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Step 2 –Total income

Report your income on lines 10100 to 14600 using your information slips along with the instructions provided on your return and on any applicable worksheet, schedule, and form. You may receive income that is not reported on an information slip, but that income still has to be reported. In this section of the guide, you will find information you may need to supplement the instructions provided on the return.

This section does not provide supplementary information for lines 10120, 11700, 12500, 12600, 12800, 14400, and 14600, as the instructions on the return or in other information products provide the information you need.

Report foreign income and other foreign amounts

Report in Canadian dollars all foreign income and other foreign currency amounts (such as expenses and foreign taxes paid). In general, the foreign currency amount should be converted using the Bank of Canada exchange rate in effect on the day it arises. Alternatively, the CRA will also generally accept a rate for that day from another source if it is:

  • widely available
  • verifiable
  • published by an independent provider on an ongoing basis
  • recognized by the market
  • used in accordance with well-accepted business principles
  • used to prepare financial statements (if any)
  • used regularly from year to year

Other sources that the CRA would generally accept include rates from Bloomberg L.P., Thomson Reuters Corporation and OANDA Corporation. In certain circumstances described in the Income Tax Folio S5-F4-C1, Income Tax Reporting Currency, an average rate may be used to convert foreign currency amounts. Also refer to that Folio for more information about this or converting foreign amounts generally. For more information about converting foreign income taxes paid, see Income Tax Folio S5-F2-C1, Foreign Tax Credit.

If you paid foreign taxes on foreign income you received, you may be able to claim a foreign tax credit when you calculate your federal and provincial or territorial taxes. For more information, see Form T2209, Federal Foreign Tax Credits, and Form T2036, Provincial or Territorial Foreign Tax Credit.

Line 10100 – Employment income

Emergency services volunteers
You may have received a payment from an eligible employer, such as a government, a municipality, or another public authority for your work as:

  • a volunteer ambulance technician
  • a volunteer firefighter
  • a search and rescue volunteer
  • another type of emergency worker

The T4 slips issued by this authority will generally show only the taxable part of the payment in box 14 of your T4 slip, which is the part that is more than $1,000.

The exempt part of a payment is shown in box 87 of your T4 slips. If you provided volunteer emergency services for more than one employer, you can claim the $1,000 exemption for each of your eligible employers.

As an emergency services volunteer, you may qualify to claim the $3,000 volunteer firefighters’ amount (VFA) or the search and rescue volunteers’ amount (SRVA). See line 31220 and line 31240.

If you are eligible for the $1,000 exemption on line 10100 of your return and either the VFA or SRVA, you must choose which one you would like to claim.

If you choose to claim the $1,000 exemption, report only the amounts shown in box 14 of your T4 slips on line 10100 of your return, and do not claim an amount on lines 31220 and 31240 of your return. Report the exempt part of the payment shown in box 87 of your T4 slips on line 10105 of your return.

If the authority employed you (other than as a volunteer) for the same or similar duties or if you choose to claim the VFA or SRVA, the full payment is taxable. Add the amounts shown in boxes 87 and 14 of your T4 slips, and report the result on line 10100 of your return.

Security options benefits

Report taxable benefits you received in (or carried forward to) 2020 on certain security options you exercised. For more information, see Guide T4037, Capital Gains.

Wage-loss replacement plan income

If you received payments from a wage-loss replacement plan shown in box 14 of your T4 slips, you may not have to report the full amount on your return. Report the amount you received minus the contributions you made to the plan if you did not use them on a previous year’s return. Report on line 10130 of your return your total contributions to your wage-loss replacement plan shown in the supporting documents from your employer or insurance company. For more information, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-428 Archived, Wage Loss Replacement Plans.

Member of the clergy

If you received a housing allowance or an amount for eligible utilities as a member of the clergy and the amount is shown in box 14 of your T4 slips, subtract the amount shown in box 30 of your T4 slips from the amount shown in box 14, and report the difference on line 10100 of your return. Report the amount shown in box 30 of your T4 slips on line 10400 of your return.

