# T4130 Employers&#39; Guide - Taxable Benefits and Allowances - Canada.ca

> Reproduced from the Canada Revenue Agency. Authoritative copy: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/t4130/employers-guide-taxable-benefits-allowances.html
> Local copy taken 2026-09-05. Do not take a figure from this page — current rates are at https://rules.backofficestars.ca/rates/

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# Employers’ Guide
## Taxable Benefits and Allowances
## Available electronically only
T4130(E) Rev. 25

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## Find out if this guide is for you
Use this guide if you are an employer and you provide
benefits or allowances to your employees, including
individuals who hold an office, for items such as:
- automobiles or other motor vehicles
- board and lodging
- gifts and awards
- group term life insurance policies
- interest-free or low-interest loans
- meals
- security options
- tool reimbursement or allowance
- transit passes
- tuition fees
If you or a person working for you is not sure of the
worker’s employment status, either one of you can request
a ruling to determine the status. If you are a business
owner, you can use the “Request a CPP/EI ruling” service
in My Business Account at <https://canada.ca/my-cra-business>
-account. If you are an individual, you can use the “Request
a CPP/EI ruling” service in My Account at <https://canada.ca/my>
-cra-account. You can also fill out and mail Form CPT1,
Request for a CPP/EI Ruling – Employee or Self-Employed
to the CPP/Rulings Division at the Tax Services Office in
the province or territory of your residence or place of
business. See the table found on Form CPT1 for the mailing
addresses. For more information on employment status, go
to <https://canada.ca/cpp-ei-rulings>.
The CRA publications and personalized correspondence are
available in braille, large print, e-text, and MP3. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-multiple-formats>
call 1-800-959-5525.
Unless otherwise stated, all legislative references are to the Income Tax Act or, where appropriate, the Income Tax
Regulations.
The Canada Revenue Agency uses the term Indian as it has legal meaning under the Indian Act.
La version française de ce guide est intitulée Guide de l’employeur – Avantages et allocations imposables
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

A benefit or allowance can be paid to your employee in
cash (such as a meal allowance) or provided to your
employee in a manner other than cash (such as a parking
space or a gift).
You may have to include the value of a benefit or allowance
in an employee’s income, depending on the type of benefit
or allowance and the reason you give it.
This guide explains your responsibilities and shows you
how to calculate the value of taxable benefits or allowances.
For information on calculating payroll deductions, go
to <https://canada.ca/payroll-calculate-deductions>, and select
“How to calculate.”
For information on filing an information return, go
to <https://canada.ca/payroll-file>, and select “When to file
information returns.“
or

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## What’s new
### Employee security (stock) options
Updates were made to the reporting of security options benefits received in 2025 or June 25 to December 31, 2024 and of the
deductions under paragraphs 110(1)(d), (d.1) and (d.01) for those periods. This led to changes on pages 32, 33, 36, 38 and 49.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-security-options>
<https://canada.ca/taxes> 3

or <https://canada.ca/t4-information-employers>.

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## Generated Markdown table of contents

- [Employers’ Guide](#employers-guide) - PDF page 1
  - [What’s new](#whats-new) - PDF page 3
  - [Chapter 1 – General information](#chapter-1-general-information) - PDF page 6
    - [What is a benefit, an allowance, or a reimbursement](#what-is-a-benefit-an-allowance-or-a-reimbursement) - PDF page 6
    - [What are your responsibilities](#what-are-your-responsibilities) - PDF page 6
    - [Employee’s allowable employment expenses](#employees-allowable-employment-expenses) - PDF page 8
  - [Chapter 2 – Automobile and motor vehicle benefits and allowances](#chapter-2-automobile-and-motor-vehicle-benefits-and-allowances) - PDF page 8
    - [Definitions](#definitions) - PDF page 8
    - [Keeping records](#keeping-records) - PDF page 10
    - [Calculating automobile benefits](#calculating-automobile-benefits) - PDF page 10
    - [Benefit for motor vehicles not defined as an automobile](#benefit-for-motor-vehicles-not-defined-as-an-automobile) - PDF page 13
    - [Automobile and motor vehicle allowances](#automobile-and-motor-vehicle-allowances) - PDF page 14
    - [Averaging allowances](#averaging-allowances) - PDF page 15
  - [Chapter 3 – Other benefits and allowances](#chapter-3-other-benefits-and-allowances) - PDF page 16
    - [Aircraft Benefits](#aircraft-benefits) - PDF page 16
    - [Board and lodging](#board-and-lodging) - PDF page 16
    - [Board and lodging allowances paid to players on sports teams or members of recreation programs](#board-and-lodging-allowances-paid-to-players-on-sports-teams-or-members-of-recreation-programs) - PDF page 16
    - [Board, lodging, and transportation – Special work sites and remote work locations](#board-lodging-and-transportation-special-work-sites-and-remote-work-locations) - PDF page 17
    - [Cell phone and internet services](#cell-phone-and-internet-services) - PDF page 18
    - [Child care expenses](#child-care-expenses) - PDF page 18
    - [Counselling services](#counselling-services) - PDF page 19
    - [Disability-related employment benefits](#disability-related-employment-benefits) - PDF page 19
    - [Discounts on merchandise and commissions from personal purchases](#discounts-on-merchandise-and-commissions-from-personal-purchases) - PDF page 19
    - [Education benefits](#education-benefits) - PDF page 19
    - [Employment insurance premium rebate](#employment-insurance-premium-rebate) - PDF page 20
    - [Gifts, awards, and long-service awards](#gifts-awards-and-long-service-awards) - PDF page 21
    - [Group term life insurance policies – Employer-paid premiums](#group-term-life-insurance-policies-employer-paid-premiums) - PDF page 22
    - [Reporting the benefit](#reporting-the-benefit) - PDF page 23
    - [Housing or utilities](#housing-or-utilities) - PDF page 23
    - [Income maintenance plans and other insurance plans](#income-maintenance-plans-and-other-insurance-plans) - PDF page 24
    - [Loans – interest-free and low-interest](#loans-interest-free-and-low-interest) - PDF page 25
    - [Loyalty and other points programs](#loyalty-and-other-points-programs) - PDF page 27
    - [Meals](#meals) - PDF page 27
    - [Medical expenses](#medical-expenses) - PDF page 28
    - [Moving expenses and relocation benefits](#moving-expenses-and-relocation-benefits) - PDF page 28
    - [Municipal officer’s expense allowance](#municipal-officers-expense-allowance) - PDF page 29
    - [Parking](#parking) - PDF page 29
    - [Pooled registered pension plans (PRPP)](#pooled-registered-pension-plans-prpp) - PDF page 30
    - [Power saws and tree trimmers](#power-saws-and-tree-trimmers) - PDF page 30
    - [Premiums under provincial hospitalization, medical care insurance, and certain Government of Canada plans](#premiums-under-provincial-hospitalization-medical-care-insurance-and-certain-government-of-canada-plans) - PDF page 30
    - [Private health services plan premiums](#private-health-services-plan-premiums) - PDF page 30
    - [Professional membership dues](#professional-membership-dues) - PDF page 31
    - [Recreational facilities and club dues](#recreational-facilities-and-club-dues) - PDF page 31
    - [Registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs)](#registered-retirement-savings-plans-rrsps) - PDF page 31
    - [Security options](#security-options) - PDF page 32
    - [Social events](#social-events) - PDF page 37
    - [Spouse’s or common-law partner’s travelling expenses](#spouses-or-common-law-partners-travelling-expenses) - PDF page 37
    - [Tax-free savings account (TFSA)](#tax-free-savings-account-tfsa) - PDF page 37
    - [Tickets](#tickets) - PDF page 38
    - [Tool reimbursement or allowance](#tool-reimbursement-or-allowance) - PDF page 38
    - [Transportation passes](#transportation-passes) - PDF page 38
    - [Travel allowance](#travel-allowance) - PDF page 39
  - [Chapter 4 – Housing and travel assistance benefits paid in a prescribed zone](#chapter-4-housing-and-travel-assistance-benefits-paid-in-a-prescribed-zone) - PDF page 40
    - [Accommodation or utilities provided by the employer](#accommodation-or-utilities-provided-by-the-employer) - PDF page 40
    - [Board, lodging, and transportation at a special work site in a prescribed zone](#board-lodging-and-transportation-at-a-special-work-site-in-a-prescribed-zone) - PDF page 41
    - [Travel assistance benefits](#travel-assistance-benefits) - PDF page 41
  - [Chapter 5 – Remitting the GST/HST on employee benefits](#chapter-5-remitting-the-gsthst-on-employee-benefits) - PDF page 43
    - [Employee benefits](#employee-benefits) - PDF page 43
    - [Situations where you are not considered to have collected the GST/HST](#situations-where-you-are-not-considered-to-have-collected-the-gsthst) - PDF page 43
    - [How to calculate the amount of the GST/HST you are considered to have collected](#how-to-calculate-the-amount-of-the-gsthst-you-are-considered-to-have-collected) - PDF page 44
    - [When and how to report the GST/HST you are considered to have collected](#when-and-how-to-report-the-gsthst-you-are-considered-to-have-collected) - PDF page 45
    - [Input tax credits (ITCs)](#input-tax-credits-itcs) - PDF page 46
    - [Property acquired before 1991 or from a non-registrant](#property-acquired-before-1991-or-from-a-non-registrant) - PDF page 47
  - [Benefits chart](#benefits-chart) - PDF page 49
  - [Digital services](#digital-services) - PDF page 51
    - [Handle your business taxes online](#handle-your-business-taxes-online) - PDF page 51
    - [Access My Business Account](#access-my-business-account) - PDF page 51
  - [For more information](#for-more-information) - PDF page 52
    - [If you need help](#if-you-need-help) - PDF page 52
    - [Direct deposit](#direct-deposit) - PDF page 52
    - [Forms and publications](#forms-and-publications) - PDF page 52
    - [Electronic mailing lists](#electronic-mailing-lists) - PDF page 52
    - [Related publications](#related-publications) - PDF page 52
    - [Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS)](#tax-information-phone-service-tips) - PDF page 52
    - [Teletypewriter (TTY) and Video Relay Service (Canada VRS) users](#teletypewriter-tty-and-video-relay-service-canada-vrs-users) - PDF page 52
    - [CRA service feedback and program](#cra-service-feedback-and-program) - PDF page 52
    - [Due dates](#due-dates) - PDF page 52
    - [Cancel or waive penalties and interest](#cancel-or-waive-penalties-and-interest) - PDF page 53
## Table of contents
Page
Chapter 1 – General information.....................................
6
What is a benefit, an allowance, or a reimbursement.....
6
Benefit................................................................................
6
Allowance.........................................................................
6
Reimbursement................................................................
6
What are your responsibilities...........................................
6
Determine if the benefit is taxable.................................
6
Calculate the value of the benefit...................................
6
Calculate payroll deductions..........................................
7
File an information return..............................................
8
Employee’s allowable employment expenses.................
8
Chapter 2 – Automobile and motor vehicle benefits
and allowances.............................................
8
Definitions............................................................................
8
Automobile.......................................................................
8
Employee..........................................................................
9
Motor vehicle....................................................................
9
Personal driving (personal use).....................................
9
Vehicle............................................................................... 10
Keeping records................................................................... 10
Calculating automobile benefits........................................ 10
Calculating a standby charge for automobiles you
own or lease.................................................................. 10
Calculating an operating expense benefit..................... 12
Benefit for motor vehicles not defined as an
automobile........................................................................ 13
Motor vehicle home at night policy............................... 13
Reporting automobile or motor vehicle benefits......... 14
Automobile and motor vehicle allowances...................... 14
Reasonable per-kilometre allowance............................. 14
Per-kilometre allowance rates that are not
considered reasonable................................................. 15
Flat-rate allowance........................................................... 15
Combination of flat-rate and reasonable
per-kilometre allowances............................................ 15
Reimbursement or advance for travel expenses.......... 15
Averaging allowances......................................................... 15
Reducing tax deductions at source on automobile
or motor vehicle allowances....................................... 16
Reporting automobile or motor vehicle allowances
on the T4 slip................................................................. 16
Chapter 3 – Other benefits and allowances................... 16
Aircraft Benefits................................................................... 16
Board and lodging............................................................... 16
Exceptions to the rules.................................................... 16
Board and lodging allowances paid to players on
sports teams or members of recreation programs....... 16
Board, lodging, and transportation – Special work
sites and remote work locations.................................... 17
Special work sites............................................................. 17
Remote work locations.................................................... 17
Payroll deductions........................................................... 18
Cell phone and internet services........................................ 18
Child care expenses............................................................. 18
Counselling services............................................................ 19
Disability-related employment benefits........................... 19
Payroll deductions........................................................... 19
4 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Page
Discounts on merchandise and commissions from
personal purchases.......................................................... 19
Education benefits............................................................... 19
Educational allowances for children............................. 20
Subsidized school services............................................. 20
Scholarships, bursaries, tuition, and training.............. 20
Scholarship and tuition fees........................................... 20
Employment insurance premium rebate......................... 20
Gifts, awards, and long-service awards........................... 21
Rules for gifts and awards.............................................. 21
Value................................................................................. 21
Policy for non-cash gifts and awards............................ 21
Long-service awards....................................................... 22
Awards from a manufacturer........................................ 22
Group term life insurance policies – Employer-paid
premiums......................................................................... 22
Calculating the benefit.................................................... 22
Reporting the benefit...................................................... 23
Housing or utilities............................................................. 23
Housing or utilities – benefit......................................... 23
Housing or utilities – allowance.................................... 23
Reporting the benefit...................................................... 23
Clergy residence.............................................................. 24
Income maintenance plans and other insurance plans.. 24
Non-group plans............................................................. 24
Group sickness or accident insurance plans................ 24
Employee-pay-all plans.................................................. 24
Group disability benefits – insolvent insurer.............. 24
Loans – interest-free and low-interest.............................. 25
Exceptions........................................................................ 25
Loans received because of employment....................... 25
Loans received because of shareholdings.................... 26
Home-purchase loan....................................................... 26
Home-relocation loans.................................................... 27
Forgiven loans.................................................................. 27
Reporting the benefit...................................................... 27
Prescribed interest rates.................................................. 27
Loyalty and other points programs.................................. 27
Meals..................................................................................... 27
Overtime meals or allowances....................................... 27
Subsidized meals............................................................. 28
Medical expenses................................................................ 28
Moving expenses and relocation benefits........................ 28
Moving expenses paid by employer that are not a
taxable benefit.............................................................. 28
Moving expenses paid by employer that are a
taxable benefit.............................................................. 29
Non-accountable moving allowances........................... 29
Municipal officer’s expense allowance............................. 29
Parking................................................................................. 29
Pooled registered pension plans (PRPP).......................... 30
Power saws and tree trimmers.......................................... 30
Premiums under provincial hospitalization, medical
care insurance, and certain Government of Canada
plans.................................................................................. 30
Private health services plan premiums............................ 30
Professional membership dues......................................... 31
Recreational facilities and club dues................................ 31

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Registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs).................. 31
Payroll deductions........................................................... 31
Security options................................................................... 32
Taxable benefit................................................................. 32
Cash-outs.......................................................................... 32
Payroll Deductions.......................................................... 32
Security options deduction – Paragraph 110(1)(d)...... 33
Security options deduction for the disposition of
shares of a Canadian-controlled private
corporation (CCPC) – Paragraph 110(1)(d.1)............ 36
Social events......................................................................... 37
Spouse’s or common-law partner’s travelling
expenses............................................................................ 37
Tax-free savings account (TFSA)....................................... 37
Tickets................................................................................... 38
Reporting the benefit....................................................... 38
Tool reimbursement or allowance..................................... 38
Transportation passes......................................................... 38
Airline passes for employees and retirees of an
airline company............................................................ 38
Transit passes................................................................... 38
Transit passes – employees of a transit company........ 38
Travel allowance.................................................................. 39
Part-time employee.......................................................... 39
Salesperson and clergy.................................................... 39
Other employees.............................................................. 39
Reasonable travel allowances......................................... 39
Uniforms and protective clothing..................................... 39
Chapter 4 – Housing and travel assistance benefits
paid in a prescribed zone............................ 40
Accommodation or utilities provided by the
employer........................................................................... 40
Places with developed rental markets.......................... 40
Places without developed rental markets..................... 40
Allowable ceiling amounts............................................. 40
Board, lodging, and transportation at a special
work site in a prescribed zone........................................ 41
Travel assistance benefits................................................... 41
Medical travel assistance................................................ 41
Chapter 5 – Remitting the GST/HST on employee
benefits
..................................................................... 43
Employee benefits............................................................... 43
Employee does not pay the GST/HST on taxable
benefits........................................................................... 43
Find out if you have to remit GST/HST on
employee taxable benefits........................................... 43
<https://canada.ca/taxes> 5

Situations where you are not considered to
have collected the GST/HST......................................... 43
How to calculate the amount of the GST/HST you
are considered to have collected.................................... 44
Value of the benefit......................................................... 44
Automobile operating expense benefits....................... 44
Benefits other than automobile operating expense
benefits.......................................................................... 44
When and how to report the GST/HST you are
considered to have collected.......................................... 45
Automobile benefits – standby charges, operating
expense benefit, and reimbursements...................... 45
Input tax credits (ITCs)....................................................... 46
ITC restrictions................................................................ 46
Property acquired before 1991 or from a
non-registrant................................................................... 47
Benefits chart...................................................................... 49
Digital services
Handle your business taxes online.................................. 51
Receive your CRA mail online...................................... 51
Create a pre-authorized debit agreement from your
Canadian chequing account....................................... 51
For more information........................................................ 52
If you need help................................................................... 52
Direct deposit....................................................................... 52
Forms and publications...................................................... 52
Electronic mailing lists....................................................... 52
Related publications........................................................... 52
Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS)............................. 52
Teletypewriter (TTY) and Video Relay Service
(Canada VRS) users......................................................... 52
CRA service feedback and program................................. 52
Service complaints........................................................... 52
Reprisal complaints......................................................... 52
Due dates.............................................................................. 52
Cancel or waive penalties and interest............................. 53

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## Chapter 1 – General information
### What is a benefit, an allowance, or a reimbursement
Benefit
Your employee has received a benefit if you pay for or give
something that is personal in nature:
- directly to your employee
- to a person who does not deal at arm’s length with the
employee (such as the employee’s spouse, child, or
sibling)
A benefit is a good or service you give, or arrange for a
third party to give, to your employee such as free use of
property that you own. A benefit includes an allowance or
a reimbursement of an employee’s personal expense.
Allowance
An allowance or an advance is any periodic or lump-sum
amount that you pay to your employee on top of salary or
wages, to help the employee pay for certain anticipated
expenses without having them support the expenses. An
allowance or advance is:
- usually an arbitrary amount that is predetermined
without using the actual cost
- usually for a specific purpose
- used as the employee chooses, since the employee does
not provide receipts
An allowance can be calculated based on distance, time or
something else, such as a motor vehicle allowance using the
distance driven or a meal allowance using the type and
number of meals per day.
Reimbursement
A reimbursement is an amount you pay to your employee
to repay expenses they incurred while carrying out the
duties of employment. The employee must keep proper
records (detailed receipts) to support the expenses and give
them to you.
### What are your responsibilities
If you provide benefits to your employees, you always have
to go through the same steps. If a step does not apply to
you, skip it and go on to the next step:
- “Determine if the benefit is taxable“
- “Calculate the value of the benefit“
- “Calculate payroll deductions“
- “File an information return“
Note
In this guide, “employee” includes an individual who
holds an office, unless otherwise noted.
6 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Determine if the benefit is taxable
Your first step is to determine whether the benefit you
provide to your employee is taxable and has to be included
in their employment income when the benefit is received or
enjoyed.
Whether or not a benefit is taxable depends on whether an
employee or officer receives an economic advantage that
can be measured in money, and whether that individual is
the primary beneficiary of the benefit.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/automotor-allowances>.
The benefit may be paid in cash (such as a meal allowance
or reimbursement of personal cellular phone charges), or
provided in a manner other than cash, such as a parking
space or a gift certificate. For more information and
examples, go to ”Pensionable and insurable earnings”
at <https://canada.ca/cpp-ei-explained>.
The manner in which you pay or provide the benefit to
your employee will affect the payroll deductions you have
to withhold. For more information, see “Calculate payroll
deductions“ on page 7.
Calculate the value of the benefit
Once you determine that the benefit is taxable, you need to
calculate the value of the specific benefit.
The value of a benefit is generally its fair market value
(FMV). This is generally the amount the employee would
have had to pay for the same benefit, in the same
circumstances, if there was no employer-employee
relationship.
The cost to you for the particular property, good, or service
may be used if it reflects the FMV of the item or service.
You must be able to support the value if you are asked.
Calculate the GST/HST on taxable benefits
When you calculate the value of the taxable benefit you
provide to an employee, you may have to include:
- the GST/HST payable by you
- the PST that would have been payable if you were not
exempt from paying the tax because of the type of
employer you are or the nature of the use of the
property or service
Use the “Benefits chart“ on page 49 to find out if you
should include GST/HST in the value of the benefit. Some
benefits have further information about GST/HST in the
topic specific section.
The amount of the GST/HST you include in the value of
the taxable benefits is calculated on the gross amount of the
benefits, before any other taxes and before you subtract any
amounts the employee reimbursed you for those benefits.
You do not have to include the GST/HST for:
- cash remuneration (such as salary, wages, and
allowances)

<!-- Page 7 -->

- a taxable benefit that is an exempt supply or a
zero-rated supply as defined in the Excise Tax Act
For more information on exempt or zero-rated supplies, go
to <https://canada.ca/cra-type-supply>.
If you are a GST/HST registrant, you may have to remit the
GST/HST for the taxable benefits you provide to your
employees. For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/gst-hst>
-remitting-employee-benefits or see “Chapter 5 –
Remitting the GST/HST on employee benefits“ on page 43.
Calculate payroll deductions
After you calculate the value of the benefit, including any
taxes that may apply, add this amount to the employee’s
income for each pay period or when the benefit is received
or enjoyed. This gives you the total amount of income from
which you have to make payroll deductions. You then
withhold deductions from the employee’s total pay in the
pay period in the normal manner. The deductions you
withhold, especially the employment insurance (EI)
premiums, will depend on whether the benefit you provide
is cash, non-cash, or near-cash.
Note
If you provide your employee with a monthly taxable
benefit, you may include a prorated value in your
employee’s income in each pay period in the month.
Cash benefits
Cash benefits include such things as:
- physical currency
- cheques
- direct deposit
Canada Pension Plan (CPP) – When a cash benefit is
taxable, it is also pensionable. This means you have to
deduct CPP contributions from the employee’s pay. It also
means that you have to pay your employer’s share of CPP
to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
If your employee has pensionable earnings above the
annual maximum pensionable earnings, you will also have
to deduct second additional CPP contributions (CPP2).
If the employment is not pensionable under the CPP, then
any taxable benefits paid in cash are not pensionable and
CPP contributions should not be withheld. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/payroll-calculate-deductions>,
and select “How to calculate.”
Employment insurance (EI) – When a cash benefit is
taxable, it is also insurable. This means you have to deduct
EI premiums from your employee’s pay. It also means that
you have to pay the employer’s share of EI to the CRA.
If the employment is not insurable under the Employment
Insurance Act, then any taxable benefits paid in cash are
not insurable and EI premiums should not be withheld. For
more information, go to <https://canada.ca/payroll-calculate>
-deductions and select “How to calculate.”
Income tax – When a cash benefit is taxable, you have to
deduct income tax from the employee’s total pay in the pay
period.
<https://canada.ca/taxes> 7

Non-cash or near-cash benefits
A non-cash (or “in kind”) benefit is the actual good, service,
or property that you give to your employee. This includes a
payment you make to a third party for the particular good
or service if you are responsible for the expense.
A near-cash benefit is one that functions as cash, or
something that can easily be converted to cash, such as a
security, stock, or gold nugget. For more information on
near-cash benefits, see “Gifts, awards, and long-service
awards“ on page 21.
CPP – When a non-cash or near-cash benefit is taxable, it is
also pensionable. This means you have to deduct CPP
contributions from the employee’s pay. It also means that
you have to pay your employer’s share of CPP to the CRA.
Notes
Except for security options, if a non-cash taxable benefit
is the only form of remuneration you provide to your
employee in the year, there is no remuneration from
which to withhold deductions. You do not have to
withhold CPP contributions on the amount of the
benefit, even if the value of the benefit is pensionable.
Also, you do not have to remit your share of the CPP
amounts.
Always report the value of the non-cash benefit in box 14
“Employment income,” and box 26 “CPP/QPP
pensionable earnings,” of the T4 slip, even if you did not
have to deduct CPP/QPP contributions.
EI – A taxable non-cash or near-cash benefit is generally not
insurable. Do not deduct EI premiums.
Exceptions to this rule are:
- The value of board and lodging an employee receives
during a period in which you pay the employee a salary
in cash. For more information, see “Board and lodging“
on page 16
- Employer-paid RRSP contributions when the employee
can withdraw the amounts. For more information,
see ”Registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs)“ on
page 31
Income tax – When a non-cash or near-cash benefit is
taxable, you have to deduct income tax from the
employee’s total pay in the pay period. Except for security
options, if a non-cash or near-cash benefit is of such a large
value that withholding the income tax will cause undue
hardship, you can spread the tax you withhold over the
balance of the year. The CRA considers undue hardship to
occur if the required withholding results in your employee
being unable to pay reasonable expenses related to basic
family needs. Basic family needs are those related to food,
clothing, shelter, health, transportation, and childcare.
Note
Except for security options, if a non-cash or near-cash
taxable benefit is the only form of remuneration you
provide to your employee, there is no remuneration
from which to withhold deductions. You do not have to
withhold income tax on the amount of the benefit, even
if the value of the benefit is taxable.
For more information on calculating payroll deductions, go
to <https://canada.ca/payroll-calculate-deductions>.

