25 April 2002 External T.I. 2001-0114195 - TUITION TAX CREDIT

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CRA.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ARC.

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CCRA.

Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ADRC.

Principal Issues: Are fees paid for courses taken with XXXXXXXXXX , that lead to a Master of Science in Astronomy eligible for the tuition tax credit?

Position: No

Reasons: The t/p is not a full time student because he is taking courses through correspondence/distance education only. Also, it appears that the courses may be less than 13 weeks in duration.

XXXXXXXXXX 2001-011419
Shaun Harkin, CMA
April 25, 2002

Dear XXXXXXXXXX:

Re: Technical Interpretation Request: Tuition Fees

This is in reply to your facsimile of December 7, 2001 in which you ask for our views on whether the tuition fees paid to XXXXXXXXXX for courses that lead to a Master of Science degree in Astronomy qualify for the tuition tax credit under subsection 118.5(1) of the Income Tax Act (the "Act"). XXXXXXXXXX

Our Comments

Generally, an individual who is, during the year, a student in full-time attendance at a university outside Canada in a course leading to a degree at not lower than the bachelor or equivalent level may claim a tuition tax credit for any tuition fees paid for the year to that university, pursuant to paragraph 118.5(1)(b) of the Act, provided, inter alia, that the fees are for a course of not less than 13 consecutive weeks duration.

The question of whether an individual is in full-time attendance is the fundamental question that must be determined. Further to paragraph 10 of Interpretation Bulletin IT-516R2 entitled, Tuition Tax Credit, where a university or college considers that the students enrolled in their programs are in full-time attendance, they are generally considered to have met the full-time attendance requirement. However, a student is not considered to be in full-time attendance at a university outside Canada where the courses are taken only by correspondence, or where the student is carrying only a minor course load and is devoting much of his or her time to money earning activities. Generally, if there is no physical presence at the foreign university, the student cannot claim the tuition tax credit.

In the situation you describe, since you are taking courses only by home study (i.e. correspondence), you are not considered in full-time attendance. Therefore, the tuition paid in respect of these courses would not be eligible for the tuition tax credit.

The foregoing comments represent our general views with respect to the subject matter. As indicated in paragraph 22 of Information Circular 70-6R4, the above comments do not constitute an income tax ruling and accordingly are not binding on the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. Our practice is to make this disclaimer in all instances in which we provide an opinion.

We trust the above comments are of assistance.

Yours truly,

Steve Tevlin
for Director
Partnerships Section
Business and Partnerships Division
Income Tax Rulings Directorate
Policy and Legislation Branch

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