Important: The Saskatchewan employee’s tool tax credit has been eliminated for 2017 and subsequent tax years. If you have an unused one-time trade entry credit amount from a previous tax year (refer to your 2016 Notice of Assessment or Notice of Re-assessment), you’ll still be able to claim it on your 2017 return.
From 2006 to 2016, as an employed tradesperson who lived and worked in Saskatchewan, you could claim the Saskatchewan employee tools tax credit to help you with the cost to buy, replace, and upgrade the tools you need to do your job.
There were two components to the tax credit:
- A one-time trade entry amount to help with the high initial cost of buying your tools (any unused portion can be carried forward for two years) and
- An annual maintenance amount to help with the cost of maintaining your tools in good working condition
Note: Clothing or vehicles you’d need a license to drive didn’t count as eligible tools for this tax credit.
In order to have claimed this tax credit, you had to complete the T1284 form and your employer, Part 6 of the form. Make sure you’ve kept the completed form on file in case the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) asks to see it later.
Where do I claim this?
Follow these steps in H&R Block’s 2017 tax software:
Before you begin, make sure that you told us that you lived in Saskatchewan on December 31, 2017.
- Under the PREPARE tab, click the IN THIS SECTION icon.
- Under Employment expenses (home office, tools, etc.), credits or deductions related to your job, and employment income that's not show on a slip (tips, royalties, etc.) click the Add This button.
- Click the EMPLOYMENT icon. You’ll find yourself here:
- Under the EXPENSES heading, select the checkbox labelled, Saskatchewan employee’s tools tax credit (T1284) then click Continue.
- When you arrive at the page for the Unused Saskatchewan employee's tools tax, enter your unused one-time trade entry credit amount into the tax software.
