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 Department.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle du ministère.
932243
XXXXXXXXXX D. Zion
(613) 957-2140
Attention: XXXXXXXXXX
November 17, 1993
Dear Sirs:
Re: Subsection 6(6) of the Income Tax Act (the Act)
We are writing in reply to your letter of August 5, 1993, concerning subparagraph 6(6)(a)(i) of the Act and whether or not free board and lodging received by counsellors who live full time at the summer camps would be exempt under the provisions outlined in this subparagraph.
You are of the opinion that a student who would otherwise live at home or does in fact live at home is "maintaining" a principal residence there whether or not he or she may be contributing to the cost of upkeep.
Subparagraph 6(6)(a)(i) of the Act is intended to provide relief to those individuals who, for one reason or another, continue to maintain a residence while employed at a special work site. This would include homeowners who do not wish to sell or rent their home while away on a temporary assignment and who incur expenses in maintaining the home such as taxes, utilities, mortgage payments etc. It would also include individuals responsible for rent payments while away on a temporary assignment given that, under the circumstances, giving up the rental property would not be reasonable or practical.
It is thus our opinion that in the context of subparagraph 6(6)(a)(i) of the Act, that the term "maintain" should be interpreted as meaning expenses (as discussed in the above paragraph) incurred in the upkeep of a self-contained domestic establishment.
In your letter you make reference to Interpretation Bulletin IT-91R3 Employment at Special or Remote Work Sites. Paragraph 6 of this publication states that an employee's principal place of residence for the purposes of subparagraph 6(6)(a)(i) of the Act is the "place where the employee maintains a self-contained domestic establishment (a dwelling house, apartment or similar place of residence where a person generally sleeps and eats). A room (or rooms) in a hotel, boarding house or bunkhouse would not ordinarily be a self-contained domestic establishment". In our opinion, a room in the taxpayer's parents' home would also not ordinarily qualify as a self-contained domestic establishment.
Whether or not a counsellor maintains a self-contained domestic establishment and otherwise meets the provisions of subparagraph 6(6)(a)(i) of the Act is a question of fact and would have to be determined on an individual case basis.
We would like to mention that as outlined in paragraph 5 of IT-91R3, regardless of whether or not the employee qualifies for the exemption under subsection 6(6) of the Act, no amount is included in an employee's income for transportation or a reimbursement of transportation expenses, provided to and from the special work site at the commencement and the completion of employment.
We trust our comments will be of assistance to you.
Yours truly,
P.D. Fuoco
for Director
Business and General Division
Rulings Directorate
Legislative and Intergovernmental
Affairs Branch
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