I just went on the CRA site and re-read the info, I had it wrong. Thanks for the replies.
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Claiming eligible dependant
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Originally posted by stripes View PostYou can't claim the Amount for Eligible Dependent if you remarry or have a common-law partner. This used to be called the equivalent-to-spouse deduction, so it makes sense that if you have a spouse, you can't claim an equivalent.
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Hi All,
Like everyone in this thread I have been going through the same nightmare.
- Separated since Sept 11.
- 2 children with us both in agreement on who will claim eligible dependents - 50/50 custody with me paying based on the Guidelines.
It is amazing to me that one simple line " 50/50 custody with me paying based on the guidelines " can cause so much grief for fathers that willingly pay CS in an amicable separation.
By having that line in the SA I have had all the same issues with 2012 and 2013 with claims getting denied ( accepted in 2011, the first year of separation).
I have just stumbled upon this forum and in particular this thread .
After carefully reading through, I have gotten more good advice than I have from a lawyer and 2 accountants.
Seems I am lucky my SA has not been registered as of yet. Although CRA has a copy of file it seems it will be easy enough to send in an amendment based on the suggestions I have seen here.
Wish me luck !!
Ill keep you posted.
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Doggie62 - if I can do it, you can. Don't be afraid to take it all the way to the top. I essentially finally got a resolve with a manager in appeals just prior to having to go to tax court. It can be done. My claim was also accepted the first year of separation without any issue. Hope my previous posts and wordings have helped with you and this issue. I found the same thing, my lawyer and accountant were useless in this. Call the CRA and ask for a family specialist for the exact wordings they want so this claim can be accepted. Don't take no for an answer.
I also spoke with another Dad who took it to tax court and was successful with very little support except for his agreement and explaining to the judge exactly why he should be awarded it and that he was simply doing the right thing - paying "off set" support b/c Mom had purposely put herself at a lower income level.
Good luck & all the best!
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Thanks for the encouragement Vocal Father. I am more determined then ever to get this cleared up.
Is it possible for you to post the links to the CRA that give descriptions of the " wording" that you mentioned ??
I have looked a couple times and have found nothing.
Thanks in advance !
Darren
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Hey Darren,
Look through all the earlier posts. I think I shared the wordings that were used. If not, I can try and dig up the docs. Quite frankly, knowing the CRA, they change what they expect yearly. I'd seriously consider calling the CRA, demanding to get in touch with a family specialist and ask them exactly what is needed to ensure you meet their criteria to be able to claim the eligible dependent credit...
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It amazes me how similar our situations are and it just reinforcements my argument that CRA Agents, Lawyers, etc do not have the necessary knowledge or training to deal with this situation properly. However, I am glad to see more parents coming forward with a successful resolution to their situation as it relates to this topic. I’ve looked at many Tax cases on this subject while putting together my case and most were unfavourable to the parent(s).
Sorry for the long-winded response, feel free to skip to the recommendations at the end.
Recently, after a long drawn out battle with CRA to claim one of my two eligible dependants under a shared custody agreement, CRA finally accepted my appeal for both 2012 and 2013 taxation years, just prior to going to court. I have another post in this forum titled “Claiming kids after separation” which provides a little more detail on my situation.
I’ll try to summarize my situation and provide some food for thought in hopes that it will help others. Before I start and it’s strengthened in this thread, you must be prepared to go all the way, that is, take it to the Tax Court of Canada. There is very little $$ cost but it can be extremely frustrating and time consuming. It seems those who have been successful, stuck with it till the end. I spent many hours researching and seeking evidence and arguments in support of my case. Once I had it all together and documented, I decided to meet with a Tax Lawyer, just to go over my details (which they seemed impressed).
