11 Mar Are you a student? Don’t miss out on Tuition Tax Credits

By Harman Sian

I have been a post-secondary student for approximately five years now. Come tax season, the T2202 Information Return is a document I never forget to include in my annual tax return.

The T2202 is issued by Canadian colleges, universities and other educational institutions for students who are enrolled in qualifying post-secondary education. This form reports the amount of eligible tuition fees a student paid and is used to calculate the tax credit students are eligible to claim on their tax return.

Note, in 2017 the education and textbook credit was eliminated, but the tuition tax credit was maintained.  However, if you have unused credits from years prior to 2017, you can still claim them or carry forward these amounts for use on future returns. Students can also transfer unused credits in a year (up to $5,000) to a qualifying relative. Check out the CRA website for more information on transferring educational credits.

Simply put, a student is eligible to receive a tax credit on the tuition they paid to their post-secondary institutions. Up to $5,000 of any unused credits can be transferred to mom or dad. All you have to do is enter the information on T2202 in schedule 11 of your personal tax return to claim the credits and/or transfer them to a parent. For more information, see CRA website on Schedule 11.

To obtain a copy of your T2202, most post-secondary institutions post these to your online student portal.  You will be required to log-in your portal to get a copy. The CRA is starting to require post-secondary institutions to report this information to the CRA so this information will be available on the CRA’s online services in the future.

Tuition Tax Credits can be substantial, so don’t forget to fill out this form and (hopefully) get a tax refund!

Note for all Designated Educational Institutions (DEI) in Canada: Effective 2019 onward, the T2202A, Tuition and Enrolment Certificate, has been re-numbered to Form T2202 and will be an information return that is filed with the CRA. Moreover, Form TL11B, Tuition and Enrolment Certificate – Flying School or Club, has been eliminated with this same information being reported on the new T2202 information return.