Line 10400 – Other employment income

Report on this line the total of the following amounts:

  • Employment income not reported on a T4 slip Report amounts such as tips and occasional earnings. Fees for services shown in box 048 of your T4A slips must be reported on the applicable self-employment line (lines 13499 to 14300 of your return).
  • Net research grants Subtract your expenses from the grant you received and report the net amount on line 10400 of your return. Your expenses cannot be more than the amount of your grant. For more information, see Guide P105, Students and Income Tax.
  • Clergy’s housing allowance or an amount for eligible utilities – Report the amount shown in box 30 of your T4 slips. You may be able to claim a deduction on line 23100 of your return. If a housing allowance or an amount for eligible utilities is shown in box 14 of your T4 slips, subtract the amount shown in box 30 of your T4 slips from the amount shown in box 14, and report the difference on line 10100 of your return. 
  • Foreign employment income Report your earnings in Canadian dollars. See Report foreign income and other foreign amounts. If the amount on your United States W-2 slip has been reduced by contributions to a 401(k), 457, or 403(b) plan, US Medicare and Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA), you must add these contributions to your foreign employment income on line 10400 of your Canadian return. These contributions may be deductible. See line 20700.
  • Income-maintenance insurance plans (wage-loss replacement plans) – This income is shown in box 107 of your T4A slips. You may not have to report the full amount on your return. Report the amount you received, minus contributions you made to the plan after 1967, if you did not use them on a previous year’s return. For more information, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-428, Wage Loss Replacement Plans.
  • Certain GST/HST and Quebec sales tax (QST) rebates – If you are an employee who paid and deducted employment expenses in 2019 or earlier, and you received a GST/HST or QST rebate in 2020 for those expenses, report the rebate you received on line 10400 of your return. However, a rebate on which you can claim capital cost allowance is treated differently. For more information, see Chapter 10 in Guide T4044, Employment Expenses
  • Royalties – Report these amounts on line 10400 of your return if you received them for a work or invention of yours. Report other royalties (other than those included on line 13500 of your return) on line 12100 of your return.

Look on the back of your retirement income slips to find out where to report an amount. For more information, use the following table. Some of the types of income listed in the following table are eligible for the $2,000 pension income amount on line 31400 of the return. Some types of income may also be eligible for pension income splitting (lines 11600 and 21000 of the return).

Retirement income – Summary table
(applicable to line 11300, line 11400, line 11500, line 11600, line 12100, line 12900, line 13000, line 21000, and line 31400 of your return)
Information slip Conditions Report the amount on the following line of your return: Eligible for the pension income amount? Eligible for pension income splitting?
T4A(OAS) box 18 None 11300 No No
T4A(P) box 20 None 11400 No No
T3 box 31
T4A box 016
None 11500 Yes Yes

T4A boxes 024, 133, and 194

T4RIF boxes 16 and 22

If one of the following applies:

  • You were 65 or older on December 31, 2020
  • Regardless of your age, you received the amount on the death of your spouse or common-law partner
11500 Yes Yes
All other cases
13000 No No
T4RIF boxes 18 and 20 None 13000 No No
T5 box 19

If one of the following applies:

  • You were 65 or older on December 31, 2020
  • Regardless of your age, you received the amount on the death of your spouse or common-law partner
11500 Yes Yes
All other cases 12100 No No
T4RSP box 16

If one of the following applies:

  • You were 65 or older on December 31, 2020
  • Regardless of your age, you received the amount on the death of your spouse or common-law partner
12900 Yes Yes
All other cases 12900 No No
T4RSP boxes 18, 20, 22, 26, 28, and 34 None 12900 No No
T3 boxes 22 and 26
T4 boxes 66 and 67
T4A boxes 018 and 106
T4A-RCA boxes 14, 16, 18, and 20
None 13000 No No*

* If there is an amount in box 17 of your T4A-RCA slip, it is eligible for the pension income splitting. This amount is already included in box 16

Line 11300 – Old age security (OAS) pension

If you have not received your T4A(OAS) slip, go to Employment and Social Development Canada, or call 1-800-277-9914

You may have to repay OAS benefits. For more information, see line 23500 of the return.

