Question

During the year, Mr. Paul McKesson accepted a promotion with his employer, one of the largest Canadian comapnies, and had to move from Halifax to Toronto.

Due to the market conditions in Halifax, Mr. McKesson had to sell his old residence quickly and suffered a loss of $50,000.

His employer accepted to reimburse him half of his loss, that is, $25,000.

With respect to the taxation of the amount of $25,000 received during the year, which of the following statements is correct?

a.	None of the amount received is taxable for the employee because the amount received in this case is a reimbursement of expenses by an employer to an employee, and there are no other tax consequences for the employee.
	b.	Only $5,000 of the $25,000 received would be included in the employee's income for the year because the amount is a reimbursement of an eligible housing loss by an employer to an employee.
	c.	The entire amount of $25,000 received is taxable because all amounts paid by an employer to an employee for housing losses are taxable and must be included in income of the employee.
	d.	None of the answers shown.
	e.	Only $12,500 of the $25,000 received would be included in the employee's income for the year, representing half of the amount received, because the amount is a reimbursement of a capital loss on the disposition of a personal asset, only half of which would be allowed as a deduction against taxable capital gains.
	f.	None of the amount received is taxable for the employee because the amount received is not part of the employee's regular salary and the payment is a one-off situation that will likely never occur again.

Answer 1

Answer;

Correct Option- B Only $ 5,000 of the $ 25,000 received would be included in employee's Income for the Year because the amount is a reimbursement of an eligible housing loss by an Employer to an Employee.

Reason-

As Per Canadian Tax Rules, Reimbursement of Housing Loss from Employer to Employee is Taxable to Extent of Half of Reimbursement made in Excess of $ 15,000.

In Given Case, $ 25,000 is reimbursed by the Employer to Employee (Mr. Paul McKesson) for his Housing Loss.

Taxable Reimbursement = 1/2 × (Reimbursement Received - $ 15,000) [As Stated Above]

1/2 × [$ 25,000 (Provided) - $ 15,000]

1/2 × $ 10,000

$ 5,000.

So, Based On above Points, Option B is Correct Option.