Frequently asked questions.

Your SIN is required to pay your income tax or recieve a tax refund. Rest assured that we will keep your personal information secure. We encrypt your data when it's stored in our systems, and we electronically send your return to the CRA. We use 256-bit encryption to keep your data safe.

However, with the recent number of scams and fraudulent activity surrounding the CRA and identity theft, tax payers should be vigilant to keep their SIN and personal information secure. More information on recognizing a scam and protecting yourself against fraud can be found here.

When filing your taxes, sharing your infomration with Elections Canada ensures that you're on the list of electors at your current address and ready to vote at any federal election. 

For more information please visit Elections Canada.

You need to enter your marital status as it was on December 31, of the current tax year.

Single

You are not married, common law, divorced or widowed, and you have not lived with a boyfriend or girlfriend for 12 consecutive months.

Married

You had a spouse to whom you are legally married.

Common Law

This is the status that is often the hardest to understand. However, it comes down to two specific facts:

• You have lived with a significant other and have for more than 12 consecutive months with no children,

OR

• You live with someone that you have children with, or if either of you have young children that live with you as a family and they are wholly dependent on you for support.
• When children are in the picture, you are considered common law for tax purposes the day that you begin to reside together.

There are exceptions to this rule depending on the situation, if you are unsure about this status please ask questions.

Separated

You separated because of a breakdown in the relationship.

• If you were married, the separation begins once you are living apart.
• If you were living common-law, you must wait 90 days from the date of your separation to be considered separated.
• If you were common law, after one year of being separated you can start to claim single again if you are single.
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If you were separated because of an involuntary separation, you are still considered to have a spouse/partner. An involuntary separation could happen when one spouse moves away for work, school, health reasons, or incarceration.

Divorced

There is a document that says you have legally ended the marriage. After a divorce you are not considered single no matter how long you have been divorced. You can become common law or married again just not single.

Widowed

If your common law partner or spouse has passed away you are considered a widow.

Your marital status can have a big impact on your return as your eligibility for many credits and deductions take into consideration your marital status and living situation.

It's important that the marital status you enter on your tax return matches what the CRA is expecting for you as defined by the tax law, even if you may think of yourself as something different.

For example, if you divorced during the year, you may think of yourself as single. But, for the purposes of your income tax return, the CRA expects you file as divorced on your annual return, up until the year you remarry or enter a new common-law relationship.

We recommend that you and your spouse prepare your returns together to optimize credits and deductions. The combined outcome will always be the same or better than if you had prepared your returns separately.

Foreign Property is property you owned outside of Canada, and your share of foreign property in which you had an interest. It does not include:

• property in you registered retirement savings plan (RRSP), registered retirement income fund (RRIF), or registered pension plan (RPP);
• mutual funds registered in Canada that contain foreign investments;
• property you used or held exclusively in the course of carrying on your business activites; or
• your personal use property.