Line 11400 – CPP or QPP benefits

If you have not received your T4A(P) slip, go to Employment and Social Development Canada  or call 1-800-277-9914

Lump-sum benefits – If you received a lump-sum CPP or QPP payment in 2020, parts of which were for previous years, you have to report the whole payment on line 11400 of your return for 2020. However, if the total of the parts that relate to previous years is $300 or more, the CRA will calculate the tax payable on those parts as if you received them in those years only if the result is better for you. The CRA will tell you the results on your notice of assessment or reassessment.

CPP or QPP disability benefit (box 16)

Report on line 11410 of your return, your CPP or QPP disability benefits shown in box 16. This amount is already included in your income on line 11400 of your return, so do not add it again when you calculate your total income on line 15000 of your return.

CPP or QPP child benefit (box 17)

Report a child benefit only if you received it because you were the child of a deceased or disabled contributor. Any benefits paid for your children are their income, even if you received the payment.

CPP or QPP death benefit (box 18)

Do not report this amount if you are filing a return for a deceased person. If you received this amount and you are a beneficiary of the deceased person's estate, report it on line 13000 of your return unless a T3 Trust Income Tax and Information Return is being filed for the estate. For more information, see Guide T4011, Preparing Returns for Deceased Persons.

Line 11500 – Other pensions and superannuation

See the back of your slips and the summary table for retirement income to find out where to report the amount.

Pension income splitting

You may be able to make a joint election with your spouse or common-law partner to split the payments that you reported on line 11500 of your return if both of the following apply:

  • you were both residents of Canada on December 31, 2020 (or were residents of Canada on the date of death)
  • neither of you were, because of a breakdown in your marriage or common-law relationship, living separate and apart from each other at the end of the year and for a period of 90 days or more beginning in the year

To make this election, you and your spouse or common-law partner must complete Form T1032, Joint Election to Split Pension Income. The transferring spouse or common-law partner must still report the full amount of income on line 11500 of their return, but can claim a deduction for the elected split pension amount on line 21000 of their return.

Pensions from a foreign country

Report in Canadian dollars your gross foreign pension income received in the year. See Report foreign income and other foreign amounts. In some cases, amounts you receive may not be considered pension income and you may have to report them elsewhere on your return.

United States individual retirement arrangement (IRA) If during the year you received amounts from an IRA or converted an IRA to a “Roth” IRA, call the CRA.

Note

You can claim a deduction on line 25600 of your return for the part of your foreign pension income that is tax-free in Canada because of a tax treaty.

United States Social Security – Report on line 11500 of your return the full amount, in Canadian dollars, of your U.S. Social Security benefits and any U.S. Medicare premiums paid on your behalf. You can claim a deduction for part of this income. See line 25600.

Line 11600 – Elected split-pension amount

Report on this line the amount of pension income transferred to you by your spouse or common-law partner if you both made a joint election to split pension income by completing Form T1032, Joint Election to Split Pension Income. For more information, see line 11500.

Income reported at this line may qualify for the Pension income amount on line 31400.

Line 11900 – Employment insurance and other benefits

See the back of your T4E slip to find out how and where to report these amounts.

If you have received employment insurance maternity and parental benefits or provincial parental insurance plan benefits, see line 11905 for additional instructions on reporting these amounts.

If you have already repaid excess benefits you received, directly to the payer of your benefits, you may be able to claim a deduction. See line 23200.

Line 11905 – Employment insurance maternity and parental benefits and provincial parental insurance plan benefits

Report on this line the total of the following amounts:

  • Employment insurance maternity and parental benefits from box 37 of your T4E slip
  • Provincial parental insurance plan benefits from box 36 of your T4E slip

In both cases, these amounts are already included in your income on line 11900 of your return, so do not add them again when you calculate your total income on line 15000 of your return.

