Eligible Services – House
Certain home-support services that you receive may be eligible for the tax credit.
To be eligible for the tax credit, the services must be either pay-per-use or provided under a contract. They cannot, however, be provided by your spouse or a dependant.
The services can be provided by a business (for example, a self-employed person, a co-operative or a business in the social economy sector) or by a person you employ and who issues you an invoice.
Only the cost of services gives entitlement to the tax credit for home-support services for seniors. The cost of supplies required to provide services is not included.
The following items are excluded from the cost of eligible services:
- toiletries
- food
- cleaning products
- everyday necessities
Eligible services
Personal care services
Personal care services are related to daily activities that pertain only to:
- dressing
- personal hygiene (for example, help with bathing)
- eating and drinking
- mobility in the home
Meal services
Meal services may include:
- assistance in preparing meals in your dwelling
- meal preparation and delivery by a non-profit community organization (such as Meals on Wheels)
Meal services do not include the cost of food or delivery made by a restaurant.
Nursing services
Nursing services include the care provided by:
- a nurse
- a nursing assistant
Housekeeping, grounds maintenance and snow removal services
Housekeeping services include, for example:
- sweeping, dusting and cleaning of living areas
- maintaining appliances (cleaning the oven or refrigerator)
- cleaning rugs and upholstered furniture (armchairs and sofas)
- cleaning air ducts (if they do not have to be dismantled)
- chimney sweeping
Housekeeping services do not include the cost of cleaning products.
Grounds maintenance services include, for example:
- lawn care (fertilization and mowing)
- pool maintenance
- hedge-trimming and plant-bed maintenance
- tree pruning
- raking leaves
- Grounds maintenance work does not include the cost of maintenance products or any other property used to complete such work.
- Minor maintenance work outside the dwelling (such as installing and removing a portable shelter) is eligible.
Laundry services
Laundry services include the care of your clothing and household linens (curtains, bedding, etc.) by a household service worker in your home.
Laundry services do not include the cost of cleaning products or the cost of services provided by a business that offers dry cleaning, laundering, pressing or related services.
Supervision and support services
Supervision and support services include:
- non-specialized night supervision, monitoring and companion sitting
- person-centered remote monitoring services (such as emergency call systems activated by a panic button on a bracelet or pendant, or a remote health monitoring system that reads vital signs (pulse, blood pressure and blood oxygen saturation levels, for example) and blood glucose levels)
- services related to the use of a personal GPS locator (while the cost of renting or purchasing such a device is not an eligible expense for the purposes of the tax credit for home-support services, you may be able to claim a portion of that cost under the independent living tax credit for seniors (line 462))
Civic support services
Civic support services are services required to meet the demands of daily life. These services include:
- help going to vote
- budget management
- help completing forms, including applications for advance payments of the tax credit for home-support services for seniors (however, assistance in completing other tax forms, such as an income tax return, is not an eligible service)
Supplying everyday necessities and running other errands
Supplying everyday necessities and running other errands includes:
- grocery delivery
- prescription drug delivery