What’s new for Canadian taxes in 2022

Every year, there are changes to Canadian taxes that might impact your return. The following list contains some major federal and provincial changes announced in 2022.

Use these links to jump to each section for more information:

Federal tax changes

Alberta tax changes

Ontario tax changes

Québec tax changes

Prince Edward Island tax changes

Nova Scotia tax changes

Manitoba tax changes

British Columbia tax changes

Yukon tax changes


Labour mobility deduction for tradespeople

 The labour mobility deduction provides eligible tradespeople and apprentices working in the construction industry with a deduction for certain temporary relocation expenses. Eligible individuals may be able to deduct up to $4,000 in eligible expenses per year.
Request to deduct federal COVID-19 benefits repayment in a prior year If you repaid CERB, CESB, CRB, CRCB, or CRSB in 2022 and want to claim all or part of the amount repaid as a deduction on your return for the year in which you received the benefits, or split between your 2022 return and the return for the year in which you received the benefits, complete Form T1B (Request to Deduct Federal COVID-19 Benefits Repayment in a Prior Year).
Medical expenses Certain expenses you paid for a surrogate mother or donor of sperm, ova, or embryos in Canada after December 31, 2021 would be considered eligible medical expenses.
Air quality improvement tax credit If you were self-employed or a member of a partnership in 2022, you may be eligible to claim a refundable tax credit equal to 25% of your total ventilation expenses to improve ventilation or air quality at your place of business.

Political contributions tax credit

Contributions to nomination of contestants made after March 30, 2022 will no longer qualify for the political contributions tax credit.

Low-income individuals and families tax (LIFT) credit

The individual and family income thresholds, phase-out rate, and maximum credit allowed for the low-income individuals and families tax (LIFT) credit have changed.
Ontario childcare access and relief from expenses (CARE) tax credit The credit entitlements for Ontario childcare access and relief from expenses (CARE) tax credit have changed.
Ontario seniors’ home safety tax credit The temporary, refundable Ontario seniors’ home safety tax credit has been extended for 2022.
Ontario jobs training tax credit The temporary, refundable Ontario jobs training tax credit has been extended for 2022.
Ontario staycation tax credit A temporary, refundable Ontario staycation tax credit has been introduced for individuals or families who have qualifying expenses for leisure accommodation in Ontario in 2022.
Ontario seniors care at home tax credit A refundable Ontario seniors care at home tax credit has been introduced to help low- to moderate- income seniors with their cost of eligible medical expenses.

Tax credit for home-support services for seniors

The tax credit rate has been increased from 35% to 36%.

Reduction based on family income: The tax credit will be reduced if your family income is over a certain amount. For dependent seniors, the reduction is based on a single threshold. For non-dependent seniors, it is based on two thresholds.

Seniors living in an apartment building: For seniors living in an apartment building (other than a private seniors’ residence), the following changes have been made:

  • The maximum monthly rent for calculating your eligible expenses has been increased from $600 to $1,200/month.
  • Now, there's a minimum monthly rent of $600 for calculating your eligible expenses. If your rent is less than that, the credit will be calculated as if it were $600.
  • You can get the tax credit based on the minimum $600 automatically if we have all the required information.
Tax credit for childcare expenses Receipts for childcare services will no longer be accepted. Everyone who provides paid childcare services in Québec will be required to provide an RL-24 slip for their services so that parents can claim the tax credit.
Property tax refund for forest producers If you are a forest producer, you can now claim a property tax refund even if the value of the development work done in the year is less than your property taxes. Also, the refund is now calculated on your assessment units as a whole instead of for each unit individually.
Tax credit for upgrading the residential waste water treatment systems The period for entering into a contract with a qualified contractor has been extended by five years to March 31, 2027.
Home buyers’ tax credit For a qualifying home purchased on or after January 1, 2022, the maximum tax credit has been increased from $750 to $1,500.
Medical expenses

The following expenses qualify for an amount for medical expenses under certain conditions:

  • Medical expenses incurred for a surrogate mother or a sperm, ovum or embryo donor.
  • Medical expenses reimbursed to a surrogate mother or a sperm, ovum or embryo donor.
  • Expenses paid to a fertility clinic or donor bank.
Québec prescription drug insurance plan

The rates for Québec prescription drug insurance plan and maximum premium remain unchanged as of July 1, 2022. Therefore, the maximum premium for 2022 is $710.