Line 12000 – Taxable amount of dividends (eligible and other than eligible) from taxable Canadian corporations

Complete the chart for lines 12000, 12010, 12100, and 22100 on the Worksheet for the return and report your dividends as follows:

Amount of dividends (eligible and other than eligible) Amount of dividends (other than eligible)
Enter on line 12000 of your return the amounts shown on these slips:
Enter on line 12010 of your return the amounts shown on these slips:
  • box 32 of the T3 slips
  • box 25 of the T4PS slip
  • box 11 of the T5 slips
  • box 130 of the T5013 slips

If you did not receive an information slip
Complete the chart for lines 12000, 12010, 12100, and 22100 on the Worksheet for the return and report your dividends as follows:

Eligible dividends Other than eligible dividends
Multiply the actual amount you received by 138%.
Multiply the actual amount you received by 115%.
Report the result on line 12000 of your return. Report the result on lines 12000 and 12010 of your return.
Note

Special rules apply for income from property (including shares) one family member lends or transfers to another. For more information, see Loans and transfers of property.

Tax Tips

In some cases, it may be better for you to report all the taxable dividends your spouse or common-law partner received from taxable Canadian corporations. You can do this only if it allows you to claim or increase your claim for the spouse or common-law partner amount on line 30300 of your return. If you choose this option, do not include these dividends in your spouse’s or common-law partner’s income.

You may be able to claim a dividend tax credit for dividends you received from taxable Canadian corporations. See line 40425.

Line 12100 – Interest and other investment income

Complete the chart for lines 12000, 12010, 12100, and 22100 on the Worksheet for the return and report on line 12100 of your return the amounts you received, minus any part of those amounts you reported in previous years. Also, report amounts credited to you, but that you did not receive (such as amounts that were reinvested). Generally, you report your share of interest from a joint investment based on how much you contributed to it.

Notes

Special rules apply for income from property (including money) one family member lends or transfers to another. For more information, see Loans and transfers of property.

Generally, when you invest your money in your child's name, you have to report the income from those investments. However, if you deposited Canada child benefit payments into a bank account or trust in your child's name, the interest earned on those payments is included in your child's income.

Information slips

The amounts to report include those shown in boxes 13, 14, 15, and 30 of T5 slips, box 25 of T3 slips, and boxes 128 and 135 of T5013 slips. Also, report the interest on any tax refund you received in 2020, which is shown on your notice of assessment or reassessment.

Foreign income

If you received foreign interest or dividend income, report it in Canadian dollars. See Report foreign income and other foreign amounts.

If, as a shareholder in a foreign corporation, you received certain shares in another foreign corporation, you may not have to report any amount as income for receiving those shares.

Bank accounts

Report interest paid or credited to you in 2020, even if you did not receive an information slip. You may not receive a T5 slip for amounts under $50.

Term deposits, guaranteed investment certificates (GICs), and other similar investments

The income you report is based on the interest you earned during each complete investment year. For example, if you made a long-term investment on July 1, 2019, report on your return for 2020 the interest that accumulated to the end of June 2020, even if you do not receive a T5 slip. Report the interest from July 2020 to June 2021 on your 2021 return.

Treasury bills

If you disposed of a treasury bill when it matured in 2020, you have to report as interest the difference between the price you paid and the proceeds of disposition shown on your T5008 slips or account statement.

If you disposed of a treasury bill before it matured in 2020, you may also have to report a capital gain (or loss). For more information, see Guide T4037, Capital Gains.

Earnings on life insurance policies

Report the earnings that have accumulated on certain life insurance policies in the same way as you do for other investments. Your insurance company will send you a T5 slip. For policies bought before 1990, you can choose to report accumulated earnings every year by telling your insurer in writing.

Line 12200 – Net partnership income: limited or non-active partners only

Report on line 12200 of your return your share of the net income (or loss) from a partnership if the partnership did not include a rental (line 12600 of the return) or farming operation (lines 13499 to 14300) and you were either:

  • a limited partner
  • not actively involved in the partnership and not otherwise involved in a business or profession similar to that carried on by the partnership

If these two conditions do not apply to you, report your share of the partnership’s net income (or loss) on the applicable self-employment line of your return (lines 13500, 13700, 13900, 14100, and 14300 of your return).