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Benefits chart
Use the “Benefits chart“ on page 49 to find out if you
should deduct CPP contributions and EI premiums on the
taxable amounts, and which codes to use to report the
taxable amounts on an employee’s T4 slip. The chart also
shows whether to include GST/HST in the value of the
benefit for income tax purposes.
File an information return
If you are an employer, report the value of the taxable
benefit or allowance on a T4 slip in box 14, “Employment
income.” Also report the value of the taxable benefit or
allowance in the “Other information” area at the bottom of
the employee’s slip and use code 40, unless the CRA tells
you to use a different code.
If you are a third-party payer providing taxable benefits or
allowances to employees of another employer, report the
benefits in the “Other information” area at the bottom of
the T4A slip. Use the code provided for the specific benefit.
Example
If you are a third party who provides travel benefits (travel
assistance in a prescribed zone) to the employee of another
employer, report these benefits under code 028 “Other
income,” in the “Other information” area at the bottom of
the T4A slip.
If a benefit or an allowance described in this guide is
non-pensionable, non-insurable, and non-taxable, do not
include it in income and do not report it on an information
slip.
For more information on reporting benefits and allowances,
go to:
- <https://canada.ca/payroll-calculate-deductions>
- <https://canada.ca/payroll-file>, and select “When to file
information returns”
- <https://canada.ca/deductions-credits-expenses>
- <https://canada.ca/cra-travel-allowance>
### Employee’s allowable employment expenses
Your employee may be able to claim certain employment
expenses on their income tax and benefit return if, under
the contract of employment, the employee had to pay for
the expenses in question. This contract of employment does
not have to be in writing but you and your employee have
to agree to the terms and understand what is expected.
Examples
- You allow your employee to use his personal motor
vehicle for business and pay him a monthly motor
vehicle allowance to pay for the operating expenses and
you include the allowance in the employee’s
employment income as a taxable benefit
- You have a formal telework arrangement with your
employee that allows this employee to work at home.
8 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Your employee pays for the expenses of this work space
on their own
You have to fill out and sign Form T2200, Declaration of
Conditions of Employment, and give it to your employee so
they can deduct employment expenses from their income.
By signing the form, you are only certifying that the
employee met the conditions of employment and had to
pay for the expenses under their employment contract.
It is the employee’s responsibility to claim the expenses on
their income tax and benefits return and to keep records to
support the claim.
For more information on allowable employment expenses,
go to:
- <https://canada.ca/deductions-credits-expenses>
- <https://canada.ca/cra-travel-allowance>
## Chapter 2 – Automobile and motor vehicle benefits and allowances
Information on the topics discussed in this chapter can be
found at:
- <https://canada.ca/taxes-auto-motor-benefits>
- archived Interpretation Bulletin IT-63R5, Benefits,
Including Standby Charge for an Automobile, from the
Personal Use of a Motor Vehicle Supplied by an
Employer – After 1992
- <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>
### Definitions
Read through the following definitions. They will help you
understand the terms and expressions the CRA uses in the
information that follows.
Automobile
An automobile is a motor vehicle that is designed or
adapted mainly to carry individuals on highways and
streets, and has a seating capacity of not more than the
driver and eight passengers.
If the vehicle you provide to your employee is not included
in the definition of automobile as described, see “Benefit for
motor vehicles not defined as an automobile“ on page 13.
Note
Zero-emission passenger vehicles (ZEPVs) are
automobiles. For more information about ZEPVs, go to
<https://canada.ca/line-22900>.
For more information on what is defined under automobile,
go to <https://canada.ca/automotor-allowances>.
An automobile does not include:
- an ambulance
- clearly marked police or fire emergency response
vehicles

<!-- Page 9 -->

- clearly marked emergency medical response vehicles
that you use to carry emergency medical equipment
and one or more emergency medical attendants or
paramedics
- a motor vehicle you bought to use primarily (more than
50% of the distance driven) as a taxi, a bus used in a
business of transporting passengers, or a hearse in a
funeral business
- a motor vehicle you bought to sell, rent, or lease in a
motor vehicle sales, rental, or leasing business, except
for benefits arising from personal use of an automobile
- a motor vehicle (other than a hearse) you bought to use
in a funeral business to transport passengers, except for
benefits arising from personal use of an automobile
- a van, pickup truck, or similar vehicle that meets either
of the following criteria:
- can seat no more than the driver and two passengers,
and in the year it is acquired or leased is used (50% or
more of the distance driven) to transport goods or
equipment in the course of business
- in the year it is acquired or leased, it is used (90% or
more of the distance driven) to transport goods,
equipment, or passengers in the course of business
- pickup trucks that you bought or leased in the tax year
that meet both of the following criteria:
- are used (50% or more of the distance driven) to
transport goods, equipment, or passengers in the
course of earning or producing income
- are used at a remote work location or at a special work
site that is at least 30 kilometres away from any
community having a population of at least 40,000
If the back part or trunk of a van, pickup truck, or similar
vehicle has been permanently altered and can no longer be
used as a passenger vehicle, it is no longer considered an
automobile as long as it is used primarily for business.
Employee
While the information in this chapter relates to an
employee, it may also apply to the following taxpayers:
- a person who does not deal at arm’s length with the
employee
- an individual who holds an office or person who does
not deal at arm’s length with that individual
- a partner or person related to the partner
- a shareholder or person related to the shareholder
Motor vehicle
A motor vehicle is an automotive vehicle designed or
adapted for use on highways and streets. It does not
include a trolley bus or a vehicle designed or adapted for
use only on rails. Although an automobile is a kind of
motor vehicle, the CRA treats them differently for income
tax purposes.
Zero-emission vehicles are cars and trucks powered by
rechargeable electric batteries or hydrogen fuel cells.
<https://canada.ca/taxes> 9

For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/line-22900>.
Personal driving (personal use)
You may provide an automobile to your employee to use in
performing their duties of office or employment. Personal
driving is any driving done for purposes not related to
employment.
Whatever the situation, if your employee drives your
vehicle for personal reasons or you reimburse your
employee for the personal driving of their own vehicle,
there is a taxable benefit that has to be calculated and
included in their income.
Personal driving includes:
- vacation trips
- driving to conduct personal activities
- travel between home and a regular place of
employment, other than a point of call
- travel between home and a regular place of
employment even if you insist the employee drives the
vehicle home, such as when they are on call
Business (employment-related) driving
- Travel between your employee’s regular place of
employment and a client’s workplace (a point of call)
- Travel for business purpose errands
- Travel between home and a point of call, such as:
- Salesperson visiting customers
Going to a client’s premises for a meeting
-
- Making a repair call
If your employee does not use the automobile for any
personal driving, there is no taxable benefit, even if the
automobile is available to your employee for the entire
year. This applies as long as the kilometres driven by your
employee were in the course of their employment duties
and the automobile is returned to your premises at the end
of their work day.
To determine if you made the automobile available to your
employee and if it was used for personal driving, go to
<https://canada.ca/automobile-motor-vehicle-benefits>.
Regular place of employment
A regular place of employment is any location where your
employee regularly reports for work or performs the duties
of employment. In this case, “regular” means there is some
degree of frequency or repetition in the employee’s
reporting to that particular work location in a given pay
period, month, or year. This “place” does not have to be
an establishment of the employer.
Depending on the circumstances, your employee may have
more than one location where they regularly report for
work. If your employee has multiple regular work locations
and travels between home and several work locations
during the day, only the trip from your employee’s home to
the first work location or, the trip from the last work

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location to home is personal driving. Any travel by the
employee between work locations is business related.
Exceptions
Where you provide your employees with transportation to
a regular place of employment, it may not be a taxable
benefit if either of the following applies:
- You need to provide your employees with
transportation from pickup points to an employment
location when public and private vehicles are neither
allowed nor practical at the location because of security
or other reasons
- You need to provide transportation to your employee
who works at a special work site or a remote location. If
so, see “Board, lodging, and transportation – Special
work sites and remote work locations“ on page 17
Point of call
A point of call is a place the employee goes to perform their
employment duties other than the employee’s regular place
of employment.
The CRA will consider the employee’s travel between their
home to a point of call to be “business” driving (and not a
taxable benefit) if you need or allow the employee to travel
directly from home to a point of call (such as a salesperson
visiting customers, going to a client’s premises for a
meeting, or making a repair call) or to return home from
that point.
Note
It must be reasonable that the employee’s travel to the
point of call be made at that time and on the way to or
from work. If it is unreasonable, then that distance is
personal driving and is a taxable benefit.
Vehicle
The term “vehicle” used in this chapter includes both
automobiles and motor vehicles not defined as automobiles.
### Keeping records
You and your employees have to keep records on the usage
of the vehicle so that you can properly identify the business
and personal use amounts of the total kilometres driven in
a calendar year. The records may contain information
relating to the business destination such as the date, the
name and address of the client, and the distance travelled
between home and the client’s place of business. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-records>.
### Calculating automobile benefits
An employee receives a taxable benefit if an automobile is
made available because of the employee’s current,
previous, or intended office or employment. The benefit for
an automobile you provide is generally:
- a standby charge for the year; plus
- an operating expense benefit for the year; minus
- any reimbursements employees make in the year for
benefits you otherwise include in their income for the
standby charge or the operating expenses
10 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

You can use the following tools to determine if the
automobile benefit is taxable and calculate the benefits:
- Automobile Benefits Online Calculator
at <https://canada.ca/automobile-benefits-calculator>
- Worksheet – You can get Form RC18, Calculating
Automobile Benefits, by going to <https://canada.ca/cra-forms>
-publications or by calling 1-800-959-5525
Calculating a standby charge for automobiles
you own or lease
The standby charge is for the benefit your employee gets
when your owned or leased automobile is made available
for their personal use. Any reimbursements you receive
from your employee, other than expenses relating to the
operation of the automobile, will decrease the standby
charge that has to be included in your employee’s income.
The following information about personal use, availability
and reducing the standby charge is the same whether you
own the automobile or lease it.
For more details on standby charges calculation and
examples, go to <https://canada.ca/automobile-motor-vehicle-benefits>.
Availability and personal use
An automobile is available to your employee if they have
access to or control over the vehicle. It includes any part of
a day, weekends and holidays during the calendar year.
If your employee does not use your automobile for any
personal driving, there is no taxable benefit, even if the
automobile is available to your employee for the entire
year. This applies as long as the kilometres driven by your
employee were in the course of their employment duties
and the vehicle is returned to your premises at the end of
their work day.
Reducing the standby charge
Calculate the standby charge at a reduced rate if all of the
following conditions apply:
- you require your employee to use the automobile to
perform their duties
- the employee uses the automobile more than 50% of the
distance driven for business purposes
- the kilometres for personal use are not more than 1,667
per 30-day period or a total of 20,004 kilometres a year
Use one of the following tools to apply the reduced rate:
- The Automobile Benefits Online Calculator, for 2018
and subsequent years, at <https://canada.ca/automobile-benefits-calculator>
- Form RC18, Calculating Automobile Benefits
Automobile you own
There are two methods to calculate the standby charge
when you own the automobile – the simplified calculation
and the detailed calculation.
The simplified calculation has certain conditions that the
employee has to meet. If the conditions are not met, you

<!-- Page 11 -->

have to use the detailed calculation. To find out which
calculation method is better for your employee, use
Form RC18, Calculating Automobile Benefits.
The following information will help you fill in Form RC18
and the Automobile Benefits Online Calculator.
1) Your automobile costs
The cost of your automobile for determining the standby
charge is the total of the following two amounts:
- the cost of the automobile when you bought it,
including options, accessories, and the GST/HST and
PST, but not including any reduction for a trade-in
- the cost of additions (including the GST/HST and PST)
you made to the automobile after you bought it (that
you add to the capital cost of the automobile to
calculate the deduction for depreciation)
Note
Where the automobile was purchased from a non-arm’s
length person, the cost is generally equal to the fair
market value when you bought it, including options and
GST/HST or PST.
Specialized equipment you add to the automobile to meet
the requirements of a disabled person or for employment
(such as cellular phones, two-way radios, heavy-duty
suspension, and power winches) are not considered to be
part of the automobile’s cost for purposes of calculating the
standby charge.
If you operate a fleet or pool of automobiles, go to the
heading “Fleet operations” below.
2) 30-day periods
When you divide the total days available by 30, round off
the result to the nearest whole number if it is more than
one.
Examples:
20 days ÷ 30 = 0.67 (do not round off)
130 days ÷ 30 = 4.33 (round to 4)
135 days ÷ 30 = 4.50 (round to 4)
140 days ÷ 30 = 4.67 (round to 5)
3) Personal kilometres
See the section on “Personal driving (personal use)“ on
page 9.
4) Reimbursements
A reimbursement is an amount you receive from your
employee to repay you for some of your automobile costs.
The amount the employee reimburses you may be used to
reduce the employee’s taxable benefit.
Fleet operations
You may operate a fleet or pool of automobiles from which
an employee uses several automobiles during the year. If
you assign an automobile to an employee from a fleet or
pool on a long-term or exclusive basis, the cost of the
automobile you have assigned to the employee should be
used when you calculate their standby charge.
However, if the fleet is mostly the same or if you group it
into a few similar groups, you can calculate the standby
charge based on the average cost of the group from which
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

you provide the automobile. You and your employee have
to agree to this.
For more information on grouping automobiles by average
cost, see archived Interpretation Bulletin IT-63R5, Benefits,
Including Standby Charge for an Automobile, from the
Personal Use of a Motor Vehicle Supplied by an Employer –
After 1992.
Automobile you lease
You must use the detailed calculation to calculate the
standby charge for employer leased automobiles. The
following information will help you fill in Form RC18 and
the Automobile Benefits Online Calculator.
1) Your leasing costs
Leasing costs of your automobile used in calculating the
standby charge includes both of the following category:
- the rental cost for the automobile
- any associated costs, such as maintenance contracts,
excess mileage charges, terminal charges less terminal
credits, and the GST/HST and PST that you pay to the
lessor under the leasing contract
Note
Leasing costs do not include liability and collision
insurance costs.
2) 30-day periods
When you divide the total days available by 30, round off
the result to the nearest whole number if it is more than
one.
Examples:
20 days ÷ 30 = 0.67 (do not round off)
130 days ÷ 30 = 4.33 (round to 4)
135 days ÷ 30 = 4.50 (round to 4)
140 days ÷ 30 = 4.67 (round to 5)
3) Personal kilometres
See the section on “Personal driving (personal use)“ on
page 9.
4) Reimbursements
A reimbursement is an amount you receive from your
employee to repay you for some of your automobile costs.
The amount the employee reimburses you may be used to
reduce the employee’s taxable benefit.
Lump-sum lease payments
Lump-sum amounts you pay the lessor at the beginning or
end of a lease that are not a payment to buy the automobile
will affect the standby charge for the automobile.
Prorate the lump-sum payment you make at the beginning
of a lease over the life of the lease and add it to the leasing
cost.
If you make a lump sum payment at the end of a lease, the
CRA considers the payment to be a terminal charge. This
means your lease costs should have been higher and the
standby charge for the automobile has been understated.
11

<!-- Page 12 -->

In this situation, you can use one of the following methods:
- add the terminal charge to the lease costs in the year
you end the lease
- prorate the payment over the term of the lease and
amend the T4 or T4A slip of the employee who used the
automobile, as long as they agree and can still ask for
an income tax adjustment for the years in question
Each employee can then write to any tax services office or
tax centre and ask the CRA to adjust their income tax and
benefit returns for those years.
A lump sum payment you receive from the lessor at the
end of a lease is considered to be a terminal credit. When
this happens, the standby charge for the automobile has
been overstated since the lease costs should have been
lower. In this situation, you can use one of the following
methods:
- deduct the terminal credit from the lease costs in the
year you end the lease
- amend the T4 or T4A slip of the employee who used the
automobile and provide a letter explaining the
reduction, as long as the employee agrees and can still
ask for an income tax adjustment for the years in
question
Each employee can then write to any tax services office or
tax centre and ask the CRA to adjust their income tax and
benefit returns for those years.
Whichever method you use when you make or receive a
lump-sum payment at the end of the lease, include the
GST/HST and PST.
Employees who sell or lease automobiles
You can modify the calculation of the standby charge for
individuals you employ to sell or lease automobiles if all of
the following conditions apply:
- you employ the individual mainly to sell or lease
automobiles
- you made an automobile you own available to that
individual or to someone related to that individual
- you acquired at least one automobile during the year
You can choose the rate of 1.5% instead of 2% for the
automobile’s cost to you, and calculate your automobile
cost as the greater of the following two amounts:
- the average cost of all new automobiles you acquired in
the year to sell or lease
- the average cost of all automobiles you acquired in the
year to sell or lease
Note
The cost of an automobile is generally equal to its fair
market value at the time of acquisition, including
GST/HST and PST.
Calculating an operating expense benefit
When you (or a person related to you) provide an
automobile to an employee and pay for the operating
expenses related to personal use (including the GST/HST
12 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

and PST), this payment is a taxable benefit for the
employee.
Operating expenses include:
- gasoline and oil
- maintenance charges and repair expenses, less
insurance proceeds
- licences and insurance
Operating expenses do not include:
- interest
- capital cost allowance for an automobile you own
- lease costs for a leased automobile
- parking costs, highway or bridge tolls
If you pay any amount of operating expenses, you have to
determine the operating expense benefit by using either the
optional or fixed rate calculation.
Optional calculation
You can choose this method to calculate the automobile’s
operating expense benefit if all of the following conditions
apply:
- you include a standby charge in your employee’s
income
- your employee uses the automobile more than 50% of
the distance driven in the course of their office or
employment
- your employee notifies you in writing before the end of
the tax year to use this method
If all of these conditions are met, calculate the operating
expense benefit of the automobile at half of the standby
charge before deducting any payments (reimbursements)
your employee or a person related to your employee
makes. In some cases, this optional calculation may result
in a higher benefit amount than the fixed rate calculation.
Fixed rate calculation
The fixed rate for 2025 is 34¢ per kilometre of personal use
(including the GST/HST and PST).
If the employee’s main source of employment is selling or
leasing automobiles, the fixed rate for 2025 is 31¢ per
kilometre of personal use (including the GST/HST and
PST).
Rates for previous tax years can be found in older versions
of this guide or in section 7305.1 of the Income Tax
Regulations.
Note
When you use the fixed rate calculation, you still have to
keep records of this benefit.
Reimbursement for operating expenses
If the employee reimburses you in the year or no later than
45 days after the end of the year for all actual operating
expenses (including the GST/HST and PST) attributable to
personal use, you do not have to calculate an operating
expense benefit for the year.

