Impact on your taxes

Status: Closed

On this page

• How CWLB is taxed
• What to do at tax time

How CWLB is taxed

After the CRA withholds a 10% tax at source, the actual payment you received was $270 for each 1-week period.

How we calculated your payment

• $300 (CWLB gross amount)
• minus   $30 (10% tax withheld at source)
• equals $270 (amount you received per period)

Expect an adjustment at tax time

The 10% tax may not be all the tax you need to pay. You may need to pay more (or less) depending on your personal tax situation.

What to do at tax time

If you applied for the CWLB at the end of 2021, you most likely received your benefit payments in 2022. If this is the case, your CWLB amounts will be on your 2022 T4A slip.

If you received CWLB in 2021

The CRA provided a T4A tax information slip at tax time if you received CWLB benefit amounts in 2021. Your T4A slip will also be available in CRA My Account.

Quebec residents received both a T4A slip and a RL-1 slip.

You must report the CWLB payments you received as income when you file your personal income tax return.

Report your T4A amounts on your tax return

Your CWLB amount is in box 211 on your 2021 T4A slip.

If you received more than one COVID-19 benefit, add up each benefit payment you received from your T4A slip.

Enter the total amount you received on line 13000 of your tax return. If you’re filing a paper return, specify the type of income you’re reporting. Attach a list if you received more than one benefit.

Report the income tax deducted at source

If you received the CWLB, the CRA withheld a 10% tax at source on each payment. Enter the income tax deducted from box 022 on line 43700 on your 2021 tax return.

For Quebec residents, the 10% tax withheld at source is split:

• 5% on your T4A slip
• 5% on your RL-1 slip

If your income is tax exempt

If your income is eligible for tax exemption under section 87 of the Indian Act, your CWLB payments may be tax exempt. Your CWLB payments are taxed in the same way your income was taxed during the timeframe that entitled you to the benefit.

• If all your income was tax exempt during the time you earned the $5,000 income requirement (in 2020, 2021, or in the last 12 months), then the benefit is also tax exempt.
• If your income during that time was not fully tax exempt, you may have some tax to pay.

All CWLB payments had a 10% tax withheld at source. If your CWLB payments in 2021 were tax exempt, you may be able to get some or all of that tax back by filing a 2021 tax return.