B7 - Wednesday, April 20, 1983 - North Shore News @ business LAST MINUTE TAX TIPS Remember all those deductions With only a short ume to go before the Apni 30 filing deadline, you can’t afford to put off calculating your tax return much longer. If you've done some. tax planning throughout the year, you probably have a fairly good idea of where you stand. To help out with those last) minute’ calculations. here's a partial checklist of frequently overlooked tax- deductible items you may be eligible for. Union Dues Your umion dues may be specified on your T-4 if they were included as a payroll deduction. If not, you should receive a receipt from the umion. Make sure you claim this amount as a tax deduction. interest Deductions In brief, if you borrowed funds to earn income, any interest on the loans is deductible from income. Interest on funds borrowed after November 12, 1981 to fmance a contribution to a registered retirement savings plan, a registered savings plan or a deferred profit sharing plan is no longer deductible from income. You are never allowed to deduct the interest on funds borrowed for personal expenditures such as fur- niture, vacations, etc. Moving Expenses If you have moved at least 40 kilometres to commence employment at a new location, you may be eligible to deduct moving expenses. Students may also qualify. You cannot deduct moving expenses for which you were reimbursed. Charitable Donations and Political Contributions to a registered political party of up to $500 and donations to a qualified charitable in- sutution of no more than 20% of your income may be deducted in any one taxation year. Medical Expenses Medical expenses can be claimed for any 12 month period that ended in 1982. Don't just opt for the standard $100 deduction, you may be eligible for more. You can claim medical expenses incurred by your spouse and any dependents. Divorced homemakers can join Canada Pension Pian By ISABEL WEGG Many people believe that spouses who work in the home can’t belong to a pen- sion plan. But I found out that a homemaker can join the Canada Pension Plan. The catch is, she has to be divorced. I was talking with Monica Townson, author of The Canadian Woman's Guide to Money about pension benefits for women. Monica told me about a recent provi- sion in the Canada Pension Plan that apparently many people do not know about. In effect for a few years, it allows a couple = getting divorced to split their Canada Pension Pian credits in the same way as they share their family assets “For a woman who never worked outside the home. it means she can receive a share of the credits that her husband has built up in the Canada Penson Plan has during the marriage — Monica said Here's how at works Ihe wile can apply to the income scecurty office to have the credity: divided she an long as docs so. within three year of the divorce She will have to produce birth cer tahic ates and social insurance numbers for berseclf and her husband. wath along the marnage certificate aad divorce decree the must have hlived together for To quality Coupic SO consccutive months dur ing the marnage The new provisions apply only to peo ple who were divorced alter 1OUN when the law was changed January | Moorea sand that since dhe new legislation came into cl fect outoof the more than 138 OOO | divorces cmatsnadc Oucbeco less than 4 000 ap pheations for divistoa of pension credit, have bren madc Onee the apple ation has been made the ine ome sccurty peuple will sec what amount of pension the hus baad has carncd during the marriage. in other words what has been credited to his pension account. The amount is then shared equal- ly between the spouses. If they don't agree with the way the pension credits are divided up they have the right to appeal, just as they can any other’ decision relating to benefits from the Canada Pension Plan. But Monica pointed out that a husband can't refuse to share his pension credits if his wife applies for the division. She has a mght to her share tn the same way she has a nght under provincial family pro- perty law to a share in the family assets that have been built up dunng the mamage. It seems a shame that a homemaker doesn't have any mghts under the Canada Pension Plan unless her mar nage breaks up Monica told me one suggestion that has EATON'S CORRECTION Eaton's Trans-Canada Sale Extra Buys Oue to suppher delivery pro tlems avatlaDte for am mechate Jetivery Mowever orders will be accepted tor Jefivery by the date shown blerns tthe following ae rreot erm KM. shrort oun Colon Clean AVAILABLE Frage 3 tty fecort NOT vie plan oof tinged Frmged shades will Page 1) ern Sunesta shades be availatpio by specul ofdors cnhy Wern 1.71 740 lac h Oharnond senior glove NOT AVAL ALLE Prange 17 Wracdverr tently Ure eros fated above have appoarod Wo smceorealy regret any inconve ie) ous advertising mence oon Confusion tO Our customers EATON'S been made is that’ the government should consider sphtting pension credits for all married couples, not just those who are divorced. This would mean that a wife who has never worked ouside the home would be entitled to a retirement pension in her own name, because half her husband's contributions to +19° PERSONAL ao CALLUS FOR A-~ Beat the Rush GWEN ANTAYA 5 BASIC RETURN COR’ RPORATE in - 25% DISCOUNT ~ FREE NORTH SHORE Cali 7 Days a Week th9 pm the plan would be credited to her. With the growing concern over the pension phght of many women, I'm sure we'll be hearing more about this in the months ahead. (Isabel Wegg is Vice Presi- dent of Consumer Relauons for the Canadian Life & Health Insurance Assoc. Inc.) FOR SENIORS, GROUPS AND FAMILIES PICK-UP AND DEUVERY 986-5560 FEES START AS LOW AS .... FOR YOUR 1982 TAX @ RETURN ALL WORK IS GUARANTEED!! CALL 985-0411 PAY LESS TAX 1979 Lonsdate Ave North Van 0°: CANADIAN OWNED Child Tax Credit The child tax credit is usually claimed by _ the mother. Even if the mother has no income, she should file a tax return so she'll receive the cash refund for the child tax credit. Federal Tax Reduction If your spouse doesn't need the entire $200 federal tax reduction, you can claim the unused portion. Investment Related Ex- penses You can deduct in- vestment counselling fees: accounting and bookkeeping fees if they are related to an investment or business; and the administration costs of your investments such as safety deposit box charges. The cost of seminars or refresher courses related to your investment activities may also be deducted if paid to a Canadian educational institution and if they exceed $100. Of course there are many other deductions and tax- saving strategies. You should be familiar with the rules governing any deduction to ensure that you are eligible to claim it. A TERRIFIC TEAM You and Wespage II — to- gether you can cover a lot of territory. Wespage Il is the person-to-person paging sys- tem that enables you to receive direct messages. 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