Income Tax and Spousal Support

Income Tax and Spousal Support

Tax and spousal support is often overlooked when couples separate. This is important, as it is one of the few areas where a family can benefit from a tax reduction. Who doesn’t want to pay fewer taxes? Generally speaking, spousal support is tax-deductible for the payor and taxable for the…

Retirement & Support Payments

Retirement & Support Payments

What To Do with Retirement and Support Payments:  Is Voluntary Retirement a Material Change? It is not so easy to just decide to retire, when you have to pay child support and/or spousal support after divorce in BC. It is unwise to unilaterally cancel or reduce support payments.  However, retirement…

What Qualifies as a Support Payment?

What qualifies as a support payment, and how it is taxed, are important issues.  How support payments are defined affects your income (as defined by CRA), the amount of tax deductions you are allowed, and ultimately how much income tax you pay.  Each person’s case is unique, and you should…

Extraordinary Expenses

Extraordinary expenses are those costs above and beyond what would normally be covered by child support. They are governed under Section 7 of the Federal Child Support Guidelines. What kinds of things potentially qualify as extraordinary expenses? childcare needed due to the custodial parent’s employment, illness, or education medical premiums,…