I separated in 2011, with a shared custody agreement, done mutually by a lawyer friend of ours. At that time everything seemed normal with the agreement, it stated that we both can claim one of our two kids as an equivalent-to-spouse for tax purposes. It also stated that child support payments were based on both our incomes and was to be renegotiated annually. Finally (and this turned out to be the problem) it stated that based on both our incomes and the Child Support table amounts, I was to pay her $XX. There was no mention of her amount, the calculation or difference that was done to acquire this offset amount. I claimed my child in 2011, no problem, but my claim for 2012 got reviewed and denied by CRA. I went through all the appeals processes, had my ex sign documents supporting my claim but of course no luck. In their opinion, the separation agreement was written has if only one parent was making child support payments (which I understood their argument). So I submitted a retroactive amendment of my agreement, stating both our amounts and that we both agreed that I would just provide the offset or difference as suggested earlier in this thread. After many conversations, I was told by a CRA supervisor that they do not recognize the offset amount as both parents paying. This totally contradicted their own guidelines (P102 – as mentioned above) as I pointed out to them but they still would not accept my appeal and said you have to take it to the Tax Court.
I built my case around this P102 document, specifically example 2 (example 1 provides details for single child) on page 11, which was identical to my situation. I also found arguments from the 2010 Budget which formally allowed shared custody parents to make claim to things like the Universal Child Care Credit, etc. I was unable to find any previous tax court decisions that helped my case so I basically broke them down to explain how my case was different. There were 2 aspects of my case that I was prepared to argue in court: 1) Wording of my original separation agreement, and 2) why I was entitled to claim my child under section 118 (5.1) of the Tax Act based on P102 – Support Payments and the supporting documentation I had gathered.
It’s unfortunate that CRA is not consistent on their approach to this situation. If you’re lucky you may reach a resolution in the beginning, during the first or second appeals process but be prepared and educate yourself. Some may accept the wording as described here, others may not. They are all consistent when it comes to moving you to the next step, passing the buck so to speak.
My recommendations (it is so much easier if you have a somewhat supportive ex-spouse as I did for my appeal, I understand this is not typical)
- If you have a problem with the way your existing separation agreement is worded and CRA is unwilling to accept your amendments or retroactive dates, you can legally, by a judge, make it retroactive by seeking a rectification order. Do a little research or ask your lawyer. I was prepared to do this but didn’t have to in the end because it got resolved prior to court.
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- If you are just preparing your separation agreement, you may want to consider both of you exchanging child support $$ (with receipts) instead of simplify things with an offset amount whereby the one parent makes the payment. You can write your agreement to that affect. You must pay $XX (the full table amount) to your ex and provide monthly receipts and they must do the same. I think this would take any confusion or assumptions away from CRA. I think if I had to do it again, this would be the route I would take.
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- Write to the Minister. After one of my frustrating conversations with a CRA agent, I was so upset I decided to write a letter to Ms Findlay and I cc’d the Taxpayers’ Ombudsmen. The subject was “How CRA failed a single dad and taxpayer”. I explained my situation, talked about my frustrations in dealing with incompetent CRA agents and I may have mentioned going to the media :-) I actually received a letter back from her office and I think this helped expedite my case.
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- Finally, do not give up, where there’s a will there’s a way. If it’s a problem with the ex, explain the situation and how it will benefit the kids. If you cannot reason with the CRA agent, ask to speak with their supervisor. If they don’t want to deal with you and move you to the next stage, play their game a keep the appeal going, go to court if you have to. Educate yourself on the subject. I feel like an expert in this area now, quoting sections of the tax act and explaining CRA guidelines to their agents. It’s fun to catch them off guard. How many parents out there are given the runaround or just accept the CRA decision? How many dollars are lost to families who really need it?
Hope this helps.
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Great Post SeekingHelp,
Thanks for the great advice.
I agree 100% and really am not sure why this is more of a rally cry for Divorced everywhere. I know there are many, many responsible fathers like us out there but In all honesty I think this subject flies under the radar because there are simply not enough of us. Since I have been out in the " single" word I am absolutely amazed by how how many separated mothers I have met who are getting little or no support from there deadbeat exes.
The number of deadbeats outnumbers the responsible fathers by a long shot.
