Board, lodging, and transportation at special work sites

It is possible for an employee to work at a location that is both a special work site and a remote work location. However, the benefit can only be excluded from the employee's income once.

Special work sites

Generally, a special work site is an area where temporary duties are performed by an employee who keeps a self-contained domestic establishment at another location as his or her principal place of residence. Because of the distance between the two areas, the employee is not expected to return daily from the work site to his or her principal place of residence.

Usually, the GST/HST applies on meals and accommodations you provide to an employee. In certain cases, such as long-term residential accommodation of one month or more, no GST/HST applies. Where the GST/HST does apply, include it in the value of the benefit.

Board and lodging

You can exclude from income the value of board and lodging, or the reasonable allowance for board and lodging, that you provide to an employee who works at a special work site if all the following conditions are met:

• The employee's duties required him or her to be away from his or her principal place of residence or to be at the special work site.
• The employee had to work at a special work site where the duties performed were of a temporary nature.
• The employee kept, at another location, a self-contained domestic establishment as his or her principal place of residence:
  • that, throughout the period, was available for the employee's occupancy, and the employee did not rent it to any other person; and
  • to which, because of distance, the employee could not reasonably be expected to return daily from the special work site.
• The board and lodging, or the reasonable allowance for board and lodging, you provided to the employee had to have been for a period of at least 36 hours. This period can include time spent travelling between the employee's principal place of residence and a special work site.

• Note

  You can only exclude from income a reasonable allowance paid to your employee for board and lodging if they incurred the expense.

Transportation

You can exclude from income:

• the value of free or subsidized transportation between the special work site and your employee's principal place of residence; or
• a reasonable allowance paid to your employee for transportation expenses they incur.

This only applies if you provided board and lodging, or a reasonable allowance for board and lodging, to the employee for that period.

Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption – Employment at a Special Work Site

If an employee meets all of the conditions listed under “Board and lodging” above, you and the employee should fill out Form TD4, Declaration of Exemption – Employment at a Special Work Site. This allows you to exclude the benefit or allowance from the employee’s income. If you fill out Form TD4, do not include the amounts in box 14, “Employment income,” or in the “Other information” area under code 30 at the bottom of the employee’s T4 slip. After you fill out Form TD4 with the employee, keep it with your payroll records.

If the employee does not meet all of the above conditions, do not fill out Form TD4. Treat the total amounts as part of the employee’s income. Make the necessary deductions and report the amounts on the employee’s T4 slip. This also applies to any part of an allowance for board, lodging, and transportation that is more than a reasonable amount.

Payroll deductions

If you exclude a benefit for board, lodging, and transportation at a special work site or remote work location, it is not a taxable benefit. Do not deduct CPP contributions, EI premiums, or income tax.

Forms and publications

• Interpretation bulletin IT91R, Employment at Special Work sites or Remote Work Locations

Date modified:

2016-12-15