You do not have to pay a premium if any of the following situations apply to you:

  • You did not have a spouse on December 31, 2022, and the amount on line 275 of your return is $17,940 or less.
  • You had a spouse on December 31, 2022, and the amount on line 275 of your return plus the amount on line 275 of your spouse’s return totals to be $29,080 or less.
  • You were born before January 1, 1957, and your total monthly Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) payments are at least 94% of the maximum for the year calculated without the top-up benefit.
Additional tax credit for a large cultural donation To provide a lasting financial support for arts and culture, the donation deadline of January 1, 2023, to avail an additional tax credit for a large cultural donation (equal to 25% of the eligible amount of the donation) has been eliminated.
Dividends from taxable Canadian corporations The rate of the dividend tax credit applicable to the actual amount of ordinary dividends has gone from 4.6115% to 3.9330%.
Tax credit for taxi drivers and taxi owners The new legal framework for remunerated passenger transportation that came into force on October 10, 2021, resulted in the following changes: The tax credit for taxi drivers was eliminated as of 2022. The tax credit for taxi owners was eliminated as of the first taxation year or fiscal period beginning after October 9, 2020.
Deduction for patronage dividends received from a cooperative The deduction for patronage dividends received from a cooperative was extended for three years instead of being eliminated as planned on January 1, 2023.

Prince Edward Island low-income tax reduction

The adjusted income threshold for the Prince Edward Island low-income tax reduction calculation has been increased to $20,000.
Prince Edward Island dividend tax credit The Prince Edward Island dividend tax credit rate for other than eligible dividends has changed.
Prince Edward Island volunteer firefighter and search and rescue personnel tax credit The tax credit has been expanded to include volunteer search and rescue personnel, and the amount claimable has been increased to $1000.

Children’s sports and arts tax credit

You can claim fees paid in 2022 that you or your spouse or common-law partner paid to a person or partnership for the registration or membership of a qualifying child in an eligible program or a club, association, or similar organization, whether inside or outside of Nova Scotia. The maximum amount that can be claimed for 2022 is $500 per child.

Community enterprise development tax credit

 This credit has been made permanent.
Small business venture capital tax credit This credit has been made permanent.
Education property tax credit, seniors school tax rebate Changes have been made to the education property tax credit, seniors school tax rebate.
School tax credit for homeowners Changes have been made to the school tax credit for homeowners.
Renters tax credit The renters tax credit is a new refundable credit for renters of residential properties. This replaces the renters component of the education property tax credit.

Clean buildings tax credit

A new clean buildings tax credit came into effect on February 23, 2022.

You may be able to claim this refundable tax credit if you incurred expenses between February 23, 2022, and April 1, 2025, for the retrofit of the following types of buildings in order to improve the building’s energy efficiency and meet prescribed targets for energy use:

  • multi-unit residential buildings with four or more dwellings
  • prescribed types of commercial buildings

The retrofit must be certified by the British Columbia Ministry of Finance and you can claim the credit no later than 18 months after the end of the tax year that follows the tax year in which the retrofit was completed.
Training tax credit The training tax credit has been extended until December 31, 2024.
Shipbuilding and ship repair industry tax credit The shipbuilding and ship repair industry tax credit has been extended until December 31, 2024.

Yukon Business Carbon Price Rebate

Assets in capital cost allowance, class 56, are now eligible under the Yukon Business Carbon Price Rebate.