An overview of tax updates from August 2022.

Announced in August:

Saskatchewan Affordability Tax Credit (SATC).

The Saskatchewan government is giving its residents a $500 tax credit, which will be paid this fall to all Saskatchewan residents who will be 18 years or older on December 31, 2022, and who have filed a 2021 tax return as a resident of the province, as part of a four-point plan to assist residents of that province with the rising cost of living. The tax credit is not income-based and it’s individual (as in, it’s not just one per household, but rather a cheque for everyone within the house who qualifies), so most of the province can rejoice in this great news!

Their 2021 tax return must be filed by October 31, 2022, in order to get this credit. For those who haven’t yet filed, there is already a great incentive to do so, by way of the Climate Action Incentive; a quarterly payment residents can receive to offset taxes on purchases such as gas and propane.

The plan includes other components besides the $500 payment:

• The removal of fitness and gym memberships and some recreational activities from the planned PST expansion on admissions, entertainment, and recreation, which will take effect in October.
• Extension of the temporary 0% small business tax rate retroactive to July 1, 2022 and delaying the restoration of the rate to 2.0% to July 1, 2024. It was originally set to increase back to 1% on July 1.
• The retirement of up to $1 billion in operating debt made possible by the higher-than-projected surplus.

Taxpayers who have moved should contact the SATC administration centre to determine their eligibility.

Go Saskatchewan!

Manitoba Family Affordability Benefit.

Though this technically happened in September, it’s worth sharing the news now that the Manitoba government has also announced the introduction of a new Family Affordability Benefit to help low-income seniors and families with children to cope with the rising cost of living. It will consist of:

• A payment of $250 for the first child under 18 and $200 for each additional child for families with net income less than $175,000 as reported on their 2021 tax return; and
• A payment of $300 for seniors with family income less than $40,000 who claimed the Education Property Tax Credit for Seniors on their 2021 income tax return.

Cheques will start to be mailed out in late September to the address indicated on the taxpayer’s 2021 tax return. Clients who have changed mailing addresses since then will need to update their information on a government web portal (which is not yet available, but should be soon).

Uncashed cheques sit with the CRA to the tune of $1.4B.

Earlier in August, the CRA put out a bulletin informing Canadians that it is holding onto 8.9 million uncashed cheques which amounts to $1.4 billion. This happens when people misplace their cheques, or change addresses without informing the CRA and their cheque is mailed to an old place of residence.

If you have a My Account with the CRA, you can see if you’re sitting on any uncashed cheques. It’s worth looking into!

H&R Block Tax Experts are always here to help you figure out how tax changes will affect your return and look forward to helping you. Choose from one of four convenient ways to file: File in an Office, Drop-off at an Office, Remote Tax Expert, or Do It Yourself Tax Software.