Note

If the partnership has a loss, the amount you can claim could be limited.

If you have a tax shelter, see Tax shelters.

If all or part of the income was earned in a province or territory other than your province or territory of residence, or if it was earned outside Canada, complete Form T2203, Provincial and Territorial Taxes for Multiple Jurisdictions.

Note

You may have to make Canada Pension Plan contributions on the net income you report on line 12200 of your return. See line 22200.

Line 12700 – Taxable capital gains

You may have a capital gain (or loss) when you dispose of property, such as when you sell real estate, which may include your principal residence, or shares (including mutual funds). You may also have a gain or a loss if you are considered to have disposed of property (see the definition of Deemed disposition on Schedule 3). For more information, see Guide T4037, Capital Gains.

If you sold your principal residence in the year, complete the "Principal residence" section on page 2 of Schedule 3.

Line 12900 – RRSP income

See the back of your T4RSP slip and the summary table for retirement income to find out where to report the amount.

Regardless of your age, if you received income shown on a T4RSP slip on the death of your spouse or common-law partner, report it on line 12900 of your return. If the amount was transferred to your RRSP, you still have to report it on line 12900 of your return but you may be able to claim a deduction. For more information, see Guide RC4177, Death of an RRSP Annuitant.

RRSPs for spouse or common-law partner

Your spouse or common-law partner may have to report some or all of the RRSP income shown in boxes 20, 22, and 26 of your T4RSP slips if they contributed to any of your RRSPs in 2018, 2019, or 2020. In that case, your T4RSP slips should have “Yes” ticked in box 24 and your spouse’s or common-law partner’s social insurance number should appear in box 36. Complete Form T2205, Amounts from a Spousal or Common-Law Partner RRSP, RRIF, or SPP to Include in Income, to calculate the amount that both of you must report on line 12900 of your returns.

Note

If you and your spouse or common-law partner were living apart because of a breakdown in the relationship when you withdrew funds from your RRSP, you have to report the whole amount shown on your T4RSP slips.

For more information, see Guide T4040, RRSPs and Other Registered Plans for Retirement.

Repayments under the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP) and the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP)

If in previous years you withdrew funds from your RRSP under the HBP or the LLP, you may have to make a repayment for 2020. If you are making a repayment, complete Schedule 7. If you repay less than the minimum amount for the year, you may have to report the difference on line 12900 of your return. Do not send your repayment to the CRA.

For more information, see Part B of Schedule 7.

Line 13000 – Other income

Use this line to report taxable income that has not been or should not be reported anywhere else on the return. In the space provided on line 13000 of your return, specify the type of income you are reporting.

Report taxable scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, and artists’ project grants on line 13010.

Note

Special rules apply for income from property one family member lends or transfers to another. For more information, see Loans and transfers of property.

Lump-sum payments

Report lump-sum payments from pensions and deferred profit-sharing plans you received when you left a plan.

If you received a lump-sum payment in 2020 that included amounts you earned in previous years, you have to report the whole payment on line 13000 of your return for 2020.

Death benefits (other than CPP or QPP death benefits)

A death benefit is an amount you receive after a person’s death for their employment service. Death benefits (other than those from the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) or Quebec Pension Plan (QPP)) are shown in box 106 of your T4A slips or box 26 of your T3 slips.

You may not have to pay tax on up to $10,000 of the benefit you received. If you are the only one to receive a death benefit, report the amount you receive that is more than $10,000. Even if you do not receive the full death benefit in one year, the total tax-free amount for all years cannot be more than $10,000.

To find out what to report if you and another individual received a death benefit for the same person, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-508R Archived, Death Benefits.

CPP or QPP death benefit

If you received this amount and you are a beneficiary of the deceased person’s estate, report the amount on line 13000 of your return unless a T3 Trust Income Tax and Information Return is being filed for the estate. The CPP or QPP death benefit is shown in box 18 of the T4A(P) slip.