Responsible Fathers should be encouraged and not penalized by this moronic loophole that the CRA holds against us.
We need to call our MLAs and make them aware......
I appreciate that you sent off a letter to yours and I will also be doing the same regardless of how much trouble I have getting this reversed. The point is we should not have to go through the hassle.
Anyway - rambled enough. Thanks for the post Great information.
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Seekinghelp, great synopsis & suggestions. I involved Ms. Findlay & the late Mr. Flaherty to my cause. Neither were very helpful. It took fighting & I believe a very sympathetic and understanding supervisor at the very top of appeals in BC before I went to court. She had been through our situation and knows the ridiculous loopholes the CRA puts many single parents through.
I don't know about you guys and gals but this situation alone really has given me such a bad taste in my mouth. Not only the CRA but my ex has now comfortably learned how to sit on social assistance (used to work FT - refuses to go back), learned how to manipulate her worker and gets under the radar and makes just enough PT plus welfare to make a half decent "living" on social assistance.
An acquaintance of mine, who is a higher up in Welfare advised they are significantly working to crack down on the system but there are so many loopholes and so many govt branches that don't communicate so it makes it very difficult.
Sorry for the rant but the system, as it is, both Federal/Provincial/etc is so flawed. My best to all of you!
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I realize I am raising this thread from a while ago.
I am in exactly the same situation as most others in this thread. Divorced. 2 children. ex earns way less than me. We each claimed a child by agreement. I got audited. They denied me bases on line 305, etc. I did provide our initial SA and final Divorce judgment and a letter from the ex explaining that we agree to each claim a child and that she pays me, and I pay her child support but to save a cheque, I write her the difference.
I want to thank vocalfather for all his posts and the wording of what he put in an amended contract.
my question is: Does the contract have to be amended each year? as the amounts we pay each other will change each year.....or is the wording that vocalfather provided enough to be used from year to year into the future without the need to amend amounts we pay each other?
thanks so much. I am in a situation where they tell me to pay back $3900.
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Yet Another Twist
I have battled the eligible dependent every year since 2010. I have managed to succeed in the years I have been reassessed. We have amended the Child Support Agreement and it is very clear that " the husband shall pay the wife $xxx per month and the wife shall pay the husband $yyy per month. In accordance with federal child support tables. Nowhere in the agreement is mention of, allusion to, or even mere inference to a set-off amount. Just was reassessed and the response is boggling to say the least.
CRA acknowledges that we have joint custody and I have primary responsibility of my eldest. The go on to restate the amounts we are obligated to pay in the agreement in accordance the Federal Child Support Guidelines.
Now here is the kicker
I will quote,
"..when a statutory scheme such as the Federal Child Support Guidelines is used, the payer of the set-off amount is the only individual legally obligated to pay child support."
"You not able to claim an amount on line 305"....
you owe ~$4,000
OK so now do we have to reword SA, and Child Support and remove reference to Federal Guidelines, and exchange cheques for the amounts each month?
Time for a lawyer?
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Hi All! Sorry for the late reply. Unfortunately I'm still battling a very heated custody matter and somehow these emails went to junk.
As Links17 said, you have to be willing to take it to the top & then to tax court if need be. I was. I basically hit the last stop before tax court (the supervisor of the appeals officer) and then had some success but not without the hoops to jump through.
Springbok, according to the final Supervisor I spoke to, the agreement does NOT have to be updated every year (I say bulls*&%) but that a letter with both parties stating the new amounts and some of the wordings I mentioned in my previous posts would be helpful. I say, cover your butt and ensure your covered. The CRA is certainly not willing to help. I took this all the way up to Jim Flaherty & Kerry (can't recall her last name) and neither of them were willing to assist. I obviously had no idea Jim was unwell at the time but I digress.
Don't hesitate to comment back and I'll do my best to answer. This is now my 1st year after the appeal and I didn't hear anything in Aug/Sept like I normally would with any objections. We'll see how long this lasts....
Take Care...
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