Is the golden age of working from home (WFH) nearing its end? Last fall, the federal government mandated that employees return to the office (WFO) three days a week. Major corporations like Amazon and Dell have gone further, requiring full-time in-office work. The upside? This shift may help revitalize downtown areas that have struggled with vacancies since the pandemic. Proponents of WFO also argue it will boost productivity—one study suggests remote work may reduce productivity by 10 to 20 percent!1
Regardless of your stance, tax season is a reminder for remaining WFH workers to claim home office expenses. This year, Form T2200 has been amended to simplify employer certification. Now, employers only need to confirm whether an employee worked from home more than 50 percent of the time over a period of at least four consecutive weeks. According to the CRA, taxpayers claimed a record $2.08 billion in home office expenses in 2023, a 41.4 percent increase from the 2022 tax year, when the temporary flat-rate method was last available.2
Here are other notable tax changes as you file your 2024 returns:
Capital Gains. The proposed increase to the capital gains inclusion rate was cancelled on March 21, 2025. For those impacted, the CRA is granting relief from late-filing penalties and interest until June 2, 2025, for individuals and May 1, 2025, for trusts to provide additional time for taxpayers reporting capital gains to meet their tax filing obligations.
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). For 2024 and beyond, the AMT rate increases to 20.5 percent from 15 percent and the basic exemption threshold rises to $173,205 from $40,000.
Charitable Donations. Due to the postal strike, draft legislation extended the deadline for 2024 charitable donations to February 28, 2025. Individuals can choose to claim eligible monetary donations made up to February 28, 2025, on their 2024 tax return, 2025 return or during the normal five-year carryforward period. Corporations with taxation years ending after November 14, 2024, or before January 1, 2025, are also eligible.
Short-Term Rentals. If you rent a residential property for less than 90 consecutive days, you must now comply with all provincial and municipal regulations and licensing or the CRA will deny any expense deductions. Transitional relief is in place for the 2024 tax year.
Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR) for Small Business. While the government stated that the rebate is tax free, at the time of writing, legislation is pending so it must be reported as taxable income.3 This was distributed in December to eligible Canadian-Controlled Private Corporations (CCPCs) to offset the federal fuel charge in certain provinces: AB, MB, NB, NL, NS, ON, PE, SK. CCPCs in other provinces/ territories may be eligible if they employ people in designated provinces.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/benjaminlaker/2023/08/02/working-from-home-leads-to-decreasedproductivity-
research-suggests/; 2. https://www.investmentexecutive.com/news/industry-news/claims-ofhome-
office-expenses-increased-41-last-tax-season/; 3. https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/
tax/businesses/topics/corporations/business-tax-credits/canada-carbon-rebate-small-businesses.html