<!-- Page 13 -->

If the employee reimburses you for part of the automobile’s
operating expenses in the year or no later than 45 days after
the end of the year, deduct the payment from the operating
expense benefit that you calculate.
Example
In 2025, you provided your employee with an automobile.
She drove 30,000 kilometres during the year, with
10,000 kilometres for personal use.
You paid $3,000 in costs associated with maintenance,
licences, and insurance.
Calculate the part of the operating expenses that relates to
her personal use of the automobile as follows:
10,000 km × $3,000 = $1,000
30,000 km
If she reimbursed you for the total amount of $1,000 in
the year, or no later than 45 days after the end of the year,
you do not have to calculate an operating expense benefit
for her.
However, if she reimbursed you for only $800 of the
expenses you paid in the year, or no later than 45 days after
the end of the year, the operating expense benefit is $2,500,
calculated as follows:
10,000 km × 34¢ = $3,400
$3,400 – $800 = $2,600
Operating expenses paid by employee to third party
If you provide an automobile to an employee and you
require your employee to pay a third party for part or all of
the operating expenses, such as gas or oil changes,
(including the GST/HST and PST) in the year,
administratively, the CRA will allow you to deduct the
portion of the expenses paid by the employee that are
attributable to personal use from the operating expense
benefit that you calculated. Your records have to show that
the employee paid the expenses directly to the third party.
For more detailed information on operating expenses, go to
<https://canada.ca/automobile-motor-vehicle-benefits>.
Note
The portion of the operating expenses that relates to
personal use is the percentage obtained by dividing the
number of personal kilometres by the total number of
kilometres driven by the employee during the year while
the automobile was available to the employee. Excess
amounts cannot be deducted from the employee’s
standby charge that you calculated.
Example
In 2025, you provided your employee with an automobile.
He drove 36,000 kilometres during the year,
12,000 kilometres of which were for personal use.
You paid $3,000 in associated insurance and maintenance
during the year. Your employee paid $1,500 for gas and oil
changes. He did not reimburse you for any of your costs
and you did not reimburse him for any of his costs.
1) Calculate the employee’s operating expense benefit using
the flat-rate calculation as follows:
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

12,000 km × 34¢ = $4,080
2) Calculate the personal portion of the operating expenses
that he paid to a third party as follows:
12,000 km × $1,500 = $500
36,000 km
3) Calculate your employee’s taxable operating expense
benefit by subtracting the amount you calculated in step 2
from the amount you calculated in step 1, as follows:
$4,080 – $500 = $3,580
### Benefit for motor vehicles not defined as an automobile
Even if the vehicle you provide to your employee is not
included in the definition of automobile on page 8, there is
still a taxable benefit for the employee for their personal
driving.
You have to reasonably estimate the fair market value of
your employee’s personal use of your motor vehicle,
including the GST/HST and PST. A reasonable estimate is
considered to be the amount an employee would have had
to pay in an arm’s length transaction for the use of
comparable transportation. It includes items such as the
cost of leasing a comparable vehicle and any other related
operating costs. For more information, go to paragraph 23
in the archived Interpretation Bulletin IT-63R5, Benefits,
Including Standby Charge for an Automobile, from the
Personal Use of a Motor Vehicle Supplied by an
Employer – After 1992 or go to <https://canada.ca/automobile-motor-vehicle-benefits>.
Although other methods of calculating the value of your
employee’s taxable motor vehicle benefit are acceptable, the
CRA generally accepts that the employment benefit arising
from the employee’s personal use of the vehicle will be
considered reasonable if it is calculated using the rates
shown under “Reasonable allowance rates“ on page 15.
Note
The standby charge and operating expense benefit
calculations should not be used.
Depending on how your motor vehicle is used by your
employee and the conditions that you place on the use of it,
you may be able to calculate your employee’s taxable
benefit using the Motor vehicle home at night policy
below.
Motor vehicle home at night policy
Administratively, you can calculate the taxable benefit for
your employee’s personal use of the motor vehicle between
home and work using the rates shown under “Fixed rate
calculation“ on page 12 as long as your employee meets all
of the following conditions:
1. The motor vehicle (as defined on page 9) is not an
automobile
2. You tell your employee in writing that they cannot
make any personal use of the vehicle, other than
travelling between work and home
13

<!-- Page 14 -->

Note
Your employee will have to maintain full logbooks of the
vehicle’s use as proof that there was no other personal
use.
3. You have valid business reasons for making the
employee take the vehicle home at night, such as:
- it would not be safe to leave tools and equipment at
your premises or at a worksite overnight
- your employee is on call to respond to emergencies
(see Note), and you provide the vehicle so the
employee can respond more effectively to
emergencies
4. The motor vehicle is specifically designed or suited for
your business or trade and is essential for the
performance of your employee’s duties. Just
transporting the employee to the work location does
not meet the condition of “essential in the performance
of employment duties.” The following examples meet
both conditions:
The vehicle is designed, or significantly modified, to
-
carry tools, equipment, or merchandise. Your
employee has to have the vehicle to do their job
- The vehicle, such as a pickup truck or a van, is
suitable for and is consistently used to carry and store
heavy, bulky, or numerous tools and equipment. It
would be difficult to load and unload the contents.
The vehicle is essential to your employee in
performing their job
- The vehicle is regularly used to carry harmful or
foul-smelling material, such as veterinary samples or
fish and game. The vehicle is essential to your
employee in performing their job
- Your employee is on call for emergencies (see Note),
and has to use a vehicle which:
- is a clearly marked emergency-response vehicle
- is specially equipped to respond rapidly
- is designed to carry specialized equipment to the
scene of an emergency
Note
The CRA generally considers an emergency to relate
either to the health and safety of the general population
or to a significant disruption to the employer’s
operations.
For examples of situations where transportation to and
from home is considered a taxable benefit, go to <https://canada.ca>
/examples-transportation. For more details on vehicle
home at night policy, go to <https://canada.ca/automobile-motor-vehicle-benefits>.
Reporting automobile or motor vehicle
benefits
Employee’s benefit
Report the value of the benefit including the GST/HST and
PST that applies in box 14, “Employment income,” and in
the “Other information” area under code 34 at the bottom
of the employee’s T4 slip.
14 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Also, report the benefit on a T4 slip when the individual is
an employee/shareholder and you provide the vehicle to
the individual (or a person related to that individual) in
their capacity as an employee.
Shareholder’s benefit
Report the value of the benefit including GST/HST and
PST that applies using code 028, “Other income” in the
“Other information” area at the bottom of the T4A slip if
either of the following applies:
- the shareholder is not an employee
- the individual is an employee/shareholder, and you
provide the vehicle to the individual (or person related
to that individual) in their capacity as a shareholder
- for more information on payroll deductions and
calculate the GST/HST related to the taxable benefit, go
to <https://canada.ca/automotor-allowances>
### Automobile and motor vehicle allowances
An allowance is any payment that employees receive from
an employer for using their own vehicle in connection with
or in the course of their office or employment without
having to account for its use. This payment is in addition to
their salary or wages. An allowance is taxable unless it is
based on a reasonable per-kilometre rate.
This section explains common forms of automobile and
motor vehicle allowances.
Employees receiving a taxable allowance may be able to
claim allowable expenses on their income tax and benefit
return. For more information, see “Employee’s allowable
employment expenses,” on page 8, or go to <https://canada.ca/automotor-allowances>.
Reasonable per-kilometre allowance
If you pay your employee an allowance based on a
per-kilometre rate that is considered reasonable, do not
deduct CPP contributions, EI premiums, or income tax.
The per-kilometre rates that the CRA usually considers
reasonable are the amounts prescribed in section 7306 of the
Income Tax Regulations. Although these rates represent the
maximum amount that you can deduct as business
expenses, you can use them as a guideline to determine if
the allowance paid to your employee is reasonable. The
type of vehicle and the driving conditions are other factors
used to determine whether an allowance is considered to be
reasonable.
The CRA considers an allowance to be reasonable if all of
the following conditions apply:
- The allowance is based only on the number of business
kilometres driven in a year
- The rate per-kilometre is reasonable
- You did not reimburse the employee for expenses
related to the same use of the vehicle. This does not
apply to situations where you reimburse an employee
for toll or ferry charges or supplementary business

<!-- Page 15 -->

insurance, if you determined the allowance without
including these reimbursements
When your employees fill out their income tax and benefit
return, they do not include this allowance in income.
Reasonable allowance rates
For 2025, they are:
- 72¢ per kilometre for the first 5,000 kilometres driven
- 66¢ per kilometre driven after that
In the Northwest Territories, Yukon, and Nunavut, there is
an additional 4¢ per kilometre allowed for travel.
Rates for previous tax years can be found in older versions of
this guide or in section 7306 of the Income Tax Regulations.
Per-kilometre allowance rates that are not
considered reasonable
If you pay your employee an allowance based on a
per-kilometre rate that is not considered reasonable
(because it is either too high or too low), it is a taxable
benefit and has to be included in the employee’s income.
Flat-rate allowance
If you pay your employee an allowance based on a flat rate
that is not related to the number of kilometres driven, it is a
taxable benefit and has to be included in the employee’s
income.
Combination of flat-rate and reasonable
per-kilometre allowances
If you pay your employee an allowance that is a
combination of flat-rate and reasonable per-kilometre
allowances that cover the same use for the vehicle, the total
combined allowance is a taxable benefit and has to be
included in the employee’s income.
Example 1
You pay an allowance to your employee as follows:
- a flat per-diem rate to offset the employee’s fixed
expenses for each day the vehicle is required
- a reasonable per-kilometre rate for each kilometre
driven to offset the operating expenses
The flat per-diem rate compensates the employee for some
of the same use on which the reasonable per-kilometre
allowance is based. That is, the fixed expenses incurred by
the employee to operate the vehicle.
The combined amount is considered one allowance and
therefore taxable, since it is not based only on the number
of kilometres the vehicle is used for employment purposes.
Example 2
You pay an allowance to your employee as follows:
- a flat-rate per month for travel inside the employment
district
- a reasonable per-kilometre rate for employment-related
travel outside the employment district
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Since the flat-rate allowance does not cover any of the same
use of the vehicle on which the reasonable per-kilometre
allowance is based, the allowances are considered
separately.
The reasonable per-kilometre allowance paid for travel
outside the district is not included in income. The amount
based on a flat-rate paid for travel inside the district is
taxable, since it is not based only on the number of
kilometres for which the vehicle is used in connection with
the employment.
Only the total of the monthly flat-rate allowance has to be
reported in box 14, “Employment income,” and in the
“Other information” area under code 40 at the bottom of
the employee’s T4 slip.
Reimbursement or advance for travel
expenses
A reimbursement is a payment you make to your
employees as a repayment for amounts they spent (such as
gas and meals) while conducting your business. Generally,
the employee completes a claim or expense report detailing
the amounts spent. Do not include a reasonable
reimbursement (which is part of your business expenses) in
the employee’s income.
An advance is an amount you give to employees for
expenses they will incur on your business. An accountable
advance is one that you give to an employee who has to
account for their expenses by producing vouchers and
return any amount they did not spend.
Usually, a reimbursement or an accountable advance for
travel expenses is not income for the employee receiving it
unless it represents payment of the employee’s personal
expenses.
### Averaging allowances
To comply with the rules on reasonable per-kilometre
allowances, employees have to file expense claims with you
on an ongoing basis, starting at the beginning of the year.
A flat-rate or lump-sum allowance that is not based on the
number of kilometres driven cannot be averaged at the end
of the year to determine a reasonable per-kilometre rate
and then be excluded from the employee’s income.
The CRA understands the administrative problems that can
result from this. As a result, the CRA is giving you a choice.
If you make accountable advances to employees for vehicle
expenses, you do not have to include them in the
employee’s income if all of the following conditions are
met:
- there is a pre-established per-kilometre rate that is not
more than a reasonable amount
- the rate and the advances are reasonable under the
circumstances
- you document this method in the employee’s record
- no other provision of the Income Tax Act requires you
to include the advances in the employee’s income
15

<!-- Page 16 -->

Employees have to account for the business kilometres they
travelled and any advances they received. They have to do
so on the date their employment ends in the year, or by
December 31, whichever is earlier.
At that time, you have to pay any amounts you owe the
employee and the employee has to repay any amount over
actual expenses. Where no repayment occurs, you cannot
simply report the excess advances on the employee’s
T4 slip.
For more information on vehicle allowances, go
to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>.
Reducing tax deductions at source on
automobile or motor vehicle allowances
In many cases, allowances that are not based only on a
reasonable per-kilometre rate can later be substantially
offset by the employees’ expense deductions on their
income tax and benefit returns. In these situations,
employees can ask to reduce their tax deductions on their
remuneration by filling out and sending in a Form T1213,
Request to Reduce Tax Deductions at Source, or a written
request to any tax services office along with the following
information:
- the type of employment for which the employee will
receive the allowance
- an estimate of the total vehicle allowances the employee
will receive in the year
- an estimate of the business kilometres the employee
will drive in the year
- an estimate of the employee’s vehicle expenses for the
year
- the amount for which the employee is requesting the
waiver
If you have a number of employees in the same situation,
you can get a general waiver for the group. This way, every
employee does not have to make an individual request.
Reporting automobile or motor vehicle
allowances on the T4 slip
If you provide an allowance that the CRA considers to be
taxable to your employee, you have to enter the yearly total
of this allowance in box 14, “Employment income,” and in
the “Other information” area under code 40 at the bottom
of the employee’s T4 slip. Do not report any amount that
the CRA does not consider taxable.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/automotor-allowances>.
## Chapter 3 – Other benefits and allowances
### Aircraft Benefits
If you give your employee access to an aircraft for personal
purposes, the employee receives a taxable benefit. You have
to add to the employee’s salary the fair market value of the
benefit, minus any amount the employee paid. The value of
16 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

the benefit is determined on the basis of what is reasonable
in relation to the facts of the case and the manner in which
the aircraft is used.
For more information about aircraft benefits, go
to <https://canada.ca/cra-taxable-benefit-personal-aircraft>.
### Board and lodging
You may give your employee board and lodging which
means that you provide them with accommodations and, in
some cases, food. If you provide only meals to an
employee, see “Meals“ on page 27.
If you provide free lodging, or free board and lodging, to
an employee, the employee receives a taxable benefit. As a
result, you have to add to the employee’s salary the fair
market value of the board and lodging you provide. Report
this amount in box 14, “Employment income,” and in the
“Other information” area under code 30 at the bottom of
the employee’s T4 slip.
If you provide subsidized lodging, or subsidized board
and lodging, to an employee, the employee receives a
taxable benefit. As a result, you have to add to the
employee’s salary the fair market value of the board and
lodging you provide, minus any amount the employee
paid. Report this amount in box 14, “Employment income,”
and in the “Other information” area under code 30 at the
bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
Exceptions to the rules
There are certain situations that can affect the value of the
taxable benefit your employee gets if you provide free or
subsidized board and lodging. The exceptions are as
follows:
- If you provide allowances for board and lodging to
players on sports teams or members of recreation
programs, see the next section
- If you provide board, lodging, or transportation, or
allowances for board, lodging, or transportation to an
employee who works at a special work site or a remote
location, see “Board, lodging, and transportation – Special
work sites and remote work locations“ on page 17
### Board and lodging allowances paid to players on sports teams or members of recreation programs
You can exclude up to $ 441 (for 2025) per month from
income for a board and lodging allowance for a participant
or member of a sports team or recreational program if all of
the following conditions are met:
- you are a registered charity or a non-profit organization
- participation with, or membership on the team or in the
program is restricted to persons under 21 years of age
- the allowance is for board and lodging for participants
or members that have to live away from their ordinary
place of residence

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- the allowance is not attributable to any services, such as
coaching, refereeing, or other services to the team or
program
Do not report the excluded income on a T4 slip.
### Board, lodging, and transportation – Special work sites and remote work locations
It is possible for an employee to work at a location that is
both a special work site and a remote work location.
However, the benefit can only be excluded from the
employee’s income once.
Note
If the special work site is in a prescribed zone, see
“Board, lodging, and transportation at a special
work site in a prescribed zone“ on page 41.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-board-lodging-transportation-worksite-zone>.
Special work sites
Generally, a special work site is an area where temporary
duties are performed by an employee who keeps a
self-contained domestic establishment at another location
as their principal place of residence. Because of the distance
between the two areas, the employee is not expected to
return daily from the work site to their principal place of
residence.
Note
A self-contained domestic establishment (SCDE) is a
house, an apartment, or other similar place of residence
where a person usually sleeps and eats. It is generally a
living unit with restricted access that contains a kitchen,
bathroom, and sleeping facilities. The SCDE must be
separate from any other living unit in the same building.
A room in a hotel, dormitory, boarding house, or
bunkhouse is not ordinarily considered to be a SCDE.
Usually, the GST/HST and PST applies on meals and
accommodations you provide to an employee. In certain
cases, such as long-term residential accommodation of one
month or more, no GST/HST and PST applies. Where the
GST/HST and PST does apply, include it in the value of the
benefit.
Board and lodging at a special work site
You can exclude from income the value of board and
lodging, or an allowance (not in excess of a reasonable
amount) for board and lodging, that you provide to an
employee who works at a special work site if all of the
following conditions are met:
- The employee’s duties required them to be away from
their principal place of residence or to be at the special
work site
- The employee had to work at a special work site where
the duties performed were of a temporary nature
- The employee kept, at another location, a self-contained
domestic establishment as their principal place of
residence:
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

- that, throughout the period, was available for the
employee’s occupancy, and the employee did not rent
it to any other person
- to which, because of distance, the employee could not
reasonably be expected to return daily from the special
work site
- The board and lodging, or the allowance (not in excess
of a reasonable amount) for board and lodging, you
provided to the employee had to have been for a period
of at least 36 hours. This period can include time spent
travelling between the employee’s principal place of
residence and a special work site.
Note
You can only exclude from income an allowance (not in
excess of a reasonable amount) paid to your employee
for board and lodging if they incurred the expense.
Transportation
You can exclude from income the value of free or
subsidized transportation, or an allowance (not in excess of
a reasonable amount) for transportation expenses, that you
provide to an employee who works at a special work site if
all of the following conditions are met:
- the free or subsidized transportation, or the allowance,
was for transportation between the special work site
and your employee’s principal place of residence
- the employee’s duties required them to be away from
their principal place of residence or be at the special
work site for a period of at least 36 hours
- you (or a third party) provided board and lodging, or a
reasonable allowance for board and lodging, to your
employee for that period
Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption – Employment at
a Special Work Site
If all of the conditions listed under “Board and lodging“
noted above are met, you and the employee should fill out
Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption – Employment at a
Special Work Site. This allows you to exclude the benefit or
allowance from the employee’s income. If you fill out
Form TD4, do not include the amounts in box 14,
“Employment income,” or in the “Other information” area
under code 30 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
After you fill out Form TD4 with the employee, keep it with
your payroll records.
If all of the above-noted conditions are not met, do not fill
out Form TD4. Treat the total amounts as part of the
employee’s income. Make the necessary deductions and
report the amounts on the employee’s T4 slip. This also
applies to any allowance for board, lodging, and
transportation that is more than a reasonable amount.
Remote work locations
The CRA usually considers a work location to be remote
when it is 80 kilometres or more from the nearest
established community with a population of at least
1,000 people.
17

<!-- Page 18 -->

A location is considered an established community if it has
essential services or those services are available within a
reasonable commuting distance. Essential services may
include access to:
- basic food store
- basic clothing store, with merchandise in stock (not a
mail-order outlet)
- accommodation
- certain medical services
- certain educational facilities
Board and lodging at a remote work location
You can exclude from income the value of board and
lodging, or an allowance (not in excess of a reasonable
amount) for board and lodging that you provide to an
employee who works at a remote work location, if all of
the following conditions are met:
- The employee could not reasonably be expected to set
up and maintain a self-contained domestic
establishment because of the remoteness of the location
and the distance from any established community
- You did not provide a self-contained domestic
establishment for the employee
- The board and lodging, or allowances (not in excess of a
reasonable amount) for board and lodging, were for a
period of at least 36 hours when one of the following
situations applied:
- The employee had to be away from their principal
place of residence because of their duties
- The employee had to be at the remote work location
Transportation
You can exclude from income the value of free or
subsidized transportation, or an allowance (not in excess of
a reasonable amount) for transportation expenses, that you
provide to an employee who works at a remote work
location if all of the following conditions are met:
- The employee’s duties required them to be away from
their principal place of residence or to be at the remote
work location for a period of at least 36 hours
- The free or subsidized transportation, or the allowance,
was for transportation between the remote work
location and any location in Canada. If the remote work
location is outside Canada, you can exclude the
allowance for transportation between that location and
any location in Canada or outside Canada
- You (or a third party) provided board and lodging, or a
reasonable allowance for board and lodging, to your
employee for that period
If you need help determining whether a location qualifies
as remote, see archived Interpretation Bulletin IT-91R4,
Employment at Special Work Sites or Remote Work
Locations.
18 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption – Employment at
a Special Work Site
When there is an exemption for board, lodging, or
transportation allowances you pay to employees who work
at a remote work location, do not fill out Form TD4.
Payroll deductions
If you exclude a benefit for board, lodging, and
transportation at a special work site or remote work
location, it is not a taxable benefit. Do not deduct CPP
contributions, EI premiums, or income tax.
### Cell phone and internet services
If you provide your employee with a cell phone (or other
handheld communication device) that you own, to help
carry out their employment duties, the fair market value
(FMV) of the cell phone or device is not a taxable benefit.
However, if you reimburse your employee for the cost of
their own cell phone (or other handheld communication
device), the FMV of the cell phone or device is considered a
taxable benefit to the employee. This is the case even if the
employee used, lost, or damaged the cell phone or device
while carrying out their employment duties.
If you pay for, or reimburse the cost of an employee’s cell
phone service plan, or Internet service at home to help
carry out their employment duties, the portion used for
employment purposes is not a taxable benefit.
If part of the use of the cell phone or Internet service is
personal, you have to include the value of the personal use
in your employee’s income as a taxable benefit. The value
of the benefit is based on the FMV of the service
attributable to personal use, minus any amounts your
employee reimburses you. You can only use your cost to
calculate the value of the benefit if it reflects the FMV.
For cellular phone service only, the CRA does not consider
your employee’s personal use of the cellular phone service
to be a taxable benefit if all of the following apply:
- the plan’s cost is reasonable
- the plan is a basic plan with a fixed cost
- your employee’s personal use of the service does not
result in charges that are more than the basic plan cost
You, as the employer, are responsible for determining the
percentage of employment use and the FMV.
Note
If you give your employee an allowance for cellular
phone or Internet services, the allowance must be
included in the employee’s income.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-phone-internet>.
### Child care expenses
Child care is not taxable only if all of the following
conditions are met:
- the services are provided at your place of business
- the services are managed directly by you

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- the services are provided to all of the employees at
minimal or no cost
- the services are not available to the general public, only
to employees
If not all of the conditions are met, the taxable benefit is the
fair market value (FMV) minus any amount that the
employee pays for the service.
When you subsidize a facility operated by a third party in
exchange for subsidized rates for your employees, the
amount of the subsidy is considered a taxable benefit for
the employee.
### Counselling services
The fees you pay to provide services such as financial
counselling or income tax preparation for an employee are
usually considered a taxable benefit.
Employee counselling services are not taxable if they
are for one of the following:
- an employee’s re-employment
- an employee’s retirement
- an employee’s mental or physical health (such as
counselling for tobacco, drug, or alcohol abuse, stress
management or employee assistance programs) or that
of a person related to an employee
Note
This does not include amounts for using recreational or
sporting facilities and club dues.
### Disability-related employment benefits
If you provide benefits or allowances to an employee who
has a disability, such as transportation costs or attendant
services, the benefits may not be taxable.
Reasonable transportation costs between an employee’s
home and work location (including parking near that
location) are not taxable if you pay them to or for an
employee to whom either of the following applies:
- Is blind
- Has a severe and prolonged mobility impairment,
which markedly restricts the individual’s ability to
perform a basic activity of daily living (generally,
someone who is eligible to claim the disability tax
credit)
These transportation costs can include an allowance for
taxis or specially designed public transit and parking that
you provide or subsidize for these employees.
You may have employees with severe and prolonged
mental or physical impairments. If you provide reasonable
benefits for attendants to help these employees perform
their duties of employment, these benefits are not taxable
for the employee. The benefits can include readers for
persons who are blind, signers for persons who are deaf,
and coaches for persons who are intellectually impaired.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Payroll deductions
If you exclude a disability-related employment benefit from
income, it is not a taxable benefit. Do not deduct CPP
contributions, EI premiums, or income tax.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and
select “Benefits provided to an employee who has a severe
or prolonged impairment (disability).”
### Discounts on merchandise and commissions from personal purchases
If you sell merchandise to your employee at a discount, the
benefit they get from this is not usually considered a
taxable benefit.
However, the CRA considers discounts to be taxable in all
of the following situations:
- you make a special arrangement with an employee or a
group of employees to buy merchandise at a discount
- you make an arrangement that allows an employee to
buy merchandise (other than old or soiled merchandise)
for less than your cost
- you make a reciprocal arrangement with one or more
other employers so that employees of one employer can
buy merchandise at a discount from another employer
If you determine the discount is taxable or you sell
merchandise to your employees below cost, the taxable
benefit is the difference between the fair market value of
the goods and the price the employees pay.
Commissions that sales employees receive on merchandise
they buy for personal use are not a taxable benefit.
Similarly, when life insurance salespeople acquire life
insurance policies, the commissions they receive are not
taxable as long as they own the policies and have to make
the required premium payments. This only applies where
the income received is not significant and the insurance
policy has no investment component or business use.
Note
This policy does not apply to discounts on services.
### Education benefits
If you provide education benefits to your employee, it may
be a taxable benefit to the employee in certain
circumstances.
If you provide education benefits to a person other than the
employee, such as employee’s family member, you do not
have to include the value of the benefit in the employee’s
income as long as you deal at arm’s length with the
employee and the education benefit is not a replacement for
salary, wages or other remuneration. Although
scholarships, bursaries, and free tuition for family members
are no longer a taxable benefit to employees, the benefit
may be income to the family member. For more
information, see “Family members“ on page 20.
19

<!-- Page 20 -->

Educational allowances for children
If you pay any amounts to an employee as an educational
allowance for the employee’s child, you have to include
these amounts in the employee’s income for the year.
However, if the employee’s child has to live away from
your employee’s home in the place, where the employee is
required to live because of their employment, the
educational allowance may not be taxable if all of the
following conditions are met:
- the education provided is in the official language of
Canada primarily used by the employee
- the school is the closest suitable one available in that
official language
- the child is in full-time attendance at the school
- the subsidy you provide is reasonable
Subsidized school services
Subsidized school services are generally taxable. However,
in remote areas, employers are often responsible for
essential community services that municipalities usually
provide.
If you provide free or subsidized school services in remote
areas for your employee’s children, the employee does not
receive a taxable benefit. Do not deduct CPP contributions,
EI premiums, or income tax on these amounts.
Note
This does not include an educational allowance or
educational costs you pay directly to your employee, as
explained elsewhere in this section.
Scholarships, bursaries, tuition, and training
Employee
You may provide an employee, or former employee, with a
scholarship or bursary on the condition that the employee
returns to employment with you on completing the course.
In this situation, the amount of the scholarship or bursary is
considered to be employment income for the employee or
former employee.
You have to report on a T4 slip any scholarships,
fellowships, or bursaries you gave to an employee if they
primarily benefit the employee. If you get any questions
from your employee about the income, you can refer them
to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Scholarships,
bursaries, tuition, and training.”
Specific employment-related training
The CRA generally considers that courses taken to maintain
or upgrade employment-related skills are mainly for your
benefit when it is reasonable to assume that the employee
will resume their employment for a reasonable period of
time after they finish the course.
For example, tuition fees and other associated costs such as
books, meals, travel, and accommodation that you pay for
courses leading to a degree, diploma, or certificate in a field
related to your employee’s current or future responsibilities
in your business are not a taxable benefit.
20 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

General employment-related training
The CRA generally considers that other business-related
courses, although not directly related to your own business,
are taken mainly for your benefit.
For example, fees you pay for stress management,
employment equity, first aid, and language courses are not
a taxable benefit.
Personal interest training
The CRA considers that courses for personal interest or
technical skills not related to your business are taken
mainly for the employee’s benefit and, therefore, are a
taxable benefit.
Scholarship and tuition fees
If you paid for, or reimbursed, your employee’s tuition fees
and there is no taxable benefit according to these
guidelines, the tuition fees will not qualify for the tuition
tax credit. You should inform your employee of this.
If you paid for, or reimbursed, education amounts that are
reported on either a T4 or T4A slip, these amounts may be
eligible for the scholarship exemption. The individual may
be able to fully exclude from their income tuition fees,
scholarships, fellowships, and bursaries they received from
you.
Family members
If you offer a program that provides free or reduced tuition
fees to the family members of your employees, do not
include the value of any benefit the employee’s family
member receives in your employee’s income unless:
- the benefit is provided as a substitute for salary, wages
or other remuneration
- you do not deal with the employee at arm’s length
Instead, report the FMV of the scholarship or bursary on a
T4A slip for the family member. If a family member meets
certain criteria, they may not have to include the amount in
income on their income tax and benefit return.
The same applies if you are an educational institution
offering free or discounted tuition to your employees’
family members.
If you get any questions, you can refer them to the
<https://canada.ca/fed-tax-information>.
For more information on scholarships or bursaries
provided in employment situations, go to
<https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Scholarships,
bursaries, tuition, and training.”
### Employment insurance premium rebate
As an employer, you may be eligible for a reduction in the
employer EI premium rate that you use to calculate your share
of the EI premiums if you offer income protection coverage,
such as a wage loss replacement plan or other income
maintenance plan, to your employees that reduce the EI benefits
payable to an employee. For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-reduce-premium-rate>.

