3. Locate the airport closest to your residence found within the airfare table.
4. Use the amount associated with that airport as your lowest return airfare and complete column 5 in Chart B of your Form T2222, Northern Residents Deductions.

Flexible reviews of the lowest return airfare

Previously, an individual could only claim the lowest return airfare available on the day of travel. However, the CRA will be more flexible in what it will accept as supporting documents for the LRA quote you provide on your completed Form T2222. The CRA will allow claims for economy return airfare as the LRA quote if you buy tickets and send us the supporting documents if requested.

The economy return airfare is the cost of the standard class of economy return tickets for regularly scheduled, commercial flights for the day a trip began, which includes mandatory taxes, fees and charges such as sales tax, airport improvement fees and the air travellers security charge.

Allowing quotes before the day of travel

Since many individuals do not buy tickets on the day of their trip, the CRA will now accept an LRA claim that uses the price of an economy return airfare ticket bought before the day of your trip, as long as it is for a ticket for a round-trip between the airport closest to your residence and the nearest designated city.

If you did not fly, or did not fly to the nearest designated city, you can get a quote for flights to the nearest designated city for the day of your travel ahead of time. The CRA will accept the cost of an economy return airfare ticket or a quote for the lowest return airfare for a flight to the nearest designated city scheduled for the day you will be travelling.

How to support your quote for the lowest return airfare

If you choose not to use the airfare tables to determine the LRA, you can support your claim for the LRA with an economy airfare ticket bought before or on the day of the trip, as long as it is for a ticket for a round-trip between the airport closest to your residence and the nearest designated city.

For the duration of the pilot project, the CRA will be flexible in what it will accept as proof of the LRA. Northern residents will be allowed to use the information provided by certain airlines as supporting documents.

Before or on the day of travel, you can also support your claim with a print or screenshot taken of the economy flights that are available for the day of the trip. This document should show that the amount submitted as the LRA quote was the lowest airfare amount offered between the closest airport to your residence and the nearest designated city.

If there are multiple economy return airfares available on that day with different airlines, you may be required to submit a print or screenshot showing that your LRA was the lowest economy airfare available.

In the example below there are multiple results available for a round trip flight from Yellowknife to Edmonton. In this case the LRA would be $716:

Yellowknife to Edmonton

• Round trip
• No. of persons: 1
• Class: Economy
• Date departure: Sunday, July 10
• Date return: Saturday, July 23

If there is only one economy return flight available on your travel day, then you may have to submit a print or screenshot to support your claim.

Here is an example where there is one result for a round-trip flight from Arctic Bay to Ottawa.

The LRA would be $3,286:

Arctic Bay to Ottawa

• Round trip
• No. of persons: 1
• Class: Economy
• Date departure: Sunday, July 11
• Date return: Saturday, July 26

Submitting a lowest return airfare from charters and remote communities

Do you live in a remote community in which there are no scheduled commercial flights or the only way to travel to and from the community is by charter flight? To calculate your LRA you can use quotes or costs for round-trip charter flights to the nearest airport that has scheduled commercial flights to the nearest designated city. You can then add this amount with the amount listed in the airfare tables for that airport.