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Doing Your Tax: Q&A

edited March 2009 in General
Hello TalkSFUers,

I notice that tax season is here and some of us are CLUELESS in this regard. We have no idea where to get Form A, B, and C and what to write in Section D, E, F, and G. I have therefore created this thread to allow those who know what they are doing to help those of us who have no clue as to what to do.

I will probably organize this thread into different sections dealing with all matters relating to tax, ranging from common questions such as the T2202A Data to some obscure ones like the RRSP.

Post any questions you have regarding tax in this thread and one of us who knows what to do will answer.

As questions and answers build up, I will add any resolved questions onto this post.

A big thank in advance, and let's hope this work...

Sincerely,

Student0667

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General Questions

Q: Can I claim tuition/education textbook amounts even if someone else (ex: The CF) is paying my tuition?
A: You can claim tuition/education textbook amounts if you or a relative pays your tuition. However, if an employer, including the federal government, pays you tution for you, then you are not eligible to claim any of these credits.

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Where to get Forms Questions

Q: Where do I get the T2202A Data?
A: You long onto your GoSFU account. Under Finance, you will find the link T2202A Data. Click on it and it will give you the option to choose your year. Select your year and print it out.

Credit: Almost everyone

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T4, RRSP, and T2202A Questions

Q: How do I do my taxes? I have my T4 slip and my RRSP slip. I cannot use my T2202A because I do not pay my taxes and would rather not get in trouble for tax fraud.
A: Declare the T2202A even if you had no taxable income because the credit carries over for future years. Your tax credit can get carried over, maybe 5 years. Alternatively, you can transfer up to $5000 of your credit to your parents.

Credit: JayDub for posing the question, DaNoobie and ToddB for answering.

Q: Is the t2202a data the same as the form?
A: Most likely, because the t2202a data is printed out as a form.

Credit: Vonnie for asking.

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Tips

Courtesy of Randomuser...
randomuser;50121 said:
Quicktax provides free online returns to anyone who earns less than 20k a year whos a student. I made more than that so I had to pay, but its an option for many of you.
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Comments

  • edited March 2009
    Question.

    How do I do my taxes? I have my T4 slip and my RRSP slip. I cannot use my T2202A because I do not pay my taxes and would rather not get in trouble for tax fraud.
  • edited March 2009
    From the lady that does our taxes, she advised us to declare the T2202A even if we (my brother and I) had no taxable income because the credit carries over for future years. Someone better informed than me can confirm/deny or elaborate.
  • edited March 2009
    Yep, she's right. Your tax credit can get carried over, I'm not positive for how many years, it may be 5 years. Alternatively, you can transfer up to $5000 of your credit to your parents.
  • edited March 2009
    ^Thanks guys, your Q&A are up.

    Vonnie asked in the shout box, "Is the t2202a data the same as the form?"

    I think so, but does anyone else know the answer?
  • edited March 2009
    Question.

    How do I do my taxes starting from step 1? I have my T4 slip and my RRSP slip. I cannot use my T2202A because I do not pay my tuition and would rather not get in trouble for tax fraud.
  • edited March 2009
    There's this free thing some Business students (their concentration is accounting, I think) who are offering to do your taxes. My friend is in that club or program or whatever and she offered to do mine. You just fill out an online form (no crazy personal information just like name and email) and they'll meet up with you and walk you through your taxes.
    The sign up period is over now, but you guys should check it out next year.

    I haven't met up with my friend to do the taxes yet, but I'll let you guys know how it goes.
  • edited March 2009
    JayDub;50065 said:
    Question.

    How do I do my taxes starting from step 1? I have my T4 slip and my RRSP slip. I cannot use my T2202A because I do not pay my tuition and would rather not get in trouble for tax fraud.
    So you can only claim the tuiton credit if you yourself pay for your tuiton? Doens't seem quite right to me. I've taken Tax at SFU, I know its been a while, but I dont' ever remember hearing that...
  • edited March 2009
    Might be a difference when the federal government pays your tuition
  • edited March 2009
    randomuser;50094 said:
    Might be a difference when the federal government pays your tuition
    Pretty much what she said.

    All I want to know is how to pay my taxes, all i need to have is my T4 and my RRSP slip. Both which I have. Now what do I do.
  • edited March 2009
    If I remember correctly, you probably want to get your hands on a "2008 General Income Tax and Benefit package", available at most Canada Post Offices and probably any government institutions.

    Or you can download the "2008 General Income Tax and Benefit package" from the Canada Revenue Agency at http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/formspubs/t1gnrl/bc-eng.html.

    Afterward, you just fill out that form (hopefully with someone who know what they are doing next to you) and submit it. Unless I completely misunderstood the system, the government will reimburse some tax dollar you paid back to you in the form of a cheque.

    Someone want to confirm or correct what I said?
  • edited March 2009
    JayDub;50098 said:
    Pretty much what she said.

    All I want to know is how to pay my taxes, all i need to have is my T4 and my RRSP slip. Both which I have. Now what do I do.
    lrn2google
    or go to H&R Block
    or call cra
    im pretty sure no one else here is in the same situation as you
  • edited March 2009
    well i already filed and received my 1200 dollar tax return via direct deposit into my bank

    went onto quicktax, wham bam thank you mam
  • edited March 2009
    randomuser;50110 said:
    well i already filed and received my 1200 dollar tax return via direct deposit into my bank

    went onto quicktax, wham bam thank you mam
    u get tax return out of the t2202a? i thought u just get some sort of deductions man these things are rocket science confuzzling...

    edit: matter of fact i don't even know if what i just said made any sense at all
  • edited March 2009
    online predator;50113 said:
    u get tax return out of the t2202a? i thought u just get some sort of deductions man these things are rocket science confuzzling...
    From what little I know about taxation and filing your tax, you do get more deductions if you belong to certain category such as unemployed, student, or First Nation.

