Line 21900 – Moving expenses: Are you employed or self-employed?

If you have moved to a new home to work or to run a business out of a new location, you can deduct eligible moving expenses from the employment or self-employment income you earned at your new work location, including amounts you received under the Wage Earner Protection Program for your employment at the new work location.

To qualify, your new home must be at least 40 kilometres closer (by the shortest public route) to your new work location. You must establish your new home as the place where you normally live. 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.

You cannot deduct moving expenses from any other type of income, such as investment income or employment insurance benefits, even if you received this income at the new location.

If you received a reimbursement or an allowance from your employer for your eligible moving expenses, you can only claim your moving expenses if you include the amount you received in your income or if you reduce your moving expenses by the amount received.

Note 

The CRA may ask you to send a letter from your employer saying that you were not reimbursed for the moving expenses you are claiming.

Unused moving expenses available to carry forward to a future year

If your net moving expenses (line 26 of Form T1-M, Moving Expenses Deduction) paid in the year of the move are more than your net eligible income (line 28 of Form T1-M) earned at the new work location in that same year, you can carry forward and deduct the unused part of those expenses from the employment or self-employment income you earn at the new work location and report on your return in a future year.

Expenses you paid in a year after you moved

If 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 work location.

This may apply if your old home did not sell until after the year of your move. If this is the case, the CRA may ask you to send Form T1-M with the receipts and explain the delay in selling your home.

Note 

You cannot carry back moving expenses to a prior year. For example, if you paid moving expenses in the current year for a move that occurred in a prior year, you cannot claim the expenses paid in the current year on your prior year return. This is the case even if you earned employment income or self-employment income at the new location in the prior year.

Your net eligible income

If you are an employee, your net eligible income is calculated by taking the amounts reported on your T4 or T4A slips (relating to the new work location) included on lines 10100 or 10400 minus any amounts relating to the new work location claimed on lines 20700, 21200, 22215, 22900, 23100, and 23200 of your return.

If you are self-employed, your net eligible income is usually calculated by taking the net amounts earned at the new work location that are included on lines 13499 to 14300, minus any related amounts claimed on lines 21200 and 22200 of your return.

Forms and publications

Government partners

Page details

Date modified: