If you and your spouse or common-law partner decide to prepare your returns separately, you’ll need to manually enter some of the information from your partner’s return on your Schedule 2. This will help determine which federal and provincial unused amounts you can transfer from his or her return to claim on yours.
Note: If you and your spouse are preparing your returns together, you won’t need to complete Schedule 2; H&R Block’s tax software will automatically do it for you.
Some of the amounts you might be eligible to claim include:
- Age amount
- Canada caregiver amount (formerly the Family caregiver amount) for children under 18
- Pension income amount
- Disability amount
- Tuition amount
Note: The federal education and textbooks amount has been eliminated as of January 1st, 2017.
Remember, if you’re eligible to claim the federal amount, you’re also entitled to claim a corresponding provincial tax credit, which might vary in amount depending on which province or territory you live in:
- Alberta
- British Columbia
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- Northwest Territories
- Nova Scotia
- Nunavut
- Ontario
- Prince Edward Island
- Québec
- Saskatchewan
- Yukon
Completing the Schedule 2 page
When completing Schedule 2, make sure that you enter your spouse’s federal amounts as they appear on his or her return. To help you find the amounts you need on your spouse’s return, H&R Block’s tax software will show the amount’s respective line number.
Note: If your spouse is transferring tuition amount(s) to you, enter the specific amount that he or she designated as a transfer to you. The federal tuition amount designated for transfer can be found on line 327 of the federal Schedule 11 and provincial tuition amount for transfer can be found on line 5290 of his or her provincial Schedule 11.
If your spouse isn’t filing a return, simply enter the amounts they would’ve entered on their own return. You can get these amounts from their information slips.
Remember, be careful when filling out Schedule 2; if the information you enter is inaccurate, it could mean delays, interest charges, or penalties from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). If you’re eligible for the provincial credits and tax reductions that are available for lower income taxpayers, make sure you enter your spouse’s income. If you and your spouse are higher income taxpayers, an estimate is fine.
Once you’ve entered the amounts on Schedule 2, H&R Block’s tax software will automatically determine which federal and provincial amounts can be transferred and claimed.
Where can I enter these amounts?
Follow these steps in H&R Block’s 2017 tax software:
- Under the PREPARE tab, click the REQUIRED icon.
- Navigate to the Your spouse's return link. You’ll find yourself here:
- Enter information from your spouse’s return into the designated fields on this page.
Where can I learn more?
- Can you claim the transfer of certain amounts from your spouse or common-law partner? (CRA website)
- What do I do if I'm separated and I don’t know my ex-spouse’s income amounts for the year? (H&R Block Online Help Centre article)
