Hi:
My name is Cheryl and last year when I moved back to Canada this site was a great help to me and I thank the people who took the time to answer some of my questions.
I have two questions this year.
The first question deals with my husband who is an American. I came back to Canada to work and my husband stayed behind for awhile to complete the move. When he came to Canada, he was issued a Vistors Record and filed for his residency inland status. He did not receive his residency yet but is here legally on a Visitors Record.
My question is since he is here legally and I am supporting him because he is not allowed to work can I claim him as my spouse for tax purposes?
I have been told yes and no. I was told yes by an individual who said that he is in Canada legally and I am supporting him. I was told no by another individual who said that without a SIN# it probably can not be accomplished.
If any one has any suggestions or comments about my question it would be appreciated.
The second question that I have is I received my statement concerning my personal line of credit and it said that some customers are eligible to use their interest expense as an income tax deduction.
I searched the CRA site and couldn't find who was eligible to claim this interest amount on their taxes.
If any one has any comments or explanation concerning this, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Cheryl
Tax Question about Spouse and Interest Expense
Moderator: Mark T Serbinski CA CPA
Interest paid on loans that were used to generate taxable income are usually tax deductible. I'm troubled that you would not have been able to find the information in the tax guide, for line 221, as it is pretty clear.
As to your husband, he is your husband, whether or not he lives here, and whether or not he has a SIN.
To be able to claim him (on line 303) you will have to report his WORLD income. He should be reporting this on his own Cdn return, or at the very least on page 1 of your return.
He may or may not need a SIN to do this, but, in any event, he is entitled to an SIN, so why have you not applied for one for him yet
While I have you, I might remaind you that your husband is still liable for US taxes even when he lives in canada, because he is a citizen. When he will work in canada he will have to report this and most other income on a 1040. He has certain exemptions and credits available to him to reduce his US tax, likely to zero, but he must file if he has over ~20K income.
If you have any US citizen children, you may even find it beneficial to file even in years when he has NO income (and joint with you, too) as this may result in a $1000/child tax credit, which is paid even if no tax is owed
As to your husband, he is your husband, whether or not he lives here, and whether or not he has a SIN.
To be able to claim him (on line 303) you will have to report his WORLD income. He should be reporting this on his own Cdn return, or at the very least on page 1 of your return.
He may or may not need a SIN to do this, but, in any event, he is entitled to an SIN, so why have you not applied for one for him yet
While I have you, I might remaind you that your husband is still liable for US taxes even when he lives in canada, because he is a citizen. When he will work in canada he will have to report this and most other income on a 1040. He has certain exemptions and credits available to him to reduce his US tax, likely to zero, but he must file if he has over ~20K income.
If you have any US citizen children, you may even find it beneficial to file even in years when he has NO income (and joint with you, too) as this may result in a $1000/child tax credit, which is paid even if no tax is owed
After 20 years, I am severely cutting back on responses. Do not ask specifically for my help. There are a few others on this board that can answer most questions. All the best