Other kinds of income

Also report the following income on line 13000 of your return:

  • Apprenticeship Incentive Grant, Apprenticeship Incentive Grant for Women, or Apprenticeship Completion Grant, shown in box 130 of your T4A slips. For more information, go to Funding: Apprenticeship Incentive Grant – Overview, see Guide P105, Students and Income Tax, or call 1-866-742-3644
  • amounts distributed from a retirement compensation arrangement shown on your T4A-RCA slips (for more information, see the back of your slips)
  • training allowances or any other amount shown in box 028 of your T4A slips (other than amounts already noted for this line and lines 10400, 11500, and 12500 of the return)
  • payments from a trust shown in box 26 of your T3 slips
  • payments from a registered education savings plan shown in box 040 (see line 41800) or box 042 of your T4A slips
  • certain annuity payments (see line 11500)
  • certain payments from a tax-free savings account (TFSA) shown in box 134 of your T4A slips
  • certain amounts from a registered retirement income fund shown in box 22 of your T4RIF slips, or the pooled registered pension plan amount shown in box 194 of your T4A slips, or specified pension plan (SPP) amount shown in box 018 of your T4A slips. If you rolled over an amount to a registered disability savings plan (RDSP), see line 23200 for information about the corresponding deduction. For more information about RDSPs, go to Registered disability savings plan (RDSP) or see Guide T4040, RRSPs and Other Registered Plans for Retirement
  • amounts (grants) paid to you as a result of taking time away from work to cope with the death or disappearance of your child because of an offence or probable offence under the Criminal Code (shown in box 136 of your T4A slip)
  • pooled registered pension plan income shown in box 194 of your T4A slips if you were under 65 years of age and you did not receive this income on the death of your spouse or common-law partner
  • retiring allowances shown in boxes 66 and 67 of your T4 slips and any retiring allowance shown in box 26 of your T3 slips
  • income from the disposition of Canadian resource Property or negative balance(s) of the resource pools calculated at the end of the year in Section II on Form T1229, Statement of Resource Expenses and Depletion Allowance
Did you know: Non taxable income

Did you know...

You do not need to report certain non-taxable amounts as income, including the following:

  • most lottery winnings
  • most gifts and inheritances
  • amounts paid by Canada or an allied country (if the amount is not taxable in that country) for disability or death of a war veteran due to war service
  • GST/HST credit and CCB payments, including those from related provincial or territorial programs
  • family allowance payments and the supplement for handicapped children paid by the province of Quebec
  • compensation received from a province or territory if you were a victim of a criminal act or a motor vehicle accident
  • most amounts received from a life insurance policy following someone’s death
  • most types of strike pay you received from your union, even if you perform picketing duties as a requirement of membership

Note
Income earned on any of the above amounts (such as interest you earn when you invest lottery winnings) is taxable.

  • most amounts received from a tax-free savings account (TFSA)

Line 13010 – Scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, and artists’ project grants

Report prizes and awards you received as a benefit from your employment or in connection with a business. This type of income is not eligible for the $500 basic scholarship exemption. If you received a research grant, see line 10400.

Certain scholarships, bursaries, and artists’ project grants are not taxable, such as:

  • elementary and secondary school scholarships and bursaries
  • post-secondary school scholarships, fellowships, and bursaries received in 2020 are not taxable if you are considered a full-time qualifying student for 2019, 2020, or 2021

For more information, go to Students or see Guide P105, Students and Income Tax, and Income Tax Folio S1 F2 C3, Scholarships, Research Grants and Other Education Assistance.

Lines 13499 to 14300 – Self-employment income

Report on the appropriate lines your gross and net income (or loss) from self-employment. If you have a loss, show it in brackets.

You have to file Form T1139, Reconciliation of 2020 Business Income for Tax Purposes, with your return for 2020 to keep a year-end that does not finish on December 31, 2020.

Note

You may have to make Canada Pension Plan contributions on your self-employment earnings. See line 22200.

