a peek inside the fishbowl

Back in March, I posted some handy info that was shared with me by the Ontario Ministry of Finance. In a nutshell, they’ve developed some handy resources to help us figure out whether we’re getting money back this year. (You can read that post right here.)

Did you know that last year almost 60 per cent of Ontarians who filed a tax return, put money back into their pockets by tapping into the available tax credits and benefits?

• Ontario Senior Homeowners’ Property Tax Grant helped nearly 500,000 seniors pay their property taxes. The Ontario Trillium Benefit provided about $2.4 billion to more than 4 million low- to moderate-income families and single people, including seniors.
• Ontario Child Benefit helps low-income families get up to $1,378 a year for a child under 18.
• Ontario Trillium Benefit combines the Ontario Sales Tax Credit, which provides sales tax relief of up to $296 per year; the Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit, which provides property tax relief of up to $1,165 per year; and the Northern Ontario Energy Credit, which provides relief for energy costs of up to $227 per year.

Even if you’re on social assistance or don’t have any income to report, filing a tax return could help you and your family get money back.

If you need help filing your return, do-it-yourself tax software programs are readily available and easy to follow, providing step-by-step instructions on completing your return. If you need further assistance, you can visit one of the many free tax preparation clinics across Ontario.

Sidebar: it is totally worth mentioning that Mark did my mom’s taxes on his iPhone this year. Isn’t that amazing? (Well, it wasn’t quite so exciting at the time because her laptop was doing something weird, but hey, it was very cool to be able to do it online and on a mobile device!)

The deadline to file your income tax return is April 30, however, because it falls on a Sunday this year, the deadline has been extended until Monday, May 1, 2017.

** This blog post is supported in part by the Ontario Ministry of Finance. We haven’t filed our taxes yet, but we’re totally on it and will be submitting by the end of this month. :)