<!-- Page 21 -->

If you are granted an EI premium reduction, you will
calculate your employer’s EI premiums using a rate that is
lower than the standard employer rate of 1.4 times the
employees’ EI premiums.
You have to return 5/12 of any savings to your employees
in the year in which you received the EI premium
reduction, or within the first four months of the following
year. This savings can either be given to your employee in
cash, such as a cash allowance or a cash rebate, or indirectly
through increased employer contributions to an employee’s
health and welfare trust, group sickness or accident
insurance plan, private health services plan, or in any other
manner. These indirect benefits will only be tax-free (i.e. not
included in the employee’s employment income) if they are
given to the employee in the form of a benefit specifically
exempt from taxation under paragraph 6(1)(a) of the
Income Tax Act.
Note
If the benefit is taxable, you must include it in your
employee’s income in the year the employee received it.
For more information, see “Benefits chart“ on page 49.
### Gifts, awards, and long-service awards
A gift or an award that you give an employee is a taxable
benefit from employment, whether it is cash, near-cash, or
non-cash. However, the CRA has an administrative policy
that exempts non-cash gifts and awards in some cases.
Cash and near-cash gifts or awards are always a taxable
benefit for the employee. A near-cash item is one that
functions as cash, or an item that can be easily converted to
cash, such as gold nuggets, securities, or stocks.
For more information, see “Rules for gifts and awards” and
“Policy for non-cash gifts and awards,” on page 21, or go to
<https://canada.ca/cra-gifts-awards-long-service>.
Example of a near-cash gift or an award
You give your employee a $100 gift card or gift certificate to
a department store. The employee can use this to purchase
whatever merchandise or service the store offers. A $100
gift card or gift certificate that does not meet the conditions
under our administrative policy is considered as
near-cash. The CRA considers the gift card or gift certificate
to be an additional remuneration that is a taxable benefit
for the employee because it functions in the same way as
cash.
Examples of non-cash gifts or awards
You give your employee tickets to an event on a specific
date and time. This may not be a taxable benefit for the
employee since there is no element of choice, if the other
rules for gifts and awards are met.
You give your employee a voucher (which may be a ticket
or a certificate) that entitles the employee to receive an item
for a set value at a store. For example, you may give your
employees a voucher for a turkey valued up to $30 as a
Christmas gift, and for convenience, you arrange for your
employees to go to a particular grocery store and exchange
the voucher for a turkey. The employees can only use the
voucher to receive a turkey valued up to $30 (no substitutes).
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Vouchers and event tickets are generally considered
non-cash gifts and awards.
Rules for gifts and awards
A gift has to be for a special occasion such as a religious
holiday, a birthday, a wedding, or the birth of a child.
An award has to be for an employment-related
accomplishment such as outstanding service, or employees’
suggestions. It is recognition of an employee’s overall
contribution to the workplace, not recognition of job
performance. Generally, a valid, non-taxable award has
clearly defined criteria, a nomination and evaluation
process, and a limited number of recipients.
An award given to your employees for performance-related
reasons (such as performing well in the job they were hired
to do, exceeding production standards, completing a
project ahead of schedule or under budget, putting in extra
time to finish a project, covering for a sick manager or
colleague) is considered a reward and is a taxable benefit
for the employee.
If you give your employee a non-cash gift or an award for
any other reason, this policy does not apply and you have
to include the fair market value of the gift or award in the
employee’s income.
The gifts and awards policy does not apply to cash and
near-cash items or to gifts or awards given to non-arm’s
length employees, such as your relatives, shareholders, or
people related to them.
For more information on gifts and awards outside the CRA’s
policy, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-gifts-awards-long-service>.
Value
Use the fair market value (FMV) of each gift to calculate
the total value of gifts and awards given in the year, not its
cost to you. You have to include the value of the GST/HST
and PST in the FMV.
Policy for non-cash gifts and awards
You may give an employee an unlimited number of
non-cash gifts and awards with a combined total value of
$500 or less annually. If the FMV of the gifts and awards
you give your employee is greater than $500, the amount
over $500 must be included in the employee’s income. For
example, if you give gifts and awards with a total value of
$650, there is a taxable benefit of $150 ($650 – $500). Items
of small or trivial value do not have to be included when
calculating the total value of gifts and awards given in the
year for the purpose of the exemption. Examples of items of
small or trivial value include:
- coffee or tea
- T-shirts with employer’s logos
- mugs
- plaques or trophies
21

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Under the CRA’s administrative policy, if you provide your
employee with gift cards, the gift card is considered non-
cash if all of the following apply:
- It comes with money already on it and can only be used
to purchase goods or services from a single retailer or a
group of retailers identified on the card
- The terms and conditions of the gift card clearly state
that amounts loaded to the card cannot be converted
into cash
- A log is kept to record gift card information containing
all of the following:
Name of the employee
-
- Date the gift card was provided to the employee
Reason for providing the gift card (part of social
-
event, gift or award)
Type of gift card
-
- Amount of the gift card
Name of the retailer(s)
-
This includes gift certificates, chip cards and electronic gift
cards. If the gift card meets all these conditions, it is
considered non-cash for the purpose of the CRA’s
administrative policy and can be used to provide gifts and
awards as part of the $500 limit. If the card does not meet
these conditions, it is considered a near-cash benefit and is
taxable.
You must review the terms and conditions of the gift card
to make sure it meets the conditions of the CRA’s
administrative policy above. You must complete this
review on a case by case basis.
Long-service awards
As well as the gifts and awards in the policy stated above,
you can, once every five years, give your employee a
non-cash long-service or anniversary award valued at $500
or less, tax free. The award must be for a minimum of five
years’ service, and it has to be at least five years since you
gave the employee the last long-service or anniversary
award. Any amount over the $500 is a taxable benefit. Gift
cards which meet the conditions under the ‘Policy for
non-cash gifts and awards’ above can be used to give a
non-cash long-service or anniversary award under this
policy.
If it has not been at least five years since the employee’s last
long-service or anniversary award, then the award is a
taxable benefit. For example, if the 15-year award was
given at 17 years of service, and then the next award is
given at 20 years of service, the 20-year award will be a
taxable benefit, since five years will not have passed since
the previous award.
The $500 exemption for long-service awards does not affect
the $500 exemption for other gifts and awards in the year
you give them. For example, you can give an employee a
non-cash long-service award worth $500 in the same year
you give them other non-cash gifts and awards worth $500.
In this case, there is no taxable benefit for the employee.
22 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Note
If the value of the long-service award is less than $500,
you cannot add the shortfall to the annual $500
exemption for non-cash gifts and awards.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-gifts-awards-long-service>.
Awards from a manufacturer
If a manufacturer of goods gives cash awards or non-cash
awards to the dealer of the goods, the manufacturer does
not have to report the awards on an information slip.
However, if the dealer passes on cash awards to an
employee, the dealer has to report the cash payment in
box 14, “Employment income,” and in the “Other
information” area under code 40 at the bottom of the
employee’s T4 slip. If the dealer passes on non-cash awards
to an employee, the dealer may not have to report the
awards in the employee’s income if the other conditions of
the awards’ policy are met.
If a manufacturer gives a cash award or a non-cash award
directly to the employee of a dealer or other sales
organization, the manufacturer has to report the value of
the award as a benefit using code 154, “Cash award or prize
from payer,” in the “Other information” area at the bottom
of the T4A slip.
### Group term life insurance policies – Employer-paid premiums
This section applies to current, former, and retired employees.
Note
Premiums you pay for employees’ group life insurance
that is not group term insurance or optional dependant
life insurance are also a taxable benefit.
A group term life insurance policy is one for which the
only amounts payable by the insurer are policy dividends,
experience rating refunds, and amounts payable on the
death or disability of an employee, former employee,
retired employee, or their covered dependants.
Term insurance is any life insurance under a group term
life insurance policy other than insurance for which a
lump-sum premium has become payable or has been paid.
Life insurance for current employees would usually be term
insurance, although it is sometimes provided for retired
employees.
A lump-sum premium is a premium for insurance on an
individual’s life where all or part of the premium is for
insurance for a period that extends more than 13 months
after the payment of the premium (or more than 13 months
after the time the premium became payable, if it is paid
after it became payable).
Calculating the benefit
If the premiums are paid regularly and the premium rate
for each individual does not depend on age or gender, the
benefit is:
- the premiums payable for term insurance on the
individual’s life

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plus
- the total of all sales taxes and excise taxes, excluding
GST/HST that apply to the individual’s insurance
coverage
- any provincial insurance levies or sales tax (8% for
Ontario, 7% for Manitoba, and 9% for Quebec) that
employers have to pay on some insurance premiums
minus
- the premiums and any taxes the employee paid either
directly or through reimbursements to you
In any other situation, a detailed calculation is required. For
more information, call 1-800-959-5525.
### Reporting the benefit
Report the benefit for current employees and employees
who are on a leave of absence (such as maternity leave) in
box 14, “Employment income,” and in the “Other
information” area under code 40 at the bottom of the
employee’s T4 slip.
Except as indicated in the next paragraph, for former
employees or retirees, report the benefit on a T4A slip using
code 119 in the “Other information” area, regardless of the
amount. The $500 reporting threshold for T4A slips, which
is described on <https://canada.ca/payroll-file>, (select “When to file
information returns”), does not apply.
If you are the administrator or trustee of a multi-employer
plan and you provided taxable benefits under the plan to
employees, former employees, or retirees, report the benefit
using code 119 in the “Other information” area at the
bottom of the T4A slip if it is more than $25.
Note
Effective January 2018, employers who pay Group Term
Life Insurance premiums on behalf of retirees, when it’s
the only income reported on the T4A slip, are only
required to report the premium if the amount is greater
than $50. Your former employee is still responsible for
reporting the amount on their personal income tax and
benefits return.
### Housing or utilities
If the accommodation you provide to the employee is in a
prescribed zone, see “Accommodation or utilities provided
by the employer“ on page 40.
If your employee is a member of the clergy or a religious
order or a regular minister of a religious denomination,
they might be entitled to claim a clergy residence
deduction. For more information, see “Clergy residence”
on this page.
Housing or utilities – benefit
If you provide an employee, including the superintendent
of an apartment block, with a house, apartment, or similar
accommodation rent free or for less than the fair market
value (FMV) of such accommodation, there is a taxable
benefit for the employee.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

You have to estimate a reasonable amount for the housing
benefit. It is usually the FMV for the same type of
accommodation, minus any rent the employee paid.
In addition, the amount you pay on behalf of, or reimburse
to your employee for utilities (such as telephone, hydro,
natural gas, water, cable or internet) is also a taxable
benefit. This is the amount that you include in the
employee’s income as a utilities benefit.
If the employee occupies the accommodation for at least
one month, the value of the accommodation is usually not
subject to the GST/HST.
Special circumstances that reduce the value of a
housing benefit
The following two factors may reduce the value of a
housing benefit you provide to your employee:
- Suitability of size
Your employee may have to occupy an accommodation
that is larger than they need (such as a single person in
a three-bedroom house). To calculate the taxable
housing benefit, you can reduce the value of the
accommodation to equal the value of accommodation
that is appropriate to your employee’s needs (in this
case, a one or two bedroom apartment or house).
Note
If the accommodation you provide is smaller than your
employee needs, the CRA does not allow any reduction
in value.
- Loss of privacy and quiet enjoyment
If the accommodation you provide to your employee
contains things like equipment, public access, or storage
facilities that infringe on your employee’s privacy or
quiet enjoyment of the accommodation, you can reduce
the value of the housing benefit. The reduction has to
reasonably relate to the degree of disturbance that
affects your employee.
These two factors apply in the above order. If both
circumstances apply to an accommodation, you should first
reduce the value to equal the value of accommodation that
suits your employee’s needs. Then, you should apply any
reduction for loss of privacy and quiet enjoyment to that
reduced value.
Housing or utilities – allowance
If you give your employee an allowance to pay for rent or
utilities, include the allowance in your employee’s income
as a taxable housing or utilities benefit.
Reporting the benefit
Report the taxable benefit for the utilities in box 14,
“Employment income,” and in the “Other information”
area under code 40 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
Report the taxable benefit for housing in box 14 and in the
“Other information” area under code 30.
Notes
Special rules apply if you pay for utilities (or provide
them) for a member of the clergy. You must add eligible
utilities (electricity, heat, water, and sewer) for clergy
23

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members to the taxable benefit for housing under
code 30. Report all other utilities under code 40.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-board-lodging-transportation-worksite-zone>.
Clergy residence
Clergy residence deduction
If your employee is a member of the clergy, they may be
able to claim a deduction from income for their residence
when filing a personal income tax and benefits return.
An employee who is a member of the clergy, a regular
minister, or a member of a religious order can claim the
clergy residence deduction if the employee is in one of the
following situations:
- in charge of, or ministers to, a diocese, parish, or
congregation
- engaged only in full-time administrative service by
appointment of a religious order or denomination
To claim the deduction, the employee has to fill out parts A
and C of Form T1223, Clergy Residence Deduction. You
have to fill out Part B and sign the form to certify that this
employee has met the required conditions. The employee
does not have to file the form with their income tax and
benefit return, but has to keep it in case the CRA asks to
see it.
Reducing remuneration from which you have to deduct
income tax and CPP
Employer provided or paid – benefit
If you provide your employee with free or low-rent
accommodation, do not include the accommodation and
utilities share of the benefit that is equal to the clergy
residence deduction, in your employee’s income when you
calculate the income tax and CPP contributions to deduct as
long as your employee does both of the following:
- gives you a completed Form T1223, Clergy Residence
Deduction
- tells you in writing they intend to claim the clergy
residence deduction and tells you the amount of the
deduction that will be claimed
Employee owned or rented – allowance
Your employee may own or rent the accommodation and
pay for utilities either out of their own money or by using
the allowance you paid to them. If your employee will be
claiming the clergy residence deduction on their personal
income tax and benefits return, they may get a letter of
authority from a tax services office to reduce the income on
which you have to deduct tax and CPP. When your
employee provides you with a letter of authority from a tax
services office, reduce the income by the amount stated in
the letter.
Note
Although the clergy residence deduction and the utilities
share of the benefit can be excluded from income for the
purpose of calculating tax deductions and CPP, you still
have to report it on your employee’s T4 slip. Special
rules apply if you pay for utilities (or provide them) for a
24 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

member of the clergy. For more information, go to
<https://canada.ca/taxes-slips>.
For more information, see archived Interpretation
Bulletin IT-141R, Clergy Residence Deduction.
### Income maintenance plans and other insurance plans
Employers may offer various types of insurance plans to
employees. The tax treatment of employer-paid premiums
or contributions to these plans may differ depending on the
nature of the plan, the type of benefits offered, and whether
the plan is offered to individual employees (a non-group
plan) or a group of employees (a group plan).
Non-group plans
The premium or contribution is a taxable benefit if you pay
it to a non-group plan that is:
- a sickness or accident insurance plan
- a disability insurance plan
- an income maintenance insurance plan
Group sickness or accident insurance plans
Premiums or contributions you pay to a group sickness or
accident insurance plan are a taxable benefit to your
employee, unless it is in respect of a wage-loss replacement
benefit payable on a periodic basis (not lump-sum).
Examples of plans where the premium is a taxable benefit
include, but are not limited to, accidental death and
dismemberment and critical illness insurance.
Include the taxable benefit in box 14, “Employment
income,” and in the “Other information” area under
code 40 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip. Report the
retiree’s taxable benefit using code 028, “Other income” in
the “Other information” area at the bottom of the T4A slip.
Employee-pay-all plans
If the plan is an employee-pay-all plan, any premium you
pay on behalf of the employee, and any reimbursements
made to your employee, are considered taxable benefits. A
plan is an employee-pay-all plan where your employee is
contractually responsible for paying the premiums to the
third party that administers the plan, even where the plan
allows you to pay the premiums on the employee’s behalf
and include the value of the premiums in your employee’s
income.
For more information on employee-pay-all plans, go
to <https://canada.ca/cpp-ei-explained> and choose “Wage Loss
Replacement Plans” or see archived Interpretation
Bulletin IT-428, Wage Loss Replacement Plans.
Group disability benefits – insolvent insurer
Under subsection 6(17) of the Income Tax Act (ITA), a top
up disability payment includes a payment made by an
employer directly to an individual to replace all or part of
the periodic payments that, because of an insurer’s
insolvency, are no longer being made to the individual
under a disability policy for which the employer made

<!-- Page 25 -->

contributions. This treatment allows the continued
deduction of contributions made by the employee to be
considered in determining the amount to be included in the
employee’s income from employment under
paragraph 6(1)(f) of the ITA. This applies to any top up
disability payment made after August 10, 1994.
A disability policy is a group disability insurance policy
that provides periodic payments to individuals for lost
employment income.
### Loans – interest-free and low-interest
You may have to include in income any benefit arising
from an interest-free or low-interest loan received, or debt
incurred, by a person because of an office, employment, or
shareholding.
If a person is both an employee and a shareholder, it is a
question of fact whether a particular indebtedness arose
because of shareholdings or because of an office or
employment. For more information, see archived
Interpretation Bulletin IT-119R4, Debts of Shareholders and
Certain Persons Connected with Shareholders. See also
“Loans received because of employment“ or “Loans
received because of shareholdings“ on page 25.
The benefit is generally calculated as the amount of interest
that the person would have paid on the loan or debt for the
year at the prescribed rates (for more information, see
“Prescribed interest rates“ on page 27), minus the amount
of interest that they paid on the loan in the year or no later
than 30 days after the end of the year.
Special rules apply to certain loans or debt and to
home-relocation loans. For more information, see
“Exceptions“ on this page and “Home-relocation loans“ on
page 27.
Exceptions
A taxable benefit will not arise where a person receives a
loan or incurs a debt because of an office, employment, or
shareholding when either of the following occurs:
- The interest rate on the loan or debt equals, or is more
than, the rate that would have been agreed upon in an
arm’s length transaction at the time the loan or debt
arose if the creditor’s ordinary business included the
lending of money. This exception does not apply if
someone other than the borrower pays any part of the
interest from the loan or debt
- You include all or part of the loan or debt (such as, a
loan or debt forgiven in whole or in part) in the income
of a person or partnership. See “Forgiven loans“ on
page 27 for more information. Where only part of the
loan or debt has been included in income, an interest
benefit must still be calculated for the portion of the
loan or debt that remains outstanding
Note
Arm’s length refers to a relationship or a transaction
between unrelated persons who act in their own
separate interests. An arm’s length transaction is
generally a transaction that reflects ordinary commercial
dealings between parties acting in their own separate
interests.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

For more information, see Income Tax Folio S1-F5-C1,
Related Persons and Dealing at Arm’s Length.
Loans received because of employment
An employee receives a taxable benefit if you give any
person or partnership a loan because of the employee’s
current, previous, or intended office or employment. The
CRA considers a loan received because of employment if it
is reasonable to conclude that the loan would not have been
received, or the terms of the loan would have been
different, had there been no current, previous, or intended
employment.
The loan can be received by the employee or any other
person or partnership, including, for example, the
employee’s spouse. A benefit can also arise from any other
indebtedness such as the unpaid purchase price of goods or
services, or an overpayment of salary that your employee
repays you over a period of time.
Under our administrative policy, if the loan is received or a
debt is incurred because of employment, the interest benefit
is not taxable if all of the following apply:
- Total amount of loans received is $10,000 or less per
calendar year (includes loans of different term
durations and principal amounts)
- Term of the loan(s) is 60 days or less
- Loan is not received because of shareholdings
If the full principal of the loan is not repaid within 60 days,
the interest benefit is taxable. If the term of the loan spans
two calendar years, the loan will count as part of the
$10,000 limit for the year in which the loan was received.
The taxable benefit the employee receives in the tax year is
the total of the following amounts:
a) the interest on each loan and debt calculated at the
prescribed rate for the periods in the year during which
it was outstanding
b) the interest on the loan or debt that was paid or payable
for the year by you, the employer (for this purpose, an
employer is a person or partnership that employed or
intended to employ the individual and also includes a
person related to the person or partnership)
minus the total of the following amounts:
c) the interest for the year that any person or partnership
paid on each loan or debt no later than 30 days after the
end of the year
d) any part of the amount in b) that the employee pays
back to the employer no later than 30 days after the end
of the year
Note
Sometimes these rules do not apply. For more
information, see “Exceptions,” on page 25.
If the employee receives a taxable benefit on a loan or debt
because of employment, report the benefit in box 14,
“Employment income,” and in the “Other information”
area, report the interest benefit under code 36. Report any
forgiven loan principal amounts under code 40.
25

