📰 Digital News Subscription Tax Credit – Line 31350

📌 What Is the Credit?

This credit allowed you to reduce the amount of federal tax you owed by claiming a percentage of eligible digital news subscription expenses on Line 31350 of your T1 Income Tax and Benefit Return. The credit was non‑refundable — it could lower your tax payable, but not create a refund if the credit exceeded your tax liability.

👤 Who Could Claim It?

You could claim this credit for a tax year between 2020 and 2024 if:

• You paid for a qualifying digital news subscription from a Qualified Canadian Journalism Organization (QCJO).
• The subscription provided access to news content in digital form that was primarily written news.
• You were the individual who entered into the subscription agreement.

If more than one person shared the same subscription, you could split the claim, provided the total claimed did not exceed the maximum allowed.

💡 Qualifying Subscription

A qualifying subscription meant you paid for digital news access from a QCJO that did not hold a broadcasting licence and offered primarily written digital news. If a subscription included non‑digital content, only the cost of a comparable stand‑alone digital portion was eligible (or half if no stand‑alone digital cost could be established).

The CRA published a List of qualifying digital news subscriptions showing eligible subscriptions and organizations.

💰 Amount You Could Claim

The credit was calculated by:

• Multiplying the lowest federal personal income tax rate (15%) by your total eligible subscription expenses up to a maximum of $500 per year.
• Therefore, the maximum credit in any year was $75.

📑 How to Claim

To claim this credit on your Canadian tax return:

1. Keep receipts and documentation of your qualifying subscription expenses (do not send them with the return but retain them in case CRA requests proof).
2. On your T1 personal income tax return for the appropriate tax year (2020–2024), enter the eligible amount on Line 31350.

Remember that you cannot claim this credit for tax years 2025 and later.

📌 Tips & Notes

• If a qualifying subscription was gifted, the subscriber who paid (or the recipient) could claim, but not both.
• Subscriptions not on the published list may still qualify if the organization confirms eligibility — contact the organization if unsure.
• Keep your receipts and documentation; CRA may request them later.