Line 21900 – Moving expenses: Are you a full-time student?

Note: Line 21900 was line 219 before tax year 2019.

You can claim eligible moving expenses if you moved to be a student in full-time attendance in a post-secondary program at a university, college or other educational institution. However, you can only deduct these expenses from the parts of your scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants that are required to be included in your income.

You are considered to be a full-time student if you regularly attend a college, university, or other educational institution in a program at a post-secondary school level (whether in Canada or not); and during a particular semester, you are taking at least 60% of the usual course load for the program in which you are enrolled. For more information, see Income Tax Folio S1‑F3‑C4, Moving Expenses.

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

If you moved to work, including summer employment, or to run a business, you can also claim moving expenses. However, you can only deduct these expenses from the employment or self-employment income you earned at the new work location.

You can claim moving expenses you incur at the beginning of each academic period as long as you meet the 40-kilometre requirement and you have earned income at your new work location.

For co-operative students moving back after a summer break or a work semester, you can also claim your moving expenses as long as you meet the previously-stated requirements.

If you received a reimbursement or an allowance from you 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.

Unused moving expenses available to carry forward to a future year

If you are a full-time student and your net moving expenses (line 21 of Form T1-M, Moving Expenses Deduction) paid in the year of the move are more than the scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants income you report for the year (line 22 of Form T1-M), you can carry forward and deduct the unused part of those expenses from the same type of income you receive and report on your return for the following years.

Expenses you paid in a year after you moved

If your eligible 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.

The same option is offered to students reporting a taxable amount of scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, certain prizes, and research grants.

Forms and publications

• Form T1-M, Moving Expenses Deduction
• Guide P105, Students and Income Tax
• Income Tax Folio S1-F3-C4, Moving Expenses

Related topic

• Students
• Where did you move?