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For information about similar taxable benefits resulting
from loans received because of services performed by a
corporation that carries on a personal services business, see
archived Interpretation Bulletin IT-421R2, Benefits to
individuals, corporations and shareholders from loans or
debt.
Example
Joshua is your employee. He borrowed $150,000 from you
at the beginning of the year. The prescribed rate of interest
for the loan is 3% for the first quarter, 4% for the second
and third quarters, and 5% for the fourth quarter. Joshua
paid you $2,000 interest on the loan no later than 30 days
after the end of the year. During the year, a company
related to you paid $1,000 interest on the loan for Joshua.
Before the end of the same year, Joshua repaid the $1,000 to
the company.
Calculate the benefit to include in his income as follows:
a) Prescribed rate × loan amount for the year:
3% × $150,000 × 1/4 = $1,125
4% × $150,000 × 2/4 = $3,000
5% × $150,000 × 1/4 = $1,875........................... $6,000
plus
b) Amount paid by a third party......................... $1,000
$7,000
minus
c) Interest paid ($2,000 + $1,000) =......... $3,000
d) Amount Joshua repaid........................ $1,000 $4,000
Joshua’s taxable benefit......................................... $3,000
Loans received because of shareholdings
Persons and partnerships are generally taxable on benefits
received from a corporation of which they are a
shareholder. Depending on the particular facts, where a
person or partnership receives a loan or incurs a debt
because of a shareholding:
- the amount of the loan or debt may be required to be
included in the income of the person or partnership. For
more information, see archived Interpretation Bulletin
IT-119R4, Debts of Shareholders and Certain Persons
Connected with Shareholders
- a taxable benefit may arise if no interest or a low rate of
interest is charged on the loan or debt. These rules are
explained in more detail below
A taxable benefit does not apply if the loan or debt is
required to be included in the income of a person or
partnership.
Therefore, a person or partnership should determine if the
amount of the loan or debt is required to be included in
income before considering whether a taxable benefit may
arise. A taxable benefit cannot be included in income
voluntarily to avoid any requirement to include the amount
of a loan or debt in income.
26 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Loans received or debts incurred because of shareholdings
may give rise to a taxable benefit when all of the following
conditions are met:
- the loan is received, or the debt is incurred, by a person
or partnership (except when the person is a corporation
resident in Canada or the partnership is one in which
each partner is a corporation resident in Canada)
- the person or partnership is one of the following:
- a shareholder of a corporation
- connected with a shareholder of a corporation
- a member of a partnership or beneficiary of a trust that
was a shareholder of a corporation
- because of these shareholdings, the person or
partnership receives a loan from, or incurs a debt to:
- the corporation,
- a corporation related to that corporation
- a partnership of which the corporation or the related
corporation was a member
If these conditions are met, the person or partnership (for
example, a shareholder) is considered to receive a benefit in
the tax year that is equal to:
- the interest on the outstanding portion of each loan and
debt calculated at the prescribed rate for the period in
the year during which it was outstanding
minus
- the interest for the year that any party (such as the
person or partnership) paid on each loan or debt in the
year or no later than 30 days after the end of the year
Note
A person may be an individual, a corporation, or a trust.
The calculation of the benefit is modified where one or
more such loans are considered to have been made
under a back-to-back shareholder loan arrangement. For
more information on back-to-back shareholder loans, see
www.budget.canada.ca/2016/docs/tm-mf/si-rs-en.html.
Include the shareholder’s benefit under code 117, “Other
income,” in the “Other information” area at the bottom of
the T4A slip.
Home-purchase loan
A home-purchase loan is any part of a loan to an employee
that the employee used to get or repay another loan to buy
a residence. The residence has to be for that employee or a
person related to that employee. This also applies to a
shareholder or a person related to a shareholder.
To calculate the benefit for a home-purchase loan, see
“Loans received because of employment,” on page 25.
Once a home-purchase loan is established, the prescribed
interest rate remains in effect for a period of five years. The
amount of interest you calculate as a benefit should not be
more than the interest that would have been charged at the
prescribed rate when the loan or the debt was established.

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If the term of repayment for a home-purchase loan is more
than five years, the balance owing at the end of five years
(from the day the loan was made) is considered a new loan.
Treat the outstanding balance as a new loan on that date.
To calculate the benefit, use the prescribed rate in effect at
that time.
Home-relocation loans
A home-relocation loan is a loan you give to an employee
or an employee’s spouse or common-law partner when
they meet all of the following conditions:
- The employee or the employee’s spouse or
common-law partner moves to start work at a new
location in Canada
- The employee or the employee’s spouse or
common-law partner uses the loan to buy a new
residence that is at least 40 kilometres closer to the new
work location than the previous home
- The employee or the employee’s spouse or
common-law partner receives the loan because of the
employee’s employment
- The employee designates the loan as a home-relocation
loan
- The loan is used to acquire a residence or a share of the
capital stock of a co-operative housing corporation
acquired only to obtain the right to inhabit a residence
owned by the corporation. The residence must be for
the habitation of the employee and be their new
residence
Note
Only a debt that is a loan can be a home relocation loan.
To calculate the benefit for the home-relocation loan, see
“Loans received because of employment,” on page 25.
Include the amount of the taxable benefit in box 14,
“Employment income,” and in the “Other information”
area under code 36 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
The amount of interest you calculate as a benefit should not
be more than the interest that would have been charged at
the prescribed rate in effect when the employee received
the loan.
If the term of repayment for the home-relocation loan is
more than five years, the balance owing at the end of five
years (from the day the loan was made) is considered a new
loan. Treat the outstanding balance as a new loan on that
date. To calculate the benefit, use the prescribed rate in
effect at that time.
Note
For 2018 and later tax years, the home-relocation loan
deduction has been eliminated.
Forgiven loans
A loan to an employee may be partly or fully forgiven (the
employee does not have to repay the loan). In either case,
the forgiven amount is considered employment income and
is added to the employee’s T4 slip for the year the amount
is forgiven. For more information, see archived
Interpretation Bulletin IT-421R2, Benefits to individuals,
corporations and shareholders from loans or debt.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Reporting the benefit
If an employee or any person or partnership receives a loan
or incurs a debt because of the employee’s employment,
report the benefit in box 14, “Employment income,” and in
the “Other information” area under code 36 at the bottom
of the employee’s T4 slip.
If a person or partnership that was a shareholder (or was
related to a shareholder) receives a loan or incurs a debt,
you generally have to report the benefit on a T4A slip. Enter
the amount under code 117, “Loan benefits,” in the “Other
information” area at the bottom of the T4A slip.
Note
The taxable benefit must be reported on a T4 or T4A slip
even if the borrower is eligible to deduct the interest.
Prescribed interest rates
To get the current prescribed rates of interest, go
to <https://canada.ca/taxes-interest-rates>.
### Loyalty and other points programs
Your employees may collect loyalty points, such as
frequent flyer points or air miles, on their personal credit
cards when travelling on business trips, even though you
reimburse them for the amounts they spend. Usually, these
points can be exchanged or cashed in for rewards (goods or
services, including gift cards and certificates).
Your employees do not have to include in their income the
value of the rewards they received or enjoyed from the
points they collect on these business trips, unless any of the
following apply:
- The points are converted to cash
- The plan or arrangement between you and the
employee seems to be a form of remuneration
- The plan or arrangement is a form of tax avoidance
If any of the conditions above are met, the employee has to
declare the fair market value (FMV) of any personal
rewards they received on an income tax and benefit return.
Note
If you control the points (such as when an employee
uses a company credit card) you have to report on their
T4 slip the FMV of any personal rewards they received
from redeeming the points.
For examples of situations where loyalty and other points
programs are considered taxable benefits, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-loyalty-points-programs>.
### Meals
Overtime meals or allowances
If you provide overtime meals, or an allowance for
overtime meals, there is no taxable benefit if all of the
following conditions apply:
- The allowance, or the cost of the meal, is reasonable.
The CRA generally considers a value of up to $23
(including the GST/HST and PST) to be reasonable. The
CRA will consider higher amounts reasonable if the
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relative cost of meals in that location is higher, or under
other significant extenuating circumstances
- The employee works two or more hours of overtime
right before or right after their scheduled hours of work
- The overtime is not frequent and is occasional in nature
(usually less than three times a week)
If overtime occurs frequently or becomes the norm, the
CRA considers the overtime meals or allowances to be a
taxable benefit, since they start to take on the characteristics
of additional remuneration.
For examples of situations where overtime meals, or
allowances for overtime meals, are considered taxable
benefits, go to <https://canada.ca/examples-overtime-meals-allowances>.
Subsidized meals
If you provide subsidized meals to an employee (such as in
an employee dining room or cafeteria), these meals are not
considered a taxable benefit if the employee pays a
reasonable charge. A reasonable charge is one that covers
the cost of the food, its preparation, and service.
If the charge is not reasonable, the value of the benefit is the
cost of the meals, minus any payment the employee makes.
Include the taxable benefit in box 14, “Employment
income,” and in the “Other information” area under
code 40 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
### Medical expenses
If you pay or provide an amount to pay for an employee’s
medical expenses in a tax year, these amounts are
considered to be a taxable benefit for the employee.
Generally, there is no GST/HST and PST to include in the
value of this benefit. However, some medical expenses that
qualify for the medical expense tax credit may be subject to
the GST/HST and PST. In such a case, include the
GST/HST and PST in the value of the benefit.
For more information on qualifying medical expenses,
go to:
- <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select
“Disability-related employment benefits”
- <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Medical
expenses”
- <https://canada.ca/private-health-services-plan>
### Moving expenses and relocation benefits
When you transfer an employee from one of your places of
business to another, the amount you pay or reimburse the
employee for certain moving expenses is usually not a
taxable benefit. This includes any amounts you incurred to
move the employee, the employee’s family, and their
household effects. This also applies when the employee
accepts employment at a different location from the
location of their former residence. The move does not have
to be within Canada.
28 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Also, if you pay certain expenses to move an employee,
their family, and their household effects out of a remote
work location when their employment duties are finished,
the amount you pay is not a taxable benefit.
If you paid allowances to your employee for incidental
moving expenses that they do not have to account for, see
“Non-accountable moving allowances“ on page 29.
Moving expenses paid by employer that are
not a taxable benefit
The following expenses are not a taxable benefit to your
employees if you paid or reimbursed them:
- the cost of house hunting trips to the new location,
including child care and pet care expenses while the
employee is away
- travelling costs (including a reasonable amount spent
for meals and lodging) while the employee and
members of the employee’s household were moving
from the old residence to the new residence
- the cost to the employee of transporting or storing
household effects while moving from the old residence
to the new residence
- costs to move personal items such as automobiles,
boats, or trailers
- charges and fees to disconnect telephones, television or
aerials, water, space heaters, air conditioners, gas
barbecues, automatic garage doors, and water heaters
- fees to cancel leases
- the cost to the employee of selling the old residence
(including advertising, notarial or legal fees, real estate
commission, and mortgage discharge penalties)
- charges to connect and install utilities, appliances, and
fixtures that existed at the old residence
- adjustments and alterations to existing furniture and
fixtures to arrange them in the new residence, including
plumbing and electrical changes in the new residence
- automobile licences, inspections, and drivers’ permit
fees, if the employee owned these items at the former
location
- legal fees and land transfer tax to buy the new residence
- the cost to revise legal documents to reflect the new
address
- reasonable temporary living expenses while waiting to
occupy the new, permanent accommodation
- long-distance telephone charges that relate to selling the
old residence
- amounts you paid or reimbursed for property taxes,
heat, hydro, insurance, and grounds maintenance costs
to keep up the old residence after the move, when all
reasonable efforts to sell it have not been successful

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Moving expenses paid by employer that are a
taxable benefit
If you pay or reimburse moving costs that the CRA does
not list above, the amounts are generally considered a
taxable benefit to the employee.
If you do not reimburse, or only partly reimburse, an
employee for moving expenses, the employee may be able
to claim some of the moving expenses when filing their
income tax and benefit return.
For more information on the deduction for moving
expenses that is available to your employees, go to
<https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Moving and
relocation expenses.”
Housing loss
If you pay or reimburse your employee for a housing loss,
the amount is a taxable benefit for the employee.
However, there is an exception for amounts paid for an
eligible housing loss. Generally, in these situations, only
half of the amount that is more than $15,000 is taxable.
Note
If you spread the payment over two years, you will need
to include an amount on your employee’s T4 slip for
each year. Example 2 below shows how to calculate the
taxable benefit.
Example 1
In March 2025, you compensated Clara, your employee, for
a $40,000 loss she incurred on the sale of her house. The loss
was an eligible housing loss. Clara started to work at her
new workplace in June 2025.
The taxable benefit you will report on Clara’s 2025 T4 slip
will be $12,500, calculated as follows:
1/2 × ($40,000 – $15,000)
Example 2
In June 2024, you agreed to compensate Paul, your
employee, for any eligible housing loss that he incurred on
the sale of his house. Paul started to work at his new work
location on December 1, 2024.
Paul’s eligible housing loss amounted to $65,000. You paid
out the compensation in two payments: $30,000 in
September 2024 and $35,000 in February 2025.
Paul’s taxable benefit in 2024 was $7,500 (half of the
amount paid in 2024 that is more than $15,000).
Paul’s taxable benefit in 2025 is $17,500. This is calculated
as follows:
- half of the total of amounts paid in 2024 and 2025 that is
more than $15,000 (1/2 × [$65,000 – $15,000] = $25,000)
minus
- the amount included in income in 2024 ($7,500)
For more information on housing losses, go to
<https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Moving and
relocation expenses.”
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Non-accountable moving allowances
A non-accountable moving allowance is an allowance for
which an employee does not have to provide details or
submit receipts to justify amounts paid. The CRA considers
a non-accountable moving allowance for incidental
relocation or moving expenses of $650 or less to be a
reimbursement of expenses that the employee incurred
because of an employment-related move. Therefore, this
type of allowance is not taxable. For the CRA to consider it
as a reimbursement for incidental expenses, the employee
has to certify in writing that they incurred expenses for at
least the amount of the allowance, up to a maximum of $650.
Do not report the amount of the reimbursement. Report
any part of the non-accountable moving allowance that is
more than $650 in box 14, “Employment income,” and in
the “Other information” area under code 40 at the bottom
of the employee’s T4 slip.
Examples
If you gave a non-accountable moving allowance of $625 to
an employee who certifies that they incurred expenses for
the amount of the allowance, the employee will not be
taxed on the amount received. Do not include this amount
on the employee’s T4 slip.
If you gave a non-accountable moving allowance of $750 to
an employee who can certify the expenses, they will be
taxed on $100 only, which is the part of the amount that is
more than $650. Include the $100 on a T4 slip in box 14,
“Employment income,” and in the “Other information”
area under code 40 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
### Municipal officer’s expense allowance
A municipal corporation or board may pay a
non-accountable expense allowance to an elected officer to
perform the duties of that office.
For 2019 and later tax years, the full amount of this
non-accountable allowance is a taxable benefit. Enter it in
box 14, “Employment income,” and in the “Other
information” area under code 40 at the bottom of the
employee’s T4 slip.
### Parking
Employer-provided parking is usually a taxable benefit for
an employee, whether or not the employer owns the lot.
The amount of the benefit is based on the fair market value
of the parking, minus any payment the employee makes to
use the space.
There are some exceptions to the taxability of parking:
- If your employee has a disability, the parking benefit is
generally not taxable. For more information, see
“Disability-related employment benefits“ on page 19
- There is no taxable benefit for your employee when
both of the following conditions are met:
you provide parking to your employee for business
-
purposes
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- your employee regularly has to use their own
automobile or one you usually supply to do their
duties
Note
Travel between work and home is not considered travel
for business purposes.
The CRA does not require you to include a benefit in your
employee’s income in the following situations:
- A business operates from a shopping centre or
industrial park where parking is available to both
employees and other people
- You provide a limited number of parking spaces where
all of the following apply:
Not more than two parking spaces available for every
-
three employees who want parking (scramble
parking)
- Parking spaces are not assigned (random or
uncertain)
- Parking spaces are offered to all employees who
want parking
For more information on scramble parking, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-parking>.
Note
If you provide enough parking spaces for all employees
who want parking, but do not assign the parking spaces
to individual employees, this is not scramble parking.
You must add the benefit to the employee’s remuneration.
To determine if an employee has received a benefit, the
facts of each case must be examined. If you are not sure if
employer-provided parking is a taxable benefit, contact the
CRA.
### Pooled registered pension plans (PRPP)
Contributions you make to a PRPP for your employees are
not a taxable benefit if the plan has been accepted for
registration by the Minister of National Revenue and that
registration has not been revoked. Do not include these
contributions in your employees’ employment income.
On the other hand, if you contribute to a plan that is
registered under the Pooled Registered Pension Plan Act or
a similar provincial act and not with the Minister of
National Revenue, your contributions are a taxable benefit.
They are considered to be paid in cash and are taxable,
pensionable, and insurable. Deduct income tax, CPP
contributions, and EI premiums.
For more information about PRPPs, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-pooled-registered-pension-plan>.
### Power saws and tree trimmers
If you are an employer in the forestry business, you may
have employees who, according to their contracts, have to
use their own power saws or tree trimmers at their own
expense.
30 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Rental payments you make to employees for the use of
their own power saws or tree trimmers are taxable benefits
and should be included in their income on a T4 slip. Their
income should not be reduced by the cost or value of saws,
trimmers, parts, gasoline, or any other materials the
employee supplies.
### Premiums under provincial hospitalization, medical care insurance, and certain Government of Canada plans
You may be paying premiums or contributing to a
provincial or territorial hospital or medical care insurance
plan for an employee. The amount you pay is considered a
taxable benefit for the employee. Report this benefit in
box 14, “Employment income,” and in the “Other
information,” area under code 40 at the bottom of the
employee’s T4 slip. If you have to make payments to such a
plan for amounts other than premiums or contributions for
the employee, they are not considered a taxable benefit for
the employee.
If you are the former employer of an employee who has
retired, any amount you pay as a contribution to a
provincial or territorial health services insurance plan for
the retired employee is a taxable benefit.
Report this benefit under code 118, “Medical premium
benefits,” in the “Other information” area at the bottom of
the T4A slip.
Any amount that the federal government pays for
premiums under a hospital or medical care insurance plan
for its employees and their dependants serving outside
Canada is a taxable benefit. This also applies to dependants
of members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the
Canadian Forces serving outside Canada.
### Private health services plan premiums
If you make contributions to a private health services plan
(such as medical or dental plans) for employees, there is no
taxable benefit for the employees.
Note
Employee-paid premiums to a private health services
plan are considered qualifying medical expenses and can
be claimed by the employee on their income tax and
benefit return.
Include the amounts that the employee paid on a T4 slip in
the “Other information” area under code 85. The use of
code 85 is optional. If you do not enter code 85, the CRA
may ask the employee to provide supporting documents.
Use the T4A slip to report these amounts for former
employees or retired employees. Enter the amount under
code 135, “Recipient-paid premiums for private health
services plans,” in the “Other information” area at the
bottom of the T4A slip.
For more information on private health services plans, go
to <https://canada.ca/private-health-services-plan> and see archived
Interpretation Bulletin IT-339R2, Meaning of “private health
services plan” (1988 and subsequent taxation years).

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### Professional membership dues
If you pay professional membership dues for your
employee and you are the primary beneficiary of the
payment, there is no benefit for the employee.
Whether you or the employee is the primary beneficiary is
a question of fact. If you pay or reimburse professional
membership dues because membership in the organization
or association is a condition of employment, the CRA
considers you to be the primary beneficiary and there is no
taxable benefit for the employee.
When membership is not a condition of employment, you,
as the employer, are responsible for determining the
primary beneficiary. You have to be prepared to justify
your position if the CRA asks you to do so.
In all situations where you pay or reimburse an employee’s
professional membership dues and the primary beneficiary
is the employee, there is a taxable benefit for the employee.
Note
You should tell your employee that they cannot deduct
from their employment income any non-taxable
professional dues that you have paid or reimbursed to
them.
For more information, see archived Interpretation
Bulletin IT-158R2, Employees’ professional membership
dues.
### Recreational facilities and club dues
The use of a recreational facility or club is a taxable benefit
for an employee in any of the following situations:
- You pay, reimburse, or subsidize the cost of a
membership at a recreational facility, such as an
exercise room, swimming pool, or gymnasium
- You pay, reimburse, or subsidize the cost of
memberships to a business or professional club (that
operates fitness, recreational, sports, or dining facilities
for the use of their members but their main purpose is
something other than recreation)
- You pay, reimburse, or subsidize the cost of
membership dues in a recreational facility of the
employee’s choice, up to a set maximum. In this case it
is the employee who has paid for the membership,
owns it, and has signed some kind of contract with the
company providing the facility
- You pay, reimburse, or subsidize the employee for
expenses incurred for food and beverages at a
restaurant, dining room lounge, banquet hall, or
conference room of a recreational facility or club
- You provide recreational facilities to a select group or
category of employees for free or for a minimal fee,
while other employees have to pay the full fee. There is
a taxable benefit for employees who do not have to pay
the full fee.
However, the use of a recreational facility or club does not
result in a taxable benefit for an employee in any of the
following situations:
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

