Discussions

Can someone clarify for me if you can claim expenses paid in 2015 on a 2016 tax return? Also, do the expenses need to be a certain amount before you can claim them? I seem to remember someone telling me when I tried in the past that the dollar amount wasn't high enough for me to qualify for reimbursement.  
 
Thanks

This link answers all your questions:  
 
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/medical/

No they can't be carried over. And yes have to be over a certain amount and a percentage of your income so if you make too much, your expenses have to be really high to be the right percentage. Can't remember the formula off the top of my head

Anything that has a purchase date that ends in 2015 can only be used on 2015 for medical. I do believe in order to claim medical, you need a minimum of 3% of your yearly income spent. Now if you already claimed a bunch of medical in the 2015 year, and found additional receipts, it may be worth looking into doing an adjustment. I would talk to your accountant if you one.

you can claim 2015 expenses on your 3016 return if they fall within the "12 MO th period ending in 2016". So-an April 15, 2015 expense fits in that 12 months from that date is April 2016...read the guide, people. It is explained right there in the link posted above.

here you go:  
 
You can claim only eligible medical expenses on your tax return if you, or your spouse or common-law partner:  
 
paid for the medical expenses in any 12-month period ending in 2016  
did not claim them in 2015.

To be honest with you, you would be wise to put out the $20-$30 and get a Turbo Tax program. It will automatically calculate you family income and tell you what you your medical expenses need to be to be able to claim them. Medical expenses need to be higher than 3% of your family income. You can enter all 2015 and 2016 expenses and it will use a sliding scale to tell you what your best 12 month period would be to use. For first time users, there is a lot of data entry but the program talks you through it.  
The link that curlysister provided will take you through all that is covered for medical expenses. Also remember you can claim mileage if you had to travel for a medical reason.

Why pay to file your personal income taxes if you are doing them yourself? Just doesn't sound right to me considering there are very good FREE programs available. I use SIMPLE TAX - an online service (you can save a pdf copy of your completed return - and always have online access to your account)based in B.C. and founded by three young entrepreneurs. It, too, walks you through the process and is, yes, simple.

My husband used to do our taxes using a free program & then Turbo Tax & I got audited BIG TIME by CRA. They hassled me for two years billing me $600 here & $1200 there for an error the tax program made. Those programs are only as good as the person inputting the data. I now pay an accountant to do my taxes because THEY take the heat if there's an error. In 2013 got audited AGAIN & it was so nice having the accountant on call to get the straight facts on what should be sent in. I was so ticked off by then though that I sent CRA 176 pages of documentation to shut them up. Sometimes I think they actually target people who use those free tax programs or Turbo Tax etc!

RecycleDiva said "My husband used to do our taxes using a free program & then Turbo Tax & I got audited BIG TIME by CRA. They hassled me for two years billing me $600 here & $1200 there for an error the tax program made. Those programs are only as good as the person inputting the data. I now pay an accountant to do my taxes because THEY take the heat if there's an error. In 2013 got audited AGAIN & it was so nice having the accountant on call to get the straight facts on what should be sent in. I was so ticked off by then though that I sent CRA 176 pages of documentation to shut them up. Sometimes I think they actually target people who use those free tax programs or Turbo Tax etc! "

They don't target by file method (I don't even think they can see what tax program you use, only file method & which efile person/group if you used one), but certain high-risk claims get selected for review on a regular basis. Medical expenses is one of them because the error rate is so high. A claim at line 305 and moving expenses are other ones that generates a lot of audits because they're often claimed incorrectly.  
 
Also, if you used H&R Block etc, don't call them an "accountant" because they're not. They're tax preparers, which is totally different and has about 4 years difference in education. Only people who hold a CGA or equivalent can rightly be called an "accountant". I'm not saying you didn't actually use an accountant, but many people use the term incorrectly.  
 
Finally, you should know the accountant doesn't "take the heat" if there's an error. You likely signed something that said that the return was correct based on the information provided, but if you provided incorrect information it's the not accountant's/preparer's problem. It's yours, because it's your return. Believe me, I've had this discussion with many clients.  
 
I've always done our own returns, and we do occasionally get audited despite the fact that I worked at CRA for 10 years (I also got audited while working for them... doing audits! LOL).