Commuter exchange rate

[sjantzi]

nelsona, in another thread you stated:
If you have proof of what you "paid" for your various currency exchanges, you are free to use these. But you can't simply juice your figures by 2% in either direction.

I receive a US$ paycheck weekly and convert to Canadian. Am I understanding correctly that I can use the exchange rates I paid instead of the bank of canada average? If yes, can I average the rates I paid over the year?

[nelsona]

Of course. That average is the rate that is published for the year anyways.

[sjantzi]

Maybe I'm not understanding. The rate I pay at the bank is not the same as the bank of canada. For instance at the moment the market rate is 1.12 but at TD bank I'd get 1.091.

[nelsona]

I'm sorry, I made another post but it did not appear:

You can use your numbers, but since you need to calculate this by using all your transactions, don't bother with an "average" , just calculate your exact figure, using:
(Total USD exchanged)/(Total CAD recieved).

Keep your transactions in a spreadsheet.

btw,. have you looked for a way of getting a better exchange? Sometimes a broker can set you up such that they take US deposits and give you Cdn withdrawals at a better rate.

[sjantzi]

Thank you for the clear answer.

I have not heard of using broker before. I'll look into it, thank you.

If you can recommend one please do

[sjantzi]

nelsona, if i'm using my own spreadsheet of transactions to show the actual amount I received in Canadian funds, how do I back up that I'm allowed to do this. I'm being told by RevCan I am not.

[nelsona]

IRS allows you to do this, but CRA does not. You need to use published exchange rates, not what you recieved in exchange, since, in many instances, you don't actually exchanged the US funds for Cdn or vice-versa.