- You provide an in-house recreational facility and the
facility is available to all your employees. This applies
whether you provide the facilities free of charge or for a
minimal fee
- You make an arrangement with a facility to pay a fee
for the use of the facility, the membership is with you
and not your employee and the facility or membership
is available to all your employees. Membership will be
considered to be made available to all employees as
long as each employee can use the membership even if
an employee chooses not to
- You provide your employee with a membership in a
social or athletic club and it can be clearly demonstrated
that you are the primary beneficiary of the membership.
The membership is a taxable benefit to your employee if
the membership in or use of the club’s facilities
provides only an indirect benefit to you. This would be
the case where the employee becomes physically
healthier as a result of using the club’s facilities and
becomes generally better able to perform their duties
(for example, fewer sick days, less downtime, remain fit
for duty)
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and
select “Recreational facilities and club dues.”
### Registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs)
Contributions you make to your employee’s RRSP and
RRSP administration fees that you pay for your employee
are considered to be a taxable benefit for the employee.
However, this does not include an amount you withheld
from the employee’s remuneration and contributed for the
employee.
If the GST/HST applies to the administration fees, include
it in the value of the benefit.
Payroll deductions
Contributions you make to your employee’s RRSPs are
generally paid in cash and are pensionable and insurable.
Deduct CPP contributions and EI premiums.
However, your contributions are considered non-cash
benefits and are not insurable if your employees cannot
withdraw the amounts from a group RRSP (except for
withdrawals under the Home Buyers’ Plan or Lifelong
Learning Plan) before the employees retire or cease to be
employed.
Although the benefit is taxable and has to be reported on
the T4 slip, you do not have to deduct income tax at source
on the contributions you make to your employee’s RRSPs if
you have reasonable grounds to believe that the employee
can deduct the contribution for the year. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select
“Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP).”
Administration fees that you pay directly for an employee
are considered taxable and pensionable. Deduct CPP
contributions and income tax. These are considered a
non-cash benefit, so they are not insurable. Do not deduct
EI premiums.
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### Security options
A security is a share of the capital stock of a corporation or
a unit of a mutual fund trust that is a qualifying person.
Note
A qualifying person is a corporation or a mutual fund
trust.
Many employers grant options to their employees as a form
of compensation. These options give the employee of the
employer or of a qualifying person with which the
employer does not deal at arm’s length, the right to acquire
a security of the employer, or a security of another
qualifying person with which the employer does not deal at
arm’s length.
Generally, options issued to employees will be provided
under one of the following three types of plans:
- Employee stock purchase plan (ESPP) – This plan
allows the employee to acquire shares at a discounted
price, (i.e., for an amount that is less than the value of
the stock at the time of the acquisition of the shares).
Many ESPPs provide for a delay in the acquisition of
the shares: an employee contributes a certain amount
over a period of time and, at pre-specified periods, the
employee can purchase shares at a discount using the
accumulated contributions. The benefit is equal to the
value of the shares, minus the amount paid.
- Stock bonus plan – Under this plan, an employer agrees
to give the shares to the employee free of charge. In
effect, the employer agrees to sell or issue shares to the
employee for no cost.
- Stock option plan – This plan allows the employee to
purchase shares of the employer’s company or of a
non-arm’s length company at a pre-determined price.
Taxable benefit
When a corporation agrees to sell or issue its shares to an
employee, or when a mutual fund trust grants options to an
employee to acquire trust units, the employee may receive
a taxable benefit. Generally, the employee receives the
taxable benefit in the same year they acquire the shares or
units, or otherwise disposes of their rights under the option
agreement. However, when certain conditions are met, the
taxable benefit is deferred until the year the employee
disposes of the shares. For more information, refer to
“Security options deduction for the disposition of shares of
a Canadian controlled private corporation – Paragraph
110(1)(d.1).”
The taxable benefit is the difference between the fair market
value (FMV) of the shares or units when the employee
acquired them and the amount paid, or to be paid, for
them, including any amount paid for the rights to acquire
the shares or units. Also, a benefit can accrue to the
employee if their rights under the agreement become
vested in another person, or if they transfer or sell the
rights.
The shares or trust units are considered to be acquired
when legal ownership of the shares or units has been
transferred and the vendor has entitlement to receive
payment. In general, this would occur where the shares or
32 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

units have been transferred to the employee/broker and
paid for.
Include this benefit in box 14, Employment income,” and in
the “Other information” area under code 38. Also, show the
deductions the employee is entitled to in the “Other
information” area of the T4 slip, as explained in the rest of
this section. The benefit included in box 14 may be reported
in the “Other information” area under code 90 instead of
code 38 if the benefit was received in 2025 or from June 25,
2024 to December 31, 2024. Codes 90, 91 and 92 will not be
used after 2025.
For more information on security options, see archived
Interpretation Bulletin IT-113R4, Benefits to Employees –
Stock Options.
Cash-outs
An employer may allow an employee to receive cash
instead of securities in exchange for their options.
Generally, the cash paid is equal to the difference between
the FMV of the securities at the time the options would
have been exercised and the amount paid or to be paid for
the securities. This difference is equal to the employment
benefit the employee is deemed to have received.
If an employee relinquishes a stock option right to an
employer in exchange for a cash payment or other in kind
benefit, the employee can claim the security options
deduction if eligible or the employer can claim the cash-out
as an expense, but not both. If the employer chooses not to
claim the cash-out as an expense, the employer must make
an election to do so under subsection 110(1.1) by entering
this amount under code 86, “Security options election,” in
the “Other information” area of the T4 slip. This would
allow the employee to claim the deduction under
paragraph 110(1)(d). The amount you report under code 86
may be different from the taxable benefit you have to
include in the employee’s income in box 14 and under
code 38 (or code 90 for some taxable benefits from June 25,
2024 to December 31, 2025.)
If code 86 of the T4 is not entered, this means that the
employer decided to claim the expense and the employee
would not be allowed to claim the deduction under
paragraph 110(1)(d).
Note
You cannot elect to defer the security option.
Payroll Deductions
Cash-outs
Deduct CPP Contribution, EI premiums and income tax.
Options
Security options are considered a non-cash benefit, so they
are not insurable. In all cases do not deduct EI premiums.
There is no CPP contribution or no income tax withholding
requirement where a taxable benefit is received by an
arms-length employee with respect to the disposition of
Canadian-controlled private corporation shares.
In all other cases where a taxable benefit is received, the
employer is required to withhold and remit an amount in
respect of the taxable security option benefit (excluding any

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security option deduction) to the same extent as if the
amount of the benefit had been paid as an employee bonus.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-security>
-options or <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Security
options.”
When determining the amount of the security options
benefit subject to income tax withholding, the CRA will
permit the employer to reduce the benefit by 50% using the
Security options deduction under paragraph 110(1)(d.01). If
a Security options deduction of 33.3333% is reported for the
period June 25, 2024 to December 31, 2024 using code 91,
the employee may use the federal worksheet to claim the
remaining 16.6667% (50% minus 33.3333%) on line 24901 of
their personal income tax and benefit return. Alternatively,
if the employee is eligible for a deduction under
110(1)(d.01) for donated securities, they may claim
66.6667% on line 24900 to bring the total deduction to 100%.
Security options deduction –
Paragraph 110(1)(d)
The employee can claim a deduction under
paragraph 110(1)(d) of the Income Tax Act if all of the
following conditions are met:
- A qualifying person agreed to sell or issue to the
employee shares of its capital stock or the capital stock
of another corporation that it does not deal with at
arm’s length, or agreed to sell or issue units of a mutual
fund trust
- The employee dealt at arm’s length with these
qualifying persons right after the agreement was made
- If the security is a share, it is a prescribed share
(as defined in the Income Tax Regulations) and if it is a
unit, it is a unit of a mutual fund trust
- The price of the share or unit is not less than its fair
market value (FMV) when the agreement was made
- There are additional conditions where an employee
receives cash instead of acquiring securities (see
“Cash-outs” section), and where the security options
are granted on or after July 1, 2021 (see “Annual vesting
limit” section).
The deduction the employee can claim is one-half of the
amount of the resulting taxable benefit in the year.
Identify the amount of the deduction by entering it in the
“Other information” area under code 39 at the bottom of
the employee’s T4 slip.
Calculating examples – Annual vesting limit with single option
Description Situation 1
Situation 1 – Before July 1, 2021
An employee receives the option to acquire
10,000 shares of their non-CCPC employer
with gross revenues of more than $500
$400,000
million on July 15, 2020 for their fair market
value (FMV) of $40 per share. (10,000 shares
x $40 per share)
The employee exercises all of their options on
$500,000
September 15, 2020 when the FMV of the
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

If the taxable benefit is reported using code 90 for 2025 or
the period from June 25 to December 31, 2024, refer to the
2025 RC4120 for information on how to report the related
deduction.
Annual vesting limit
For security options granted on or after July 1, 2021 (other
than options granted after June 2021 that replace options
granted before July 2021), the employee is subject to a
$200,000 annual vesting limit under paragraph 110(1)(d) if
the qualifying person meets both of the following
conditions:
- is not a Canadian-controlled private corporation
(CCPC)
- has, or is part of a consolidated group that has, gross
revenues of more than $500 million
How to determine the portion of the securities that are
non-qualified securities
The portion of the securities that are non-qualified
securities and not eligible for the deduction under 110(1)(d)
is determined by the formula:
A/B
A = C + D – $200,000 (if the result is negative, the
amount is zero)
where
C = total FMV (at the time the agreement is entered
into) of the securities to be sold or issued under the
agreement for a particular vesting year
D = is the lesser of:
(i) $200,000; and
(ii) the total FMV (at the time the agreements were entered
into with the qualifying person, or another qualifying
person that does not deal at arm’s length with the
particular qualifying person) of the securities to be sold or
issued in respect of other agreements (whether entered into
previously or contemporaneously) for that particular
vesting year
B = the amount determined for C
The qualifying person is required to fill out T2 Schedule 59
to report non-qualifying security options beyond the
$200,000 annual vesting limit.
Situation 2
Situation 3
33

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shares were $50 per share. (10,000 shares x
$50 per share)
Situation 2 – On or after July 1, 2021
An employee receives the option to acquire
10,000 shares of their non-CCPC employer
with gross revenues of more than $500 million
on July 15, 2021 for their FMV of $40 per
share. (10,000 shares x $40 per share)
The employee exercises all of their options on
September 15, 2021 when the FMV of the
shares were $50 per share. (10,000 shares x
$50 per share)
Situation 3 – On or after July 1, 2021
An employee receives the option to acquire
10,000 shares of their non-CCPC employer
with gross revenues of more than $500 million
on July 15, 2021 for their FMV of $40 per
share. (10,000 shares x $40 per share)
The employee exercises only 5,000 of their
options on September 15, 2021 when the FMV
of the shares were $50 per share. (5,000
shares x $50 per share)
Non-qualified securities
FMV of the securities under this options
N/A
agreement at the time of grant. (C) and (B)
Lesser of $200,000 and the FMV of the
securities under other options agreements with
the qualifying person (or another qualifying
N/A $0 $0
person that does not deal at arm’s length with
the particular qualifying person) vesting within
the same calendar year. (D)
A = C + D - $200,000 (if the result is negative,
N/A
the amount is zero)
Portion of the securities deemed non-qualified.
N/A
(A/B)
Number of non-qualified securities, to be
N/A
reported on T2 Schedule 59, line 500.
Taxable benefit
FMV of the shares when exercised minus the
amount paid by the employee to acquire the
$100,000 $100,000
shares. ($500,000 - $400,000)
FMV of the shares when exercised minus the
amount paid by the employee to acquire the
$50,000
shares (5,000 shares x $40 per share
= $200,000). ($250,000 - $200,000)
Security options deductions
One-half of the amount taxable – 110(1)(d)
$50,000
($100,000 x 50%)
One-half of the amount taxable – 110(1)(d)
($200,000 vesting limit ÷ $40 grant price per
$25,000
share = 5,000 shares eligible for the deduction)
(5,000 shares x ($50 - $40) x 50%)
34 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

$400,000
$500,000
$400,000
$250,000
$400,000
$400,000
= $200,000
= $200,000
= $200,000/$400,000 (50%)
= $200,000/$400,000 (50%)
= 5,000 (10,000 x 50%)
= 5,000 (10,000 x 50%)

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One-half of the amount taxable – 110(1)(d)
($200,000 vesting limit ÷ $40 grant price per
share = 5,000 shares eligible for the
$25,000
deduction.) ($50,000 x 50%)
Because only 5,000 shares were exercised,
they all qualify for the deduction.
Amount to be included on the T4
2020 tax year
Box 14 (may include other income)
= $100,000
Code 38
= $100,000
Code 39
= $50,000
Calculation examples – Annual vesting limit with multiple options
Description
2022
On August 1, 2022, an employee is first
$140,000
granted an option to acquire 70,000 shares of
their non-CCPC employer with gross revenues
of more than $500 million for their FMV of $2
per share. The first year they will be able to
acquire those securities is in the 2024 calendar
year. (70,000 x $2)
On April 15, 2023, the same employee is
granted the option to acquire another 50,000
shares of the company’s shares for their FMV
of $2 per share. The first year they will be able
to acquire those securities is in the 2024
calendar year. (50,000 x $2)
The employee exercised both sets of options
on January 23, 2024 when they had a FMV of
$3 per share (70,000 x $3) + (50,000 x $3)
Non-qualified securities
FMV of the securities under this options
$140,000
agreement at the time of grant. (C) and (B)
Lesser of $200,000 and the FMV of the
$0 $140,000
securities under other options agreements with
the qualifying person (or another qualifying
person that does not deal at arm’s length with
the particular qualifying person) vesting within
the same calendar year. (D)
A = C + D - $200,000 (if the result is negative,
$0 $40,000
the amount is zero)
Portion of the securities deemed non-qualified.
$0/$140,000
(A/B)
Number of non-qualified securities, to be
= 0
reported on T2 Schedule 59, line 500.
Taxable benefit
FMV of the shares when exercised minus the
amount paid by the employee to acquire the
shares. ($360,000 - $240,000)
Security options deductions
One-half of the amount taxable - 110(1)(d)
(120,000 shares less the 20,000 non-qualified
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

2021 tax year
2021 tax year
= $50,000
= $100,000
= $100,000
= $50,000
= $25,000
= $25,000
2023
2024
$140,000
$100,000
$100,000
$360,000
$100,000
$40,000/$100,000 (40%)
= 20,000 (50,000 x 40%)
$120,000
$50,000
35

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shares = 100,000 shares eligible for the
deduction) (100,000 shares x ($3 - $2) x 50%)
OR, if the reporting exception for June 25, 2024
to December 31, 2024 applies, one-third of the
amount taxable (100,000 shares x ($3 - $2) x
33.3333%)
Amount to be included on the T4
Box 14 (may include other income)
Code 38 (or code 90 where the benefits were
received from June 25 to December 31, 2024
and the employer is choosing to report the
taxable benefit using code 90)
Code 39 (or code 91 where the benefits were
received from June 25 to December 31, 2024
and the employer is choosing to report the
taxable benefit using code 90)
Designation of non-qualified securities
Qualifying persons subject to the new rules will be able to
designate securities to be issued or sold under a securities
option agreement as non-qualified securities for purposes
of the employee stock option rules. When this designation
is made, employees will not be entitled to a stock option
deduction, but the employer will be entitled to a deduction
for the value of the benefit received by employees.
Notification requirements for non-qualified securities
Qualifying persons will be required to notify employees in
writing no later than 30 days after the day the securities
option agreement is entered into for non-qualified
securities, and to report the issuance of securities options
for non-qualified securities on Form T2 Schedule 59 with
their tax return.
Charitable donations
An employee will be ineligible for the additional 50% stock
option deduction if the employee donates to a qualified
donee a publicly listed security acquired under a securities
option that is a non-qualified security under the new stock
36 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

or $ 33,333 if the reporting
exception applies
(in that case, the employee
may claim an additional
deduction of $16,667 on line
24901 of their personal
income tax and benefit
return or $66,667 on line
24900 if they qualify for the
additional deduction on the
donation of qualified
securities (discussed in
RC4120))
2024 tax year
= $120,000
= $120,000
= $50,000
(or $33,333 where the
deduction is being reported
for the period June 25 to
December 31, 2024 using
code 91. In this case, the
employee may use the
federal worksheet to claim
an additional deduction of
$16.667 on line 24901 to
bring the total deduction to
50%, OR may claim a
deduction of $66.667 on line
24900 if they qualify for the
deduction on donation of
qualified securities)
option rules. The employee may, however, be eligible for
the charitable donation tax credit.
Note
The effect of foreign exchange gains and losses is not
relevant when determining if an individual is eligible for
the security option deduction.
Security options deduction for the disposition
of shares of a Canadian-controlled private
corporation (CCPC) – Paragraph 110(1)(d.1)
The employee receives the benefit in the year they dispose
of the shares, but not in the year of acquiring them if all of
the following conditions are met:
- When the agreement to sell or issue shares to the
employee was concluded, the issuing or selling
corporation was a CCPC
- The employee acquired shares after May 22, 1985
- The employee dealt at arm’s length with the
corporation or any other corporation involved right
after the agreement was concluded

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In this case, the employee can claim a deduction under
paragraph 110(1)(d.1) of the Income Tax Act if all of the
following conditions are met:
- CCPC shares disposed of in the year where the
employee dealt at arm’s length with the corporation
- The employee has not disposed of the share (otherwise
than as a result of the employee’s death) or exchanged
the share within two years after the date the employee
acquired it
- The employee did not deduct an amount under
paragraph 110(1)(d) for the benefit
The deduction the employee can claim is one-half of the
amount of the resulting taxable benefit in the year.
Identify the amount of the deduction by entering it in the
“Other information” area under code 41 at the bottom of
the employee’s T4 slip.
If the taxable benefit is reporting using code 90 for 2025 or
the period from June 25 to December 31, 2024, refer to the
2025 RC4120 for information on how to report the related
deduction.
### Social events
If you provide a free party or other social event to all your
employees and the cost is $150 per person or less, the CRA
does not consider it to be a taxable benefit. Additional costs
such as transportation home, taxi fare, and overnight
accommodation are not included in the $150 per person
amount. If the cost of the party is greater than $150 per person,
the entire amount, including the additional costs, is a taxable
benefit.
If you provide a virtual social event to your employees, the
benefit is not taxable if all of the following apply:
- It is available to all employees
- If the virtual social event:
Only includes meals, beverages and delivery services,
-
the total cost is $50 or less (including taxes) per
employee
- Includes meals, beverages, delivery services and
entertainment, the total cost is $100 or less (including
taxes) per employee
- If you provide gift cards to your employees for meals,
beverages and delivery services, the card must meet the
conditions for the card to be considered non-cash
- If you reimburse expenses or provide an accountable
advance, the employee must send you receipts
- The event is within the maximum annual limit for social
events (total of six employer-paid combined in-person
and virtual social events)
- If you provide a combined in-person and virtual social
event to your employees, the benefit is not taxable if all of
the following apply:
- It is available to all employees
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

- Cost is $150 or less (including taxes) per person:
o persons includes spouses or common-law
partners
o ancillary costs (such as transportation home,
taxi fare, and overnight accommodation) for
in-person social event attendees, are not
included in total cost limit for the event
- If you provide gift cards to your employees attending
virtually for meals, beverages and delivery services, the
card must meet the conditions for the card to be
considered non-cash
- The event is within the maximum annual limit for social
events (total of six employer-paid combined in-person
and virtual social events)
If the benefit is all cash, do not include the GST/HST and
PST. However, if all or part of the taxable benefit is
non-cash and is not an exempt or zero-rated supply,
include the GST/HST and PST in the value of that part of
the benefit.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and
select “Social events and hospitality functions.”
### Spouse’s or common-law partner’s travelling expenses
If a spouse or common-law partner accompanies an
employee on a business trip, the amount you reimburse the
employee for the spouse’s or common-law partner’s
travelling expenses is a taxable benefit for the employee.
The reimbursement is not considered a taxable benefit if the
spouse or common-law partner went at your request and
was mostly engaged in business activities during the trip.
For more information, see archived Interpretation
Bulletin IT-131R2, Convention expenses.
### Tax-free savings account (TFSA)
You may offer your employees and their spouses the
opportunity to participate in a group TFSA. Contributions
you make to your employees’ TFSA for them, as well as
TFSA administration fees that you pay for them, are
considered to be a taxable benefit for the employees.
However, this does not include any amount you withheld
from the employees’ remuneration and contributed for the
employees.
Contributions you make to your employees’ TFSA for them
are generally paid in cash and are taxable, pensionable, and
insurable. Deduct income tax, CPP contributions and EI
premiums.
Administration fees that you pay directly for an employee
are taxable and pensionable. Deduct CPP and income tax.
These are considered a non-cash benefit, so they are not
insurable. Do not deduct EI premiums.
If the GST/HST applies to the administration fees, include
it in the value of the benefit.
37

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### Tickets
Whether a ticket is a taxable benefit to the employee
depends on whether the ticket is provided for personal or
business use. Each case is different.
Generally, the value of tickets is considered a taxable
benefit when an employer gives an employee tickets for
personal use unless it is being given under the terms of the
gifts and awards policy. This would also be the case if the
employer gives tickets to a person with whom the
employee does not deal at arm’s length (such as a family
member) for a non-business use.
There is no taxable benefit to an employee for the value of
a ticket used for business purposes. Sometimes an
employee needs a ticket to attend a game or event to be able
to perform their employment duties. In these situations, the
tickets are given to the employee for a business use.
Employment duties may include:
- promoting and marketing to suppliers or other business
contacts
- supervising and managing at an event
- performing other specific duties required during the
event, including:
- providing on-call, on-site emergency medical services
- conducting in-venue marketing promotions
- training on a product
An employer has to keep records to support the business
use of tickets given to employees. These records should
contain all of the following information:
- identification of the employee receiving the tickets
- details of the personal or business use
- number of tickets
- value of the tickets
Reporting the benefit
Employers have to include in the employee’s income the
value of all tickets, which are used for personal purposes,
given to an employee during the year. Include the fair
market value (usually the face value of the ticket, including
applicable taxes) of the tickets in box 14, “Employment
income,” and in the “Other information” area under
code 40 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
### Tool reimbursement or allowance
If you reimburse or provide an allowance to your
employees to offset the cost of tools that they need for their
job or you pay for their tools, the amount of the payment is
a taxable benefit and should be included in the employees’
income.
When employed tradespersons (including apprentice
mechanics) file their income tax and benefit return, they
may be able to deduct part of the cost of eligible tools they
bought to earn employment income as a tradesperson.
38 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Employers have to fill out and sign Form T2200,
Declaration of Conditions of Employment, to certify that
the employee must acquire these tools as a condition of,
and for use in their employment.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and
select “Tool reimbursment, allowances and rental
payments.”
### Transportation passes
Airline passes for employees and retirees of
an airline company
If you provide standby airline passes to a current airline
employee for their personal travel, there is no taxable
benefit for the employee.
If you provide space-confirmed airline passes to a current
airline employee for personal travel, the passes are a
taxable benefit. The value of the benefit to be included in
the employee’s income is the fair market value of the pass
(including any fees and taxes), less any amount paid by the
employee.
If you provide standby or space-confirmed airline passes to
a retired airline employee for their personal travel, there is
no taxable benefit for the retired employee.
Transit passes
If you pay for or provide your employee with public transit
passes, it is usually a taxable benefit for the employee.
Public transit includes transit by local bus, streetcar,
subway, commuter train or bus, and local ferry.
Report the taxable benefit on the employee’s T4 slip in
box 14, “Employment income,” and in the “Other
information” area under code 40 at the bottom of the slip.
Transit passes – employees of a transit
company
If your company is in the business of operating a bus,
streetcar, subway, commuter train or bus, or ferry service,
and you provide free transit passes to your employees or
their families, special rules apply.
If you provide free or discounted passes to a current or a
retired employee of one of the businesses mentioned above,
and the passes are only for the employee’s or the retiree’s
use, there is no taxable benefit for the employee or the
retiree.
Note
To qualify as a non-taxable benefit under this special
rule, ferry passes are limited to passenger (walk on) fares
only.
If you provide free or discounted passes to a member of
your employee’s or retired employee’s family, the fair
market value (FMV) of the pass is a taxable benefit for the
employee. Report the retiree’s benefit using code 028,
“Other income” in the “Other information” area at the
bottom of the T4A slip.

