Moving Expenses

Moving Expenses

General

You can deduct eligible moving expenses if you moved from an old residence to a new residence to:

  1. Be closer to a work location, or
  2. Carry on a business or
  3. Attend classes at a post-secondary education

To qualify, your new home must be at least 40 kilometres closer to the new place of work or educational institution.

  • The maximum amount you can deduct is limited to employment income, business income, and scholarships from the new location.
  • Unused moving expenses (if you don’t have enough employment income/scholarship income) can be carried forward indefinitely
Moving Expenses Eligible for Deduction
  1. Travel Expenses
    • Vehicle expenses, meals, and accommodation, to move you and members of your household to your new residence.
    • You can choose to use a simplified method of a flat rate of $17/meal, to a maximum of $51/day per person and $0.57 per km in Ontario
    • If you use the detailed method; you claim the actual costs but need to keep receipts of purchases to support amount
  2. Costs of Moving your stuff
    • Packing, hauling, moving, in-transit storage, and insurance
  3. Meals and temporary accommodation (place to stay near old or new location) for  you and the members of your household for a maximum of  15 days
    • Can use Detailed method (actual costs supported by receipts) or simplified method (same rates as above)
  4. The cost to cancel the lease on your old residence
  5. The cost to sell the old home (you can deduct regardless of if you buy a new home or not)
    • Advertising
    • Legal fees
    • Real-estate commissions
    • Mortgage penalty incurred due to paying off a mortgage before maturity
  6. Costs incurred to buy a new home:  If you sold or are trying to sell your old home and purchased a new home, you can deduct the following:
    • Legal fees
    • Land transfer tax
  7. The cost to maintain your old residence (maximum of $5,000)
    • If your old property has not yet been sold, and it remains vacant after your move; as long as you made reasonable efforts to sell the home you can claim the following for a total maximum of $5000.
      • interest;
      • property taxes;
      • insurance premiums; and
      • heat and utility expenses.
  8. Other expenses:
    • Changing address on legal documents (driver’s licence/health card)
    • Replacing driver’s licence
    • Utility connections/disconnections
Moving Expenses Not Eligible for Deduction
  1. Travel expenses for house-hunting trips before you move;
  2. Loss from sale of old home
  3. Meals/accommodation > 15 days
  4. Cost of forwarding mail (for example with Canada post)
  5. Legal fees, land transfer tax incurred while buying a new home CANNOT be deducted if you didn’t own a house prior
  6. utilities, property tax and mortgage interest charges > $5000; if you made reasonable efforts to sell old home

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