Overview
The **child fitness tax credit** was a non-refundable tax credit in Canada designed to help parents offset the costs of enrolling their children in eligible fitness activities. While this specific federal credit is no longer available, understanding its historical context can provide insight into similar provincial programs and potential future initiatives.
- Purpose: The credit aimed to make fitness activities more accessible for children by providing financial relief to parents, encouraging participation in sports and physical recreation.
- Eligibility: To qualify, children needed to be under a certain age at the beginning of the tax year, and the activities had to meet specific criteria for recognized fitness programs.
- Status: The federal child fitness tax credit was phased out, but some provinces may offer their own versions or similar tax benefits for youth activities.
Understanding the Child Fitness Tax Credit in Canada
The Conservative government has announced some changes to the children’s fitness tax credit which will begin taking effect for the 2014 Income Tax year:
1) For the 2014 income tax year, the fitness tax credit is increasing from $500 to $1,000. This credit is non-refundable. This means that parents whose income is too low and do not pay taxes cannot generate a refund with this credit.
2) For the 2015 income tax year, this credit will be refundable meaning parents with low income could generate a refund with this credit.
The credit rate is 15%, so parents can now get back up to $150 of children’s registration fees and membership fees for eligible fitness activities. This credit applies to children under the age of 16 or under 18 if they are eligible for the disability amount.
To be an eligible activity, a fitness program must;
- Be ongoing for a minimum 8 weeks (or if it is a full time camp, it must be 5 consecutive days long)
- Be supervised
- Be suitable for children
- Require significant physical activity. Generally this means it contributes to cardio respiratory endurance plus one or more of;
- Muscular strength
- Muscular endurance
- Flexibility and/or
- Balance
- Fees for extracurricular fitness programs through the school are also eligible
Click here to read more about it from the CRA website.
For more detailed information please call KWB at 780-466-6204 or email us by clicking here.
Thanks to Sophie Duncan of KWB Chartered Accountants for providing this content.