<!-- Page 39 -->

Note
If you provide free or discounted passes to a current
employee in an area other than the transportation
business or its operations, their FMV is a taxable benefit
for the employee. For example, if a city owns a transit
company, the FMV of a pass given to a current employee
in the city’s accounting department would be a taxable
benefit, while a pass given to a current employee in the
accounting department of the transit business operations
would not be a taxable benefit.
For examples of situations where transit passes are
considered taxable benefits, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-transit-passes>.
### Travel allowance
Part-time employee
You may give a part-time employee a reasonable allowance
or reimbursement for travelling expenses incurred by the
employee going to and from a part-time job. If so, and you
and the part-time employee are dealing at arm’s length,
you do not have to include that amount in the employee’s
income. This applies to:
- teachers and professors who work part-time in a
designated educational institution in Canada, providing
service to you as a professor or teacher, and the location
is not less than 80 kilometres from the employee’s home
- part-time employees who had other employment or
carried on a business, and they did the duties at a
location no less than 80 kilometres from both the place
of the employee’s home and the place of the other
employment or business
Salesperson and clergy
You may pay a reasonable travel allowance for expenses
other than for the use of an automobile (such as meals,
lodging, per diem allowance) to a salesperson or member of
the clergy. You do not have to include the allowance in the
employee’s income if it was for expenses related to the
performance of duties of the office or employment and the
employee is either of the following:
- an agent selling property or negotiating contracts for
the employer
- a member of the clergy
Other employees
You have to include reasonable travel allowances in the
income of employees, other than a salesperson or member
of the clergy, who travel to perform the duties of the office
or employment, unless the allowances are received by the
employee for travelling away from the municipality and
the metropolitan area where the employer’s establishment
is located and where the employee ordinarily works or
reports.
In some situations, you may provide an allowance to your
employee for travel (other than an allowance for the use of
a motor vehicle) within a municipality or metropolitan area
so your employee can perform their duties in a more
efficient way during a work shift.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

This allowance is not a taxable benefit and can be excluded
from the employee’s income if all of the following
conditions are met:
- The employee travels away from the office
- The allowance is reasonable. The CRA generally
considers a value of up to $23 for the meal portion of
the travel allowance to be reasonable
- You are the primary beneficiary of the allowance
- The allowance is not an additional form of
remuneration
This means that you do not have to include this type of
travel allowance if its main reason is so that your
employee’s duties are performed in a more efficient way
during a work shift. For examples of situations where a
travel allowance is considered a taxable benefit, go
to <https://canada.ca/examples-travel-allowance>.
Reasonable travel allowances
Whether an allowance for travel expenses is reasonable is a
question of fact. You should compare the reasonable costs
for travel expenses that you would expect your employee to
incur against the allowance you pay to the employee for the
trip.
If the travel allowance is reasonable, you do not have to
include it in your employee’s income. If it is not reasonable,
the allowance has to be included in your employee’s
income.
For more information, see paragraph 48 in archived
Interpretation Bulletin IT-522R, Vehicle, Travel and Sales
Expenses of Employees.
Your employee may be able to claim certain employment
expenses on their income tax and benefit return. For more
information, see “Employee’s allowable employment
expenses“ on page 8
Uniforms and protective clothing
Your employee does not receive a taxable benefit if either of
the following conditions apply:
- You supply your employee with a distinctive uniform
they have to wear while carrying out the employment
duties
- You provide your employee with protective clothing
(including safety footwear and safety glasses) designed
to protect them from hazards associated with the
employment
If you reimburse or pay an accountable advance to your
employee to buy uniforms or protective clothing and
require receipts to support the purchases, the
reimbursement or accountable advance is not a taxable
benefit if the following conditions are met:
- the cost of the uniforms or protective clothing is
reasonable
- by law, the employee has to wear the protective
clothing on the work site
39

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If you pay an allowance to your employee for the cost of
protective clothing and did not require receipts to support
the purchases, the allowance is not a taxable benefit if all of
the following conditions apply:
- By law, the employee has to wear the protective
clothing on the work site
- The employee used the allowance to buy protective
clothing
- The amount of the allowance is reasonable
You may pay a laundry or dry cleaner to clean uniforms
and protective clothing for your employee or you may pay
a reasonable allowance to your employee (when they do
not have to provide a receipt). You may also reimburse the
employee for these expenses when they present a receipt. If
you do either of these, the amounts you pay are not taxable
benefits for the employee.
## Chapter 4 – Housing and travel assistance benefits paid in a prescribed zone
This chapter applies to you if you meet both of the
following conditions:
- You are an employer or a third-party payer who
provides employment benefits for board, lodging,
transportation, or travel assistance
- You provide these benefits to an employee who works
or lives in locations that are in prescribed zones for
purposes of the northern resident’s deductions
If your employee works at a special site or a remote work
location that is not in a prescribed zone, this chapter does
not apply to you. For more information, see “Board,
lodging, and transportation – Special work sites and remote
work locations“ on page 17.
For a list of places in prescribed northern zones and prescribed
intermediate zones, go to <https://canada.ca/line-25500>.
### Accommodation or utilities provided by the employer
If you provide accommodation or utilities free of charge, it
is a taxable benefit to your employee. The method you use
to determine the value of the benefit depends on whether
or not the place in a prescribed zone has a developed rental
market.
Places with developed rental markets
Some cities and towns in prescribed zones have developed
rental markets. When that is the case, you base the value of
the benefit for any rent or utility you provide on its fair
market value.
The cities and towns in prescribed zones that have
developed rental markets are:
Dawson Creek Fort McMurray Fort St. John
Grande Prairie Labrador City Thompson
Wabush Whitehorse Yellowknife
40 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Places without developed rental markets
In places in prescribed zones without developed rental
markets, you have to use other methods to set a value on
the housing benefit. The method you use depends on
whether you own the residence or rent it from a third party.
If you provide both rent and utilities and can calculate their
cost as separate items, you have to determine their value
separately. Add both items to get the value of the housing
benefit.
If your employee reimburses you for all or part of their rent
or utilities, determine the benefit as explained below.
Subtract any amount reimbursed by your employee and
include the amount that remains in their income.
Accommodations you own
If you own a residence that you provide rent free to your
employee, report as a benefit whichever of the following
amounts is less:
- the fair market value of the rent
- the ceiling amount
Similarly, the amount you have to report as a benefit for
utilities is whichever of the following amounts is less:
- the fair market value of the utilities
- the ceiling amount
Accommodations you rent from a third party
If you rent a residence from a third party and provide it
rent free to your employee, report as a benefit whichever of
the following amounts is less:
- the amount you pay the third party
- the ceiling amount
Similarly, the amount you have to report as a benefit for
utilities is whichever of the following amounts is less:
- the amount you pay the third party
- the ceiling amount
Allowable ceiling amounts
There are allowable ceiling amounts for different types of
accommodation. Use these ceiling amounts to help
determine the value of the housing benefit you provide in
places in prescribed zones that do not have developed
rental markets.
The amounts are considered to include any GST/HST that
applies, so you do not have to calculate this amount. If the
amount of the housing benefit you report is based on the
fair market value, you have to calculate and report any
GST/HST that applies. If the total of the fair market value,
plus the GST/HST, is more than the allowable ceiling
amount, report the allowable ceiling amount as the housing
benefit.
For a list of the ceiling amounts for rent and utilities and
definitions for different types of accommodation, go
to <https://canada.ca/taxes-payroll-allowable-ceiling-amounts>.

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Note
If more than one employee occupies the same
accommodation, divide the total housing benefit by the
number of occupants.
### Board, lodging, and transportation at a special work site in a prescribed zone
If an employee received a benefit or an allowance for
working at a special work site that is excluded from
income, this amount may affect their claim for a northern
residency deduction.
If the employee worked at a special work site in a place in a
prescribed zone and kept their principal place of residence
in a place outside of a prescribed zone, you will have to
identify the exempt part of the board and lodging benefit or
allowance on the employee’s T4 or T4A slip.
In the “Other information” area of the T4 slip, enter under
code 31, the exempt part that is related to work sites within
30 kilometres from the nearest urban area with a
population of at least 40,000 persons. Do not include this in
box 14, “Employment income.”
If you are a third-party payer and are completing a T4A slip
for the employee of another employer, report the exempt
part using code 124 “Board and lodging at special work
sites,” in the “Other information” area at the bottom of the
T4A slip.
You have to do this even though you did not include the
excluded amount in income. This way, the employee will
have all the information required to correctly calculate their
residency deduction.
Example
You paid your employee $4,000 for board and lodging at a
special work site that is in a prescribed zone. You and the
employee filled out Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption –
Employment at a Special Work Site.
Since the benefit is not included as income, you did not
enter the amount of the benefit in box 14, “Employment
income,” or in the “Other information” area under code 30
at the bottom of the T4 slip.
Of the $4,000 you paid, $1,200 relates to a special work site
that was located 27 kilometres from a town with a
population of 43,000 people (the 30-kilometre part).
You have to enter $1,200 in the “Other information” area
under code 31 at the bottom of the T4 slip, even though it
was not entered in the “Other information” area under
code 30. The employee will then enter $1,200 on their
Form T2222, Northern Residents Deductions.
Note
An amount that is not included as income for allowances
at a remote work location does not affect the employee’s
claim for a northern residency deduction.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

### Travel assistance benefits
If you provide an employee with travel assistance in a
prescribed zone, the benefit is taxable unless it was for
business travel. The travel assistance could be for such
things as vacation, bereavement, medical, or compassionate
reasons.
If employees travel using transportation that you own or
charter, determine the value of the benefit by assigning a
fair market value to the transportation.
When employees travel by some means other than air, the
cost of travel may include automobile expenses, meals,
hotel and motel accommodations, camping fees, taxi fares,
and road and ferry tolls.
When you give employees travel assistance benefits other
than cash or refundable tickets (such as travel warrants,
vouchers, or non-refundable tickets), the employees do not
receive any benefit until they or members of their
household take the trip. The benefit is income for the
employees in the year the trip starts, and you should report
it in that year.
There are many ways of providing travel assistance
benefits. You can pay your employee a travel allowance
before the trip, such as a certain amount per hour, or on
some other periodic basis. You can also make lump-sum
payments to your employee before or after the trip is taken.
You should report such payments in your employee’s
income in the year they receive them, no matter when your
employee or members of their household travel. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/housing-travel-prescribed-zone>.
You have to report these benefits in box 14, “Employment
income,” and in the “Other information” area under
code 32 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip.
If you are a third party who supplies travel benefits to the
employee of another employer, report these benefits under
code 028 “Other income,” in the “Other information” area
at the bottom of the T4A slip.
An employee who qualifies for the northern residents travel
deduction will use this amount to calculate their claim. An
employee can claim two trips per year, unless the trips
were for medical reasons. Therefore, you have to show the
value of medical travel benefits separately on the slip, as
explained below.
If the travel assistance is a taxable benefit, include any
GST/HST that applies in the value of the benefit. Do not
include the GST/HST in the value of the travel allowances.
Medical travel assistance
Medical travel includes any trip your employee or
members of their household take to get medical services
that are not available in the area where they live. Medical
travel benefits are considered to be the cost of
transportation from the place in a prescribed zone to the
place where medical treatment is available. This includes
the transportation cost of an attendant if the patient needs
one while travelling.
41

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You have to identify the portion of the travel assistance that
refers to the medical travel benefits you provide to your
employee.
For a T4 slip, enter the entire travel assistance benefit under
code 32 in the “Other information” area. Enter the medical
part under code 33.
For a T4A slip, enter the entire travel assistance benefit
under code 028 “Other income,” in the “Other information”
area at the bottom of the slip. Enter the medical part under
code 116 “Medical travel assistance.”
Notes
If you do not identify which part of the benefit was for
medical travel, the CRA will consider all travel
assistance as vacation (or other) travel and the employee
will not be entitled to claim a deduction for medical
travel. As well, the CRA will limit the deduction for the
employee and the members of the household to two
trips each.
Amounts you pay or reimburse your employee for
medical travel or any associated cost under the terms of
a private health services plan are not taxable benefits.
Payments you make due to an obligation you have
under a collective agreement may be considered a
private health services plan. If this is the case, you
should not report them on the employee’s T4 slip.
For more information, go to:
- <https://canada.ca/private-health-services-plan>
<https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select “Medical
-
expenses”
<https://canada.ca/taxable-benefit>, and select ““Disability-
-
related employment benefits ”
Payroll deductions
When travel assistance benefits are in the form of
non-refundable tickets or travel vouchers, you have to
make payroll deductions when the benefit becomes taxable,
i.e. when the employee or member of their household takes
the trip. However, when you give travel assistance in the
form of cash, the CRA considers it to be a cash advance,
and you have to make the payroll deductions when the
advance is paid to the employee.
You may waive the requirement to deduct income tax from
the full travel assistance payment you give to your
employee who lives in a prescribed northern zone (or from
50% of the payment received by an employee who lives in a
prescribed intermediate zone). To do this, the employee
has to agree, in writing, to use the payment entirely for
vacation or medical travel when they receive it. If the
employee does not agree, you have to deduct income tax.
Whether or not you have to make income tax deductions,
you have to deduct CPP contributions and EI premiums on
cash payments. You have to deduct CPP contributions on
non-cash benefits if the employee also receives cash
remuneration from you during the year. If the non-cash
benefit is the only form of remuneration you provide to
your employee in the year you do not have to make payroll
deductions. For more information about the non-cash
42 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

benefits withholding policy, see ”Chapter 1 – General
information“ on page 6.
Form TD1, Personal Tax Credits Return
Employees who live in a prescribed zone during a
continuous period of at least six months (that begins or
ends in the tax year) may be entitled to claim the northern
residents deductions when filing their income tax and
benefit returns. As a result, these employees can ask for a
reduction in payroll deductions by completing the back of
Form TD1, Personal Tax Credits Return.
The residency deduction is equal to whichever is less:
- 20% of their net income for the year
- the residency amount they can claim
Note
Employees cannot claim a residency amount for both the
principal place of residence and the special work site for
the same period, even if they are both located in
prescribed zones.
For 2025, an employee living in a prescribed northern zone
can claim the total of:
- a basic residency amount of $11.00 per day for each day
they live in the prescribed northern zone
- an additional residency amount of $11.00 per day for
each day they live in and keeps a residence in that area,
if during that time no one else is claiming a basic
residency amount for living in the same residence for
the same period
For 2025, employees living in a prescribed intermediate
zone can claim 50% of the total of the above amounts.
Note
Employees who receive board and lodging benefits from
employment at a special work site in a prescribed zone
have to reduce their residency amount by the value of
the 30-kilometre part of the benefit they receive if they
keep a principal residence that is not in a prescribed
zone. The 30-kilometre part of the excluded benefit will
be shown in the “Other information” area under code 31
at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip. For more
information, see “Board, lodging, and transportation at
a special work site in a prescribed zone“ on page 41.
To calculate the amount of tax you should deduct if an
employee is claiming a residency deduction on Form TD1:
- reduce the residency amount by 50% if the employee
lives in a prescribed intermediate zone (if the
conditions noted above apply, reduce the residency
amount by the 30-kilometre part of the excluded board
and lodging benefits from employment at a special
work site)
- divide the employee’s net deduction for the year
(amount on the back of Form TD1, minus the above
adjustments) by the number of pay periods in the year
- subtract the result from their gross earnings for each
pay period
- see the tax tables that apply

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## Chapter 5 – Remitting the GST/HST on employee benefits
This chapter discusses the GST/HST treatment of employee
benefits.
The Canada Revenue Agency is responsible for
administering the GST/HST. In Quebec, Revenu Québec
administers the GST/HST unless you are a person that is a
selected listed financial institution (SLFI) for GST/HST or
QST purposes or both. If the physical location of your
business is in Quebec, contact Revenu Québec,
at 1-800-567-4692. Also see the Revenu Québec
publication IN-203, General Information Concerning the
QST and the GST/HST, available at <https://revenuquebec.ca/en>.
### Employee benefits
Salaries, wages, commissions, and other cash remuneration
(including gratuities) you make to employees are not
subject to the GST/HST.
However, the cost of benefits or non-cash compensation
provided to an employee, commonly referred to as fringe or
employee taxable benefits may be subject to the GST/HST.
For the most part, the GST/HST treatment of these benefits
is based on their treatment under the Income Tax Act.
Generally, if a benefit is taxable for income tax purposes,
the CRA considers you to have made a supply of a property
or service to the employee.
If the property or service that gives rise to the taxable
benefit is subject to GST/HST, you are considered to have
collected the GST/HST on that benefit. However, there are
situations where you will not be considered to have
collected the GST/HST on taxable benefits given to
employees. These situations can be found in the section
titled “Situations where you are not considered to
have collected the GST/HST“ on this page.
Employee does not pay the GST/HST on
taxable benefits
The employee does not pay the GST/HST that you have to
remit on taxable benefits. However, as explained in
previous chapters, an amount for the GST/HST has already
been included in the taxable benefits you will report on
your employee’s T4 slip.
Find out if you have to remit GST/HST on
employee taxable benefits
The following steps will help you determine whether you
have to remit the GST/HST on employee taxable benefits.
Step 1 – Determine whether the benefit is taxable under the
Income Tax Act and the Excise Tax Act (see the previous
chapters).
Step 2 – For each taxable benefit, determine whether any of
the situations where you are not considered to have
collected the GST/HST applies.
If none of the situations apply, you are considered to have
collected the GST/HST on the taxable benefit and must
calculate the amount of the GST/HST due. Go to Step 3.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Step 3 – If you are considered to have collected the
GST/HST on a taxable benefit, you have to calculate the
amount of the GST/HST due. More information on how to
calculate the amount of GST/HST due can be found in the
sections “Automobile operating expense benefits“ and
“Benefits other than automobile operating expense
benefits“ on page 44.
Step 4 – Include the amount of the GST/HST due on your
GST/HST return and send your remittance, if applicable,
with your GST/HST return for the reporting period that
includes the last day of February 2026.
Note
If the GST/HST is for a reimbursement made by an
employee or an employee’s relative for a taxable benefit
other than a standby charge or the operating expense of
an automobile, the amount may be due in a different
reporting period. For more information, see “Benefits
other than automobile operating expense benefits“ on
page 44.
### Situations where you are not considered to have collected the GST/HST
You are not considered to have collected the GST/HST on
taxable benefits provided to employees in any of the
following situations:
- The property or services that give rise to a taxable
benefit are GST/HST exempt or zero-rated
- A taxable benefit results from an allowance included in
the income of the employee under paragraph 6(1)(b) of
the Income Tax Act
- You are restricted from claiming an input tax
credit (ITC) in the situations described on page 46, in
section “ITC restrictions“ for the GST/HST paid or
payable on the property and services that give rise to
the taxable benefit
- The property or services that give rise to a taxable
benefit are supplied outside Canada
Example
You, as an employer who is a GST/HST registrant, would
like to reward an employee for outstanding performance,
and you have agreed to pay for hotel accommodations and
three meals a day, for one week, in London, England. An
amount will be included in the income of the employee as a
taxable benefit. However, you will not be considered to
have collected tax in respect of the benefit provided to the
employee, since the supplies were made outside of Canada.
Also, if the taxable benefit is for the standby charge or
operating expense benefit of an automobile or an aircraft,
you are not considered to have collected the GST/HST on
this benefit in the following situations:
- you are an individual or a partnership and the
passenger vehicle or the aircraft that you have bought
is used less than 90% in the commercial activities of the
business
43

<!-- Page 44 -->

- you are not an individual, a partnership, or a financial
institution, and the passenger vehicle or aircraft that
you bought is used 50% or less in the commercial
activities of the business
- you are a financial institution and choose to treat the
passenger vehicle or aircraft you lease or have bought
as being used only in non-commercial activities of the
business (see Note below)
- you are not a financial institution and you lease the
passenger vehicle or aircraft which you use 50% or
more in non-commercial activities of the business, and
you choose to treat it as being used 90% or more in such
non-commercial activities (see Note below)
Note
To make this choice, fill out Form GST30, Election for
Passenger Vehicles or Aircraft to be Deemed to be Used
Exclusively in Non-Commercial Activities, or state in
writing the information required on the form. You do
not have to file this form or statement, but you have to
keep it with your records for audit purposes. For more
information about this election, contact the CRA
at 1-800-959-5525.
### How to calculate the amount of the GST/HST you are considered to have collected
The amount of the GST/HST you are considered to have
collected on a taxable benefit is based on a percentage of the
value of the benefit for GST/HST purposes. The percentage
rate you use depends on:
- the province or territory in which the employee
ordinarily reported to work
- if you were, at any time, a large business, for the
purpose of the recapture of input tax credits (RITC) for
the provincial part of the HST
- if the benefit is an automobile operating expense benefit
or some other type of benefit
Value of the benefit
The value of the benefit for GST/HST purposes is the total
of the following two amounts:
- the amount reported on the T4 or T4A slip for the
benefit
- if the taxable benefit is for a standby charge or the
operating expense of an automobile, the amount, if
any, that the employee or the employee’s relative
reimbursed you for that benefit
Note
When an employee or an employee’s relative has
reimbursed an amount equal to the entire taxable benefit
for a standby charge or the operating expense of an
automobile and, as a result, no benefit is reported on the
T4 slip, the value of the benefit for GST/HST purposes is
equal to the amount of the reimbursement.
44 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Automobile operating expense benefits
If the last establishment where your employee ordinarily
worked or to which they ordinarily reported in the year is
located in a participating province (Prince Edward Island,
New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova
Scotia, or Ontario), you are considered to have collected an
amount equal to a percentage of the value of the benefit for
GST/HST purposes, based on one of the following rates:
- 10.25% for Nova Scotia,
- 11% for New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador,
and Prince Edward Island
- 9% for Ontario
If the last establishment where your employee ordinarily
worked or to which they ordinarily reported in the year is
located in a non-participating province or territory (the
rest of Canada), you are considered to have collected 3% of
the value of the benefit for GST/HST purposes.
Benefits other than automobile operating
expense benefits
If the last establishment where your employee ordinarily
worked or to which they ordinarily reported in the year is
located in a participating province, you are considered to
have collected, for 2025, the GST/HST as a percentage of
the value of the benefit as follows:
- 13.25/113.25 for Nova Scotia
- 14/144 for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and
Newfoundland and Labrador
- 12/112 for Ontario
If you were, at any time, a large business, and the benefits
relate to a motor vehicle that was subject to an RITC for the
provincial part of the HST paid or payable on that vehicle
you are considered to have collected, for 2025, the GST/HST
as a percentage of the value of the benefits as follows:
- 4/104, if the recapture rate was 100% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
on that motor vehicle
- 6/106, if the recapture rate was 75% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Ontario on that motor vehicle
- 6.5/106.5, if the recapture rate was 75% on the last day
of the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Prince Edward Island on that motor vehicle
- 8/108, if the recapture rate was 50% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Ontario on that motor vehicle
- 9/109, if the recapture rate was 50% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Prince Edward Island on that motor vehicle

<!-- Page 45 -->

- 10/110, if the recapture rate was 25% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Ontario on that motor vehicle
- 11.5/111.5, if the recapture rate was 25% on the last day
of the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Prince Edward Island on that motor vehicle
- 12/112, if the recapture rate was 0% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Ontario on that motor vehicle
- 14/114, if the recapture rate was 0% on the last day of
the last reporting period in which you reported the
RITC for the provincial part of the HST paid or payable
in Prince Edward Island on that motor vehicle
If the last establishment where your employee ordinarily
worked or to which they ordinarily reported in the year is
located in a non-participating province or territory, you
are considered to have collected 4/104 of the value of the
benefit for GST/HST purposes as calculated above.
However, when an employee or an employee’s relative has
reimbursed an amount for a taxable benefit other than for a
standby charge or the operating expense of an automobile,
this reimbursed amount is consideration for a taxable
supply. You are considered to have collected an amount
equal to 5/105 for GST or one of the following for HST on a
reimbursement:
- 14/114 for Nova Scotia,
- 15/155 for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and
Newfoundland and Labrador
- 13/113 for Ontario
In this situation, you have to include the GST/HST for this
reimbursement in your GST/HST return for the reporting
period that includes the date of the reimbursement.
Additional information on the GST/HST implications on
taxable benefits (other than automobile benefits) can be
found in GST Memorandum 9.1, Taxable Benefits (Other
than Automobile Benefits).
### When and how to report the GST/HST you are considered to have collected
You are considered to have collected the GST/HST, on a
taxable benefit subject to the GST/HST, at the end of
February in the year after the year you provided the benefit
to the employee. This corresponds with the deadline for
issuing T4 slips.
Include the amount of the GST/HST due in your GST/HST
return for the reporting period that includes the last day of
February 2026.
Example
You are a GST/HST registrant and have a monthly
reporting period. Although you calculated the taxable
benefits, including any GST/HST and PST, for each
applicable pay period provided to your employees during
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