    I guess the t2202a form is a sort of receipt for Revenue Canada to see how much you spent last year on educational expenses and then deduct that amount from the tax you paid...

    As well as asking for how much you paid for school, Revenue Canada would also ask you how much you spent on books. So it would be handly to have those bookstore receipts.

    That is all I know. Sometimes, I just wish that high school math would teach us about this stuff instead of teaching us about ratios, fractions, and integers...

    P.S Thankyou Summerheaven and Randomuser for sharing your tips. May I have permission to post it on the first post?
  • edited March 2009
    Well I got money back because I had more than my t220A to enter.

    Quicktax provides free online returns to anyone who earns less than 20k a year whos a student. I made more than that so I had to pay, but its an option for many of you.

    Post whatever you want that I say student.
  • edited March 2009
    Student0667;50117 said:
    From what little I know about taxation and filing your tax, you do get more deductions if you belong to certain category such as unemployed, student, or First Nation.

    I guess the t2202a form is a sort of receipt for Revenue Canada to see how much you spent last year on educational expenses and then deduct that amount from the tax you paid...

    As well as asking for how much you paid for school, Revenue Canada would also ask you how much you spent on books. So it would be handly to have those bookstore receipts.

    That is all I know. Sometimes, I just wish that high school math would teach us about this stuff instead of teaching us about ratios, fractions, and integers...

    P.S Thankyou Summerheaven and Randomuser for sharing your tips. May I have permission to post it on the first post?
    Bookstore reciepts actually don't matter. You get a set amount each month based on how many months you were part time and how many you were full time. The actual amount you paid for book does not matter.
  • edited March 2009
    the receipts do matter if they decide to audit you,

    but there is a limit on the amount of textbooks deductions you can use, its based on if your full or part time, and that is what imposes the limit of how much you can claim, based on what you spent.

    you cant just claim the maximum amount if you didnt spend that much in books
  • edited March 2009
    randomuser;50186 said:
    the receipts do matter if they decide to audit you,

    but there is a limit on the amount of textbooks deductions you can use, its based on if your full or part time, and that is what imposes the limit of how much you can claim, based on what you spent.

    you cant just claim the maximum amount if you didnt spend that much in books
    What if you don't have receipts because you bought your books used off someone else and not a store?
  • edited March 2009
    thats a good question, i think audits on students are low in the ratio and most of us dont need to worry about audits

    ...probably should have gotten a written receipt off them, i guess its one of the risks or downsides of buying used
  • edited March 2009
    randomuser;50186 said:
    you cant just claim the maximum amount if you didnt spend that much in books
    Ok, based the advices I got from your guys, the best thing to do would be to retrieve your bookstore receipts and report the amount honestly.
    Vonnie said:
    What if you don't have receipts because you bought your books used off someone else and not a store?
    This maybe a little excessive, but if you made these deals online like in forums or craiglist, you could always dig up the that old posts or emails in case they do audit you.

    P.S: What's Auditing? Is it where Revenue Canada examine your report in detail to see rather these figures are genuine and honest?
  • edited March 2009
    Well I think the maximum amount you can claim per year in text books or educational supplies is 750 or 950, something like that.

    Either way, the past two years I exceeded that amount and claimed the full amount easily.
  • edited March 2009
    So I fill in my T1.

    Where do I hand it in to get my monies back, and when do I have to do that by?
  • edited March 2009
    Hi guys,

    I am currently on co-op as a tax analyst. To quickly answer some of your questions.

    1. T2202A: You can claim tuition/education textbook amounts if you or a relative pays your tuition. However, if an employer, including the federal government, pays you tution for you, then you are not eligible to claim any of these credits.

    2. To do your taxes, with a T4 and RRSP slip:
    Enter your box 14 amount from your T4 slip at line 101
    Enter your CPP premiums from your T4 at line 308. (schedule 1)
    Enter your EI premiums from your T4 slip at line 312. (schedule 1)
    Enter your tax deducted at line 22.

    Provided that you are deducting the the whole amount of your RRSP contribution this year, enter the amount of your 2008 RRSP contribution at line 208 of your return.
  • edited March 2009
    Also, the "textbook amount" is based on the number of months in part-time or full-time enrolment, as shown on your T2202A. It is not based on the actual cost of your textbooks.
  • edited March 2009
    How do you get an efile or netfile account?

    Also, is my schedule 1 the T4 slip?

    Fack, I need someone to show me how to do this shit because I am clearly calculating it wrong.
  • edited March 2009
    Hi guys,

    Newbie question. I thought we are getting money by claiming these tuition fees on tax return? But when I am doing my return, it's actually taking my money away? I am confused =[
  • edited March 2009
    I could be wrong, but as far as I'm aware, tuition credits are not refundable tax credits. They do not give you money back alone in itself. If you've paid taxes from a job or something else then you're getting money back sometimes.

    I dont think theres anyway you end up paying taxes by claiming your tuition at the end of the day.
  • edited March 2009
    Someone told me that you could get tax back from student loans.
    How does this work? Does this even make sense? =_=
  • edited March 2009
    What happens if you don't claim yourself as a student and don't claim tuition fees?
  • edited March 2009
    You can get tax credits from the interest on your student loans, so only if they've been consolidated and your paying.

    ---

    Nothing will happen if you dont claim yourself as a student, and don't claim tuition fees. You're supposed to file tax returns if you work, and theres no benefit to not claim your tuition credits. Tuition credits and your student status do nothing but benefit you.

    If you are worred about this, go try an online tax program with your T4 and your T220A and see the difference, with and without the T220A

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