Here’s how Canadians can write off their medical cannabis and CBD
With tax season upon us (sadly) again, Canadians are looking for any and all ways they can send less tax to Revenue Canada and keep more loonies in their pockets.
The good news is that Canadians are eligible to write off medical cannabis and CBD costs as a eligible medical expense.
What medical cannabis and CBD expenses can you write off?
Any form of medical cannabis and CBD is eligible as long as it was prescribed by a qualified medical professional, such as a doctor or medical practitioner.
You can also write off cannabis and CBD accessories like: rolling papers, pipes, holders and vaporizers.
According to the tax company TurboTax:
“Like your other medical expenses, you can claim for any period of 12 months, not previous claimed, provided the final month falls within the tax year. For 2019, you can claim your total eligible medical expenses, less $2,352 (or 3% or your net income, whichever is less).”
The Canada Revenue Agency lists medical cannabis as an “eligible medical expenses you can claim on your tax return.”
The government defines eligible medical cannabis expenses as:
“…the amounts paid for cannabis, cannabis oil, cannabis plant seeds, or cannabis products purchased for medical purposes from a holder of a licence for sale (as defined in subsection 264(1) of the Cannabis Regulations). The patient must be a holder of a medical document (as defined in subsection 264(1) of the Cannabis Regulations). The Cannabis Regulations require that the patient be registered as a client of the holder of a licence for sale and require the patient to make their purchases from the holder they are registered with.”
And for those who are registered to grow their own medical cannabis, the eligible medical expense for that is defined as:
“Where a patient has a registration certificate that allows them to legally produce a limited amount of cannabis for their own medical purposes, the cost of growing and producing cannabis for medical purposes (other than the cost of cannabis plant seeds and cannabis), such as pots, soil, nutrients, and lights, is not an eligible medical expense.”
What you need to do to write off your medical cannabis and CBD.
First, you need to ensure you are keeping all your receipts that accompany your purchase of medical cannabis and CBD, as well as any accessories you purchased.
Second, ensure you have received your medical document and that you are registered with a Health Canada approved medical cannabis and CDB dispensary
You can register right now with Tantus by going here and booking an online consultation with one of our medical cannabis healthcare experts who can provide you with a medical cannabis and/or CBD prescription. It take about 15 minutes to do and you can then purchase medical cannabis and CBD from our online dispensary and claim the expenses on your tax return.
Finally, when it comes to making the claim on your taxes you can take a look at this Taxtips.ca article that outlines what you need to do.