Federal foreign tax credit – Personal income tax
- Federal: Line 40500
- Provincial or territorial: Applicable line of Form 428 (except Quebec)
- Tax year: 2025| Prior tax years: 2024 and earlier
You may be able to claim the federal foreign tax credit if you paid foreign income or profit taxes on income you earned outside Canada and reported on your Canadian tax return.
A tax treaty with another country may affect whether you are eligible for this credit.
Who can claim the federal foreign tax credit
Generally, you can claim the federal foreign tax credit if:
- You were a resident of Canada at any time in the year
- You included on your Canadian tax return income from sources outside Canada that you paid non-business or business taxes on to a foreign country
How much you can claim
The amount you can claim depends on:
- The type and source of the foreign income you reported
- The amount of eligible foreign income taxes paid on that income
If you deducted an amount on line 25600 of your return for income that is not taxable in Canada under a tax treaty, do not report that income (or any tax withheld from it) in your federal foreign tax credit calculation.
Convert your foreign income to Canadian dollars
Foreign income and foreign taxes must be converted to Canadian dollars. Use the Bank of Canada exchange rate in effect on the day these amounts arose. If you received a monthly pension or multiple payments at different times during the year, use the average annual exchange rate. The average monthly rate and the daily rate are available by going to Bank of Canada.
For more information about converting federal foreign income taxes paid, see Income Tax Folio S5-F2-C1, Foreign Tax Credit.
Calculate your foreign tax credit
Federal amount for 2025Complete Form T2209, Federal Foreign Tax Credits, to calculate your federal foreign tax credit amount.
In most cases, for each foreign country, you can claim whichever amount is less:
- The foreign income tax you actually paid
- The tax otherwise payable in Canada on your net income from that country
Provincial or territorial amount for 2025
If you lived in a province or territory other than Quebec at the end of the year, complete Form T2036, Provincial or Territorial Foreign Tax Credit, to calculate your provincial or territorial foreign tax credit amount.
If you lived in Quebec, do not complete Form T2036. Refer to Revenu Quebec for information on claiming Quebec's foreign tax credit.
How to claim
Claim the foreign tax credit on your federal tax return and your provincial or territorial Form 428
- Federal tax return
Enter the amount from line 12 of Form T2209 on line 40500 of your federal tax return.
Provincial or territorial Form 428
If you lived in a province or territory other than Quebec at the end of the year, enter the provincial or territorial foreign tax credit amount from Form T2036 on the applicable line of your provincial or territorial Form 428.
Supporting documents
Electronic filing
Keep your supporting documents in case the CRA asks to see them later.
Paper filing
Attach the following documents to your paper return:
your completed Form T2209
official receipts showing the foreign taxes you paid
a note explaining your calculations
If you paid taxes to the United States, also attach:
your W-2 information slip
U.S.1040 return
your U.S. tax account transcript
any other supporting documents that apply
Documents in other languages
If any of your documents are in a language other than English or French, the CRA needs:
a copy of the original documents written in the foreign language
an acceptable English or French translation
What is an acceptable translation
To be acceptable, the translation must include the signatory's name, printed in the Latin alphabet, and meet one of the following conditions:
- It is certified by an official with the authority to administer an oath or solemn declaration (commissioner of oaths, notary public, or lawyer) unless it was done by a translator who is a member in good standing of one of the provincial or territorial organizations of translators and interpreters of Canada
- It has the seal and signature of an official from the foreign country's embassy, high commission, or consulate confirming it is a true translation
- It has the signature of a Chartered Professional Accountant confirming it is a true translation
- It includes a written statement indicating the profession and signature of a teacher, professor, or religious leader confirming it is a true translation
For the translation to be acceptable, the taxpayer's name cannot be the same as the signatory's name.