2026, you are considered to have collected the GST/HST on
the taxable benefits at the end of February 2025. In your
GST/HST return for the reporting period that includes the
last day of February 2026, you have to include the
GST/HST for the taxable benefits given to your employees
in the prior calendar year on line 103 (line 105 if filed
electronically) of your GST/HST return.
Note
If the GST/HST is for a reimbursement made by an
employee or an employee’s relative for a taxable benefit
other than a standby charge or the operating expense of
an automobile, the amount may be due in a different
reporting period. For more information, see “Benefits
other than automobile operating expense benefits“ on
page 44.
Automobile benefits – standby charges,
operating expense benefit, and
reimbursements
The benefit for an automobile you provide is generally
made up of a standby charge benefit plus an operating
expense benefit minus any reimbursements employees
make in the year for these benefits, as discussed in
Chapter 2. When you are calculating the amount of
GST/HST that you are considered to have collected on an
automobile benefit you must take all three factors into
consideration. The standby charge will be calculated at a
certain percentage, and the operating expense benefit will
be calculated at another. For more information, go
to <https://canada.ca/automobile-standby-charge>.
In addition, the percentages used to calculate the amount of
GST/HST will depend on the province or territory in which
the automobile is provided as discussed above. Additional
information on the GST/HST implications on automobile
benefits can be found in GST Memorandum 9.2,
Automobile benefits.
Example 1 – Remitting the GST/HST on automobile
benefits in a non-participating province
As a corporation registered for the GST/HST, you buy a
vehicle that is used more than 50% in commercial activities
and is made available to your employee during 2026. The
last establishment where the employee ordinarily reported
in the year for the corporation was located in M anitoba.
You calculated a taxable benefit (including GST and PST) of
$4,800 on the standby charge and an operating expense
benefit of $600. Your employee reimbursed you $1,800 for
the automobile operating expenses within 45 days of the
end of 20256, so the operating expense benefit to be
reported was reduced by this amount.
You claimed an input tax credit (ITC) for the purchase of
the automobile and also on the operating expenses. Since
the benefit is taxable under the Income Tax Act, and no
situations described in “Situations where you are not
considered to have collected the GST/HST“ on page 43
apply, you calculate the GST remittance as follows:
Standby charge benefit
$4,800
45

<!-- Page 46 -->

GST considered to have been
collected on the standby charge
benefit............................................... $4,800 × 4/104 = $184.62
Operating expense benefit
Taxable benefit reported on T4..... $600
Employee’s partial reimbursement
of operating expenses..................... $1,800
Total value of the benefit............. $2,400
GST considered to have been
collected on the operating
expense benefit........................................ $2,400 × 3% = $72.00
Total GST to be remitted on the automobile
benefit............................................................................ $256.62
You are considered to have collected GST in the amount of
$256.62 at the end of February 2026. You have to include
this amount on your GST/HST return for the reporting
period that includes the last day of February 2026.
Example 2 – Remitting the GST/HST on automobile
benefits in a participating province
Using the same facts as in Example 1, assume that the last
establishment to which the employee ordinarily reported in
the year for the corporation was located in
New Brunswick. The corporation has never been a large
business for RITC purposes.
In this case, you would calculate the HST remittance as
follows:
Standby charge benefit..................... $4,800
HST considered to have been
collected on the standby charge
benefit.............................................. $4,800 × 14/114 = $589.47
Operating expense benefit
Taxable benefit reported on T4......... $600
Employee’s partial reimbursement
of operating expenses......................... $1,800
Total value of the benefit................. $2,400
HST considered to have been
collected on the operating
expense benefit.................................... $2,400 × 11% = $264.00
Total HST to be remitted on the automobile
benefit............................................................................. $853.47
You are considered to have collected HST in the amount of
$853.47 at the end of February 2026. You have to include
this amount on your GST/HST return for the reporting
period that includes the last day of February 2026.
### Input tax credits (ITCs)
As a registrant, you can claim an ITC to recover the
GST/HST paid or payable on the purchases and operating
expenses related to your commercial activities.
46 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Generally, commercial activities include the making of
supplies of taxable property and services. For more
information about what are considered to be commercial
activities, go to <https://canada.ca/gst-hst>. For employee benefits,
you can usually claim an ITC for the GST/HST paid or
payable on property and services you supply to your
employees or their relatives as a benefit if it is related to
your commercial activities.
However, in some situations, you will not be able to claim
an ITC for the GST/HST paid or payable for property or
services that give rise to taxable benefits you provide your
employees. For information on these situations, read the
rest of this section.
ITC restrictions
Remember, if you cannot claim an ITC for the GST/HST
paid or payable for property or services that give rise to a
taxable benefit due to the restrictions described in one of
the following paragraphs, you are not considered to have
collected the GST/HST and, as a result, you do not have to
remit the GST/HST on that benefit.
Club memberships
You may pay or reimburse fees for membership to any club
whose main purpose is to provide dining, recreational, or
sporting facilities. In such cases, you cannot claim an ITC
for the GST/HST paid or payable, regardless of whether
the club membership fees or dues are a taxable benefit for
the employee for income tax purposes.
However, you can claim ITCs for the GST/HST paid or
payable on such memberships if you acquire the
memberships exclusively for supply in the ordinary course
of a business of supplying them.
Exclusive personal use
You cannot claim an ITC for the GST/HST paid or payable
on property or services you acquire, import, or bring into a
participating province for the exclusive personal
consumption, use, or enjoyment (90% or more) of an
employee or an employee’s relative.
However, you can claim an ITC in the following situations:
- The consumption, use, or enjoyment of the property or
service by the employee or their relative does not give
rise to a taxable benefit for income tax purposes and no
amounts were payable by the employee for this benefit.
The most common type of non-taxable benefit is the
paying of moving expenses by an employer. Moving
expenses that are considered non-taxable benefits are
discussed in “Moving expenses and relocation benefits“
on page 28
- During the same GST/HST reporting period, you make
a supply of the property or service to an employee or
their relative for consideration that becomes due in that
period and that is equal to its fair market value
Property supplied by way of lease, licence, or similar
arrangement
You cannot claim an ITC for the GST/HST paid or payable
on property supplied by way of lease, licence, or similar

<!-- Page 47 -->

arrangement that is more than 50% for the personal
consumption, use, or enjoyment of one of the following:
- if you are an individual, yourself or another individual
related to you
- if you are a partnership, an individual who is a partner
or another individual who is an employee, officer, or
shareholder of, or related to, a partner
- if you are a corporation, an individual who is a
shareholder or another individual related to the
shareholder
- if you are a trust, an individual who is a beneficiary or
another individual related to the beneficiary
However, you can claim an ITC if, during the same
GST/HST reporting period, you make a taxable supply of
the property to that individual for consideration that
becomes due in that period and that is equal to its fair
market value.
For more information on ITCs related to employee benefits,
see GST/HST Memorandum 9.1, Taxable Benefits (Other
than Automobile Benefits).
### Property acquired before 1991 or from a non-registrant
If you acquired property before 1991, you did not pay the
GST/HST. Also, you do not generally pay the GST/HST
when you acquire property from a non-registrant. As a
result, you cannot claim an ITC under these circumstances.
However, if you make this property available to your
employee and the benefit is taxable for income tax
purposes, you may still be considered to have collected the
GST/HST on this benefit.
Example
You bought a passenger vehicle from a non-registrant and
made it available to your employee throughout 2025. The
passenger vehicle is used more than 90% in the commercial
activities of your business. You report the value of the
benefit, including the GST/HST and if applicable, the PST,
on the employee’s T4 slip. For GST/HST purposes, you will
be considered to have collected the GST/HST on this
benefit even if you could not claim an ITC on the purchase
of the passenger vehicle.
Examples for remitting GST/HST on employee benefits
The following examples will help you apply the rules for
remitting the GST/HST on employee benefits.
Automobile benefit – See examples in the section on
“Automobile benefits – standby charges, operating expense
benefit, and reimbursements“ on page 45.
Motor vehicle benefit – A Prince Edward Island employer
provided a motor vehicle to an employee who drove it for
personal and business use throughout 2025. The employer
has never been a large business for the RITC purposes. The
taxable benefit for the personal use is $5,100. As Prince
Edward Island is a participating province, the HST
considered to have been collected is calculated as follows:
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

HST considered to have been collected on the motor
vehicle benefit = $5,100 × 14/114 = $626.32
You are considered to have collected the HST in the amount
of $626.32 at the end of February 2026. You have to include
this amount on your GST/HST return for the reporting
period that includes the last day of February 2026.
Note
The calculation of the amount of GST/HST you are
considered to have collected on the motor vehicle benefit
differs from that of an amount calculated on an
automobile benefit.
Subsidized Meals – An Ontario employer provides
subsidized meals to employees (such as in an employee
dining room or cafeteria) throughout 2025, and the
employee does not pay any amount for these meals. The
cost of food, preparation and service per employees over
the course of the year is $2,052 including HST. The ITCs
will not be restricted on property or services purchased to
make supplies of meals if the employer is acquiring the
property or service generally for the use of employees, but
not specifically for any particular employee.
As Ontario is a participating province, the HST considered
to have been collected is calculated as follows:
HST considered to have been collected on the subsidized
meals benefit = $2,052 × 12/112 = $219.86
You are considered to have collected the HST in the amount
of $219.86 at the end of February 2026. You have to include
this amount on your GST/HST return for the reporting
period that includes the last day of February 2026.
Cell phone – An employer located in Manitoba provides
the general manager of the company with a cell phone both
for business and personal use throughout 2025.
The value of the taxable benefit for personal use of the cell
phone for the year is $617. The employee reimbursed the
employer $200 for the cell phone in December 2025. The
amount of the benefit shown on the T4 is $417.
As Manitoba is a non-participating province, the GST
considered to have been collected is calculated as follows:
GST considered to have been collected on the cell phone
benefit = $417 × 4/104 = $16.04
GST collected for the reimbursement – $200 × 5/105 = $9.52
In this situation you have to include the GST for the
reimbursement in your GST return for the reporting period
that includes the date of the reimbursement (December
2025) = $200 × 5/105 = $9.52. You are considered to have
collected the GST on the cell phone benefit in the amount of
$16.04 at the end of February 2026. You have to include this
amount on your GST/HST return for the reporting period
that includes the last day of February 2026.
Long-service award – You bought a watch for $560
(including the GST/HST and PST) for your employee to
mark the employee’s 25 years of service. It was the only gift
or award provided to the employee in the year. You
reported a taxable benefit of $60 in box 14 and under
code 40 on the employee’s T4 slip.
47

<!-- Page 48 -->

There is no GST considered to have been collected on the
long service award.
In this situation, you cannot claim an ITC because you
bought the watch for the employee’s exclusive personal use
and enjoyment. Therefore, there is no GST/HST to remit on
the benefit.
Special clothing – You provided safety footwear designed
to protect your employee from hazards associated with
their employment. The footwear is not considered to be a
48 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

taxable benefit for the employee, so you are not considered
to have collected the GST/HST on the footwear and you do
not have to remit any tax. However, you can claim an ITC
for any GST/HST that you paid for the footwear.
There is no GST considered to have been collected on the
special clothing.

<!-- Page 49 -->

## Benefits chart
This chart indicates whether you need to deduct Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and employment insurance (EI) from the
taxable allowances and benefits discussed in this guide, and shows which codes you should use to report them on the
employee’s T4 slip. The chart also indicates whether the GST/HST has to be included in the value of the
income tax purposes. Cash reimbursements and non-cash benefits are subject to GST/HST, unless they are for exempt or
zero-rated supplies. Cash allowances are not subject to GST/HST.
Taxable allowance or benefit
Automobile and motor vehicle allowances – in cash
Automobile standby charge and operating expense benefits – non-cash
Board and lodging, if earnings also paid
Cellular phone and Internet services – in cash
Child care expenses – in cash
Child care expenses – non-cash
Counselling services – in cash
Counselling services – non-cash
Disability-related employment benefits – in cash
Disability-related employment benefits – non-cash
Discounts on merchandise and commissions on sales – non-cash
Educational allowances for children – in cash
Employment insurance premium rebate – in cash
Gifts and awards – in cash
Gifts and awards – non-cash and near-cash
Group term life insurance policies – employer-paid premiums – non-cash
Housing allowance, clergy – in cash
Housing allowance – in cash
Housing benefit, clergy, rent-free or low-rent – non-cash
Housing benefit, rent-free or low-rent – non-cash
Housing loss – in cash
Interest-free and low-interest loans
Loans – Home purchase
Loans – Home relocation
Loans – Forgiven – in cash
Meals – Overtime allowances – in cash
Meals – Overtime – in cash
Meals – Overtime – non-cash
Meals – subsidized – non-cash
Medical expenses – in cash
Medical expenses – non-cash
1 Except for security options, if a non-cash taxable benefit is the only form of remuneration you provide to your employee, there is no remuneration
from which to withhold deductions. For more information, see “Calculate payroll deductions,” on page 7.
2 If no cash earnings are paid in a pay period, do not deduct EI premiums.
3 Meals and short term accommodations are generally subject to the GST/HST. If taxable, include the GST/HST in the value of the benefit.
4 Child care expenses are generally exempt of GST/HST. If taxable, include the GST/HST in the value of the benefit.
5 Certain counselling services are subject to the GST/HST. If the services you pay are subject to the GST/HST, include the GST/HST in the value of
the benefit.
6 Disability-related employment benefits are generally taxable for GST/HST. If taxable, include the GST/HST in the value of the benefit.
7 If you reduce the income used to calculate income tax deductions by the amount of the clergy residence deduction (including utilities), you may
also reduce the pensionable earnings used to calculate CPP contributions by the same amount.
8 Long-term accommodations are generally exempt of GST/HST and utilities are generally subject to the GST/HST. If taxable, include the
GST/HST in the value of the benefit.
9 If it is a non cash benefit, it is insurable if it is received by the employee in addition to cash earnings in a pay period. If no cash earnings are paid in
the pay period, it is not insurable.
10 Some medical expenses are subject to the GST/HST. For more information, see page 27.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

taxable benefit for
Deduct
Deduct Code for Include
CPP 1
EI
T4 slip
GST/HST
yes
yes
40
no
yes
no
34
yes
yes
2 30 3
yes
yes
40
yes
yes
yes
40
4
yes
no
40
4
yes
yes
40
5
yes
no
40
5
yes
yes
40
6
yes
no
40
6
yes
no
40
yes
yes
yes
40
no
yes
yes
40
no
yes
yes
40
no
yes
no
40
yes
yes
no
40
no
7 yes 30 no
yes
yes
30
8
7
9
30
8
yes
9 30 8
yes yes 40 no
yes
no
36
no
yes no 36 no
yes no 36 no
yes
yes
40
no
yes
yes
40
no
yes
yes
40
yes
yes
no
40
yes
yes
no
40
yes
yes
yes
40
10
yes no 40 10
Continued on next page
49

<!-- Page 50 -->

Taxable allowance or benefit (continued)
Moving expenses and relocation benefits – in cash
Moving expenses and relocation benefits – non-cash
Moving expenses – non-accountable allowance over $650 – in cash
Municipal officer’s expense allowance
Parking – in cash
Parking – non-cash
Pooled registered pension plan contributions (paid to a plan not registered with the Minister of
National Revenue)
Power saws and tree trimmers; rental paid by employer for employee-owned tools – in cash
Premiums for income maintenance plans and other insurance plans – non-cash
Premiums under provincial hospitalization, medical care insurance, and certain federal
government plans – in cash
Premiums under provincial hospitalization, medical care insurance, and certain federal
government plans – non-cash
Professional membership dues – in cash
Professional membership dues – non-cash
Recreational facilities (in house) – non-cash
Recreational facilities or club membership dues – in cash
Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) contributions – in cash
Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) administration fees – non-cash
Scholarships and bursaries – in cash
Security option (cash-outs)
Security options
Social events – in cash
Social events – non-cash
Spouse or common-law partner’s travelling expenses – in cash
Spouse or common-law partner’s travelling expenses – non-cash
Tax-Free Savings Account – contributions – in cash
Tax-Free Savings Account – administration fees – non-cash
Tickets
Tool allowance – in cash
Tool reimbursement – in cash
Transportation passes – in cash
Transportation passes – non-cash
Transportation to and from the job – in cash
Transportation to and from the job – non-cash
Travel assistance in a prescribed zone – in-cash
Travel assistance in a prescribed zone – non-cash
Travelling allowances other employees, unreasonable
Tuition fees – in cash
Tuition fees – non-cash
Uniforms and protective clothing – in cash
Uniforms and protective clothing – non-cash
Utilities allowance, clergy – in cash
Utilities allowance – in cash
Utilities benefit, clergy – non-cash
Utilities benefit, rent-free or low-rent – non-cash
11 Certain fees and certain contributions are subject to the GST/HST. If the fees or the contributions you pay are subject to the GST/HST, include
the GST/HST in the value of the benefit.
12 You may not have to deduct EI premiums on some RRSP and TFSA contributions. For more information, see pages 30 and 33.
13 Enter the taxable security options benefit under code 38. If eligible, enter the amount of the security options deduction under code 86 and either
code 39 or 41, as applicable. In certain circumstances, taxable security options benefits for 2025 and June 25 to December 31, 2024 may be
reported using code 90, and the related deductions using either code 91 or 92. Refer to the 2025 RC4120 for more information.
50 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

Deduct
Deduct Code for Include
CPP
EI
T4 slip
GST/HST
yes
yes
40
yes
yes
no
40
yes
yes
yes
40
no
yes
no
40
no
yes yes 40 no
yes no 40 yes
yes yes 40 no
yes
yes
40
yes
yes
no
40
no
yes yes
40 no
yes no 40 no
yes yes 40 11
yes
no
40
11
yes
no
40
yes
yes
yes
40
yes
yes
12 40 no
yes
no
40
11
yes
yes
40
no
Yes Yes 13
no
yes no 13 no
yes yes 40 no
yes no 40 yes
yes yes 40 no
yes
no
40
yes
yes
12 40 no
yes
no
40
11
yes no 40 yes
yes yes 40 no
yes
yes
40
yes
yes yes 40 yes
yes
no
40
yes
yes yes 40 yes
yes
no
40
yes
yes yes 32 yes
yes
no
32
yes
yes
yes
40
no
yes yes 40 11
yes no 40 11
yes
yes
40
no
yes
no
40
yes
7 yes 40 no
yes
yes
40
no
7 no 40 8
yes no 40 8

<!-- Page 51 -->

## Digital services
### Handle your business taxes online
My Business Account lets you access your business tax
information and interact with the CRA online throughout
the year.
Profile
- Manage addresses, direct deposit information, program
account names, operating names, phone numbers and
business numbers in your profile
- Manage your notification preferences and receive email
notifications when important changes are made to your
account
- Manage your authorized representatives and
authorization requests
- Manage your multi-factor authentication settings and
security options
Balances and Payments
- Make a payment online to the CRA with My Payment,
create a pre-authorized debit (PAD) agreement, or create
a QR code to pay in person at Canada Post for a fee
- View and pay account balances
- View account transactions
- Request a refund
- Request a payment search
- Pay source deduction remittances
- Transfer a misallocated payment
Transactions
- File or amend returns and view return details
- View remitting requirements
- View and download pensionable and insurable earnings
reviews (PIERs) on file
- Download reports
- Track the progress of certain files and enquires you have
submitted to the CRA
- Respond to notices
- Request CPP/EI ruling
- Request relief of penalties and interest
- File a formal dispute (Appeal)
- Close an account
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Correspondence
- View mail from the CRA
- Submit documents to the CRA
- Submit an audit enquiry
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/taxes-business-online>.
### Access My Business Account
To access My Business Account, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-sign>
-in-services and sign in to or register for a CRA account.
Receive your CRA mail online
Most correspondence is only available online in My
Business Account by default, except when a business has
changed its delivery method to receive paper mail. Make
sure you register for email notifications from the CRA to
find out when you have new mail to view in My Business
Account.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-business>
-email-notifications.For more information, go
to <https://canada.ca/cra-business-email-notifications>.
Create a pre-authorized debit agreement for
payments from your Canadian chequing
account
A pre-authorized debit (PAD) is a secure online self-service
payment option for individuals and businesses to pay their
taxes. A PAD lets you authorize withdrawals from your
Canadian chequing account to pay the CRA. You can set
the payment dates and amounts of your PAD agreement
using the CRA’s My Business Account at <https://canada.ca/cra>
-sign-in-services. PADs are flexible and managed by you.
You can use My Business Account to view your account
history and modify, cancel or skip a payment. For more
information, go to <https://canada.ca/pay-authorized-debit>.
51

<!-- Page 52 -->

## For more information
### If you need help
For help with common topics, current contact centre wait
times, and links to online self-serve options, go to
<https://canada.ca/cra-contact>.
### Direct deposit
Direct deposit is a fast, convenient and secure way to
receive your CRA payments directly in your account at a
financial institution in Canada. For more information and
ways to enrol, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-direct-deposit> or
contact your financial institution.
### Forms and publications
The CRA encourages you to file your return electronically. If
you need a paper version of the CRA's forms and
publications, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-forms-publications>
### Electronic mailing lists
The CRA can send you an email when new information on
a subject of interest to you is available on the website. To
subscribe to the electronic mailing lists, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-email-lists>.
### Related publications
- GST/HST Memorandum 9.1, Taxable Benefits (Other
than Automobile Benefits)
- GST/HST Memorandum 9.2, Automobile Benefits
### Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS)
For tax information by telephone, use the CRA’s automated
service, TIPS, by calling 1-800-267-6999.
### Teletypewriter (TTY) and Video Relay Service (Canada VRS) users
If you use a TTY for hearing or speech impairment, call
1-800-665-0354.
Register with Canada VRS to download the app, by going
to srvcanadavrs.ca/en/get-the-app/personal-account, and
call the VRS line.If you use another operator-assisted relay
service, call the CRA’s regular telephone numbers instead
of the TTY and Canada VRS numbers.
52 <https://canada.ca/taxes>

### CRA service feedback and program
Service complaints
You can expect to be treated fairly and to receive a high
level of service every time you interact with the CRA.
You can provide compliments or suggestions;however,if
you are not satisfied with the service you received:
- You may save time by calling the CRA first depending
on your situation. You can call the telephone number
provided in your CRA correspondence or discuss your
concerns with the employee you have been dealing
with. If you do not have a contact number, go to
<https://canada.ca/cra-contact>
- You can ask to discuss the matter with the employee’s
supervisor if you have not been able to resolve your
service issue
- You can submit feedback by filling out Form RC193,
Service Feedback, if the issue remains unresolved. For
more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-service-feedback>
- You may contact the Office of the Taxpayers’
Ombudsperson if you are not satisfied with the
response you have received. The Ombudsperson will
only respond to complaints that the CRA has already
tried to address
For more information about the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, go
to <https://canada.ca/taxpayer-rights>.
Reprisal complaints
If you received a response about a previously submitted
service complaint or a formal review of a CRA decision and
felt that you were not treated fairly by a CRA employee,
you can submit a reprisal complaint by filling out
Form RC459, Reprisal Complaint.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-reprisal-complaints>.
### Due dates
When a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public
holiday recognized by the CRA, your payment is
considered on time if the CRA receives it on or it is
processed at a Canadian financial institution on or before
the next business day.
For more information, go to <https://canada.ca/cra-remit-due-date>.

<!-- Page 53 -->

### Cancel or waive penalties and interest
The CRA administers legislation, commonly called
“taxpayer relief provisions,” that gives the CRA discretion
to cancel or waive penalties and interest when taxpayers
cannot meet their tax obligations due to circumstances
beyond their control.
The CRA’s discretion is limited to any period that ends
within 10 calendar years before the year the request is
made.
Penalties
The CRA will consider your request only if it relates to a
tax year or fiscal period ending in any of the 10 calendar
years before the year you make your request. For example,
your request made in 2025 must relate to a penalty for a tax
year or fiscal period ending in 2015 or later.
<https://canada.ca/taxes>

Interest on a Balance Owing
The CRA will consider only the amounts that accrued
during the 10 calendar years before the year in which you
make your request. For example, your request made in 2025
must relate to interest that accrued in 2015 or later.
Taxpayer relief requests can be made online using the
CRA’s My Account, My Business Account, or Represent a
Client digital services.
You can also fill out Form RC4288, Request for Taxpayer
Relief – Cancel or Waive Penalties and Interest, and send it:
- online using My Account, My Business Account, or
Represent a Client
- by mail or courier to the designated office, as shown
on the last page of the form, based on your place of
residence
For information about submitting documents online, go to
<https://canada.ca/cra-submit-documents-online>.
For more information about cancelling or waiving penalties
and interest, go to <https://canada.ca/penalty-interest-relief>.
53