Guide T4002, Self-employed Business, Professional, Commission, Farming, and Fishing Income, contains more information you may need to help you calculate your self-employment income, including enhanced capital cost allowance calculations for certain property (for example, eligible zero-emission vehicles purchased after March 18, 2019).

If you were a limited or non-active partner, report your net income (or loss) from rental operations on line 12600 of your return and your net farming income (or loss) on line 14100 of your return. Report other net income or other losses on line 12200 of your return.

If you were an active partner and you received a T5013 slip, report on your return the amount from boxes 118, 121, 123, 125, and 127. Report your share of the partnership’s net income (or loss) shown in boxes 101, 103, 116, 120, 122, 124, and 126 on the applicable line of your return. If you did not receive this slip, follow the instructions on the applicable self-employment form and report your share of the partnership’s net income (or loss) on the applicable self-employment line of your return.

For more information, call the CRA business enquiries line.

If you have a tax shelter, see Tax shelters.

Line 14500 – Social assistance payments

Report the amount shown in box 11 of your T5007 slip or the federal part of your Quebec Relevé 5 slip, unless you lived with your spouse or common-law partner when the payments were made. The spouse or common-law partner with the higher net income on line 23600 of their return (not including these payments or the deductions on line 21400 or line 23500 of their return) must report all the payments, even if that person’s name is not shown on the slip. If this amount is the same for both of you, the person named on the T5007 slip (or the prestataire on the federal part of the Relevé 5 slip) must report the payments.

You do not have to report certain social assistance payments you or your spouse or common-law partner received for being a foster parent or for caring for an adult with a disability who lived with you. However, if the payments are for caring for your spouse or common-law partner or any person related to either of you, whoever has the higher net income must report those payments.

You do not have to report income you received for social assistance payments under a program of the Government of Canada or the government of a province that meet the following conditions:

  • the payments are made for the temporary care and upbringing of a child in need of protection
  • the child would be considered your child if you did not receive payments under the program (the child is wholly dependent on you)
  • no special allowances under the Children’s Special Allowances Act is payable for the child for the period in which the social assistance payment is made

If you repay an amount that was shown on a T5007 slip or a Relevé 5 slip in a previous year, the return for that year may be adjusted based on the amended slip provided.

If you are a registered Indian or a person entitled to be registered as an Indian under the Indian Act, and you live on a reserve, do not report social assistance payments received from your band council.

Other amounts you need to report throughout the return

Retroactive lump-sum payments

If you received a lump-sum payment of eligible income in 2020, parts of which were for previous years after 1977, you must report the whole payment on the appropriate line of your return for 2020. These amounts are shown on a completed Form T1198, Statement of Qualifying Retroactive Lump-Sum Payment, provided by the payer.

You can ask the CRA to tax the parts for previous years as if you received them in those years. The CRA can apply this calculation to the parts that relate to years throughout which you were resident in Canada if the total of those parts is $3,000 or more (not including interest) and the result of the calculation is better for you. The CRA will tell you the results on your notice of assessment or reassessment.

Loans and transfers of property

You may have to report income, such as dividends (line 12000 of your return) or interest (line 12100 of your return), from property (including money and any replacement property) you loaned or transferred to your spouse or common-law partner or a related minor (including a niece or a nephew) under 18 years of age at the end of the year. This includes loans or transfers to a trust in favour of such a person.

You may also have to report capital gains (line 12700 of your return) or losses from property you loaned or transferred to your spouse or common-law partner or to a trust for your spouse or common-law partner.

For more information, see Interpretation Bulletin IT-510 Archived, Transfers and loans of property made after May 22, 1985 to a related minor, and Interpretation Bulletin IT-511 Archived, Interspousal and Certain Other Transfers and Loans of Property and T4013, T3 Trust Guide.

Tax shelters

To claim deductions, losses, or credits from tax shelter investments, see your T5003 slips or T5013 slips, and complete Form T5004, Claim for Tax Shelter Loss or Deduction.

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