Writing receipts and providing SIN to clients...

[Other Mummy]

My accountant stressed the fact that you do not give out your SIN number. Ever. If a client gets audited, they will contact you. Revenue Canada does not require you to give out your SIN number. If you have a business # use that.

[Rachael]

So much mis-information on one thread...

My accountant stressed the fact that you do not give out your SIN number. Ever. If a client gets audited, they will contact you. Revenue Canada does not require you to give out your SIN number. If you have a business # use that.

CANADA REVENUE AGENCY ABSOLUTELY DOES REQUIRE YOU TO GIVE OUT YOUR SIN. (The only way around this is to register your business which isn't a requirement for in-home day care, and provide the business number instead). If a provider here can show any official documentation from them to the contrary, I'd love to see a link to that information as I am confident it doesn't exist. This requirement is clearly stated in every single document on their site from both the providers end and the parents end. It's also reflected in every single tax return software producers guidelines.

CRA stress you must give it out as parents need it to make the claim. No SIN, no tax credit for the parents.

If you review any and all of the CRA documentation regarding running a day home or making a day care fees claim (for the parent) every single document states the provider's SIN is a requirement.

It's not about the parents being audited because if the SIN of the provider isn't submitted on their tax claim, they DON'T get the credit. It's about the provider.

Providers who issue receipts without SIN are treated with suspicion as without the SIN they can't track the income of the provider. This is when providers get audited. When CRA think they might be understating their income.

PROVIDER OBLIGATIONS

CRA - Using your home for day care guide (http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/tg/p134/p134-13e.pdf) - refer to issuing your receipts, page 20.

Issuing your receipts
As someone who runs a home daycare, you will be expected to issue receipts to the parents of the children in your care. You should do this as soon as possible to give them time to file their income tax returns.
Receipts you issue have to include all of the following information:
■ the name of the person for whom you are preparing the receipt;
■ the name of the child of the person for whom you are preparing the receipt;
■ the amount received for your services;
■ the period you provided these services (from and to dates);
■ your name;
■ your address;
■ your social insurance number;
■ your signature; and
■ the date you signed the receipt.

Same information, different CRA source...

CRA - Home > Businesses > Daycare in your home > Issuing receipts (http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/bsnss/tp...rcpts-eng.html)

Issuing receipts
As someone who runs a home daycare, you will be expected to issue receipts to the parents of the children in your care. You should do this as soon as possible to give them time to file their income tax and benefit returns.

Receipts you issue have to include all of the following information:

the name of the person for whom you are preparing the receipt;
the name of the child of the person for whom you are preparing the receipt;
the amount received for your services;
the period you provided these services (from and to dates);
your name;
your address;
your social insurance number;
your signature; and
the date you signed the receipt.

FOR PARENTS TO CLAIM

Line 214 - Child care expenses (http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/t.../menu-eng.html) > WHAT PAYMENTS CAN YOU CLAIM?

The individual or organization who received the payments must give you a receipt showing information about the services provided. When the child care services are provided by an individual, you will need the social insurance number of the individual.

Claiming Child Care Expenses (http://turbotax.intuit.ca/tax-resour...e-expenses.jsp)

Eligible Expenses
You can claim child care costs paid to daycare centres, day nursery schools, caregivers such as nannies, day camps, and overnight boarding schools and camps that provide lodging. To be eligible, day camps and day sports schools must have a primary purpose of providing child care.

If you paid an individual person, such as a nanny or babysitter, you must provide her social insurance number. Note that the CRA requires proof of expenses in the form of receipts, and that you may be audited.

"Parents should take precautions when choosing a daycare or child care provider. One of these is to make sure ahead of time that proper receipts will be issued. Child care providers are required to issue receipts showing either their business number or social insurance number.

I tend to prefer "official" sources of information like the government web sites but even the less official/someone's opinion which might not be accurate sites have the EXACT same information.

Tax Time : Claiming Child Care Expenses (http://www.canadiannanny.ca/blog/pos...care-expenses/)

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As long as your child or children are under 16 years of age, the parent with the lower net income can claim the child care expenses paid as a deduction on their taxes. In order to make this claim, you must have a receipt to support this claim, whether you are required to submit it or not. The receipt needs to list the caregiver’s name, SIN, and amount paid for child care through the year. If your caregiver refuses to provide this information, you cannot make the claim; if you do and cannot provide receipts to support the claim, CRA will reject the claim.

There are lots of others, should you care to look. As said above, a day care provider is obligated to provide their SIN number and a parent needs the SIN number in order to claim the expense.

If you don't want to give out your SIN, the only other option is to register your business and provide that number instead.

EDIT - As a side issue, as from 01-Jan-2015, the claimable limits are increasing in every category by $1000. So parents will be able to claim a max of $8,000 next financial year.

Also Universal Child Care Benefit is being enhance. Parents of children 6 and younger, currently get $100 which will increase to $160. Parents of children 7-17 inclusive, currently get nothing under this benefit, will get $60 a month. This will REPLACE the line on the Federal Part of the tax return, line 367, allows a base tax free amount per dependant child under the age of 18. The base amount last year was $2,234 but the tax credit is for 15% of this amount which works out as being $335.10. As from January 2015, this tax credit is gone.