In a recent Technical Interpretation, CRA noted that an employer-provided meal allowance will not be taxable where the following conditions are met:
- It must be a reasonable amount;
- The allowance is received to cover expenses while travelling away from the metropolitan area or the municipality where the employer’s establishment is located, at which the employee normally worked or to which the employee normally reported;
- The travelling is done to perform the duties of an office or employment.
As a general rule, CRA allows an employer to use $17 per meal as a reasonable over-time meal allowance. This rate is stated in the CRA Guide T4130.
CRA usually considers an allowance to be reasonable if it covers the out-of-pocket expenses incurred by an employee who is travelling for employment purposes.
After graduating from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science, Gerald joined KPMG (Formerly Thorne Riddell) as a Computer Accounting Customer Service representative. In this position, Gerald installed accounting systems in over 200 different small to medium sized companies over a 6 year span. In 1989, Gerald left KPMG to continue to work with small business clients in his own corporation installing computer accounting systems. While in this role, he was engaged by the DeVry Institute of Technology in Calgary to teach various courses. In time, Gerald moved up through the ranks of DeVry until he attained the position of Director of Finance for the Calgary Campus. He also acquired his Masters of Business Administration from City University of Seattle, Washington in 2001. Gerald’s career has always been focused on small business, accounting and education.
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