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FederalDid not become law (session ended)40th Parliament, 1st Session

Bill C-216 explained in plain English

An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (services to a charity or public authority)

Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.

At a glance

Jurisdiction
Federal Parliament
Legislature / Parliament
Parliament of Canada
Session
40th Parliament, 1st Session
Bill number
Bill C-216
Full title
An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (services to a charity or public authority)
Current status
Did not become law (session ended)
Latest event
Outside the Order of Precedence
Last updated
Nov 21, 2008

Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 40th Parliament, 1st Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.

Chamber
Parliament of Canada
Current Stage
Outside the Order of Precedence
Latest Activity
Nov 21, 2008
Plain-language explanation
In plain English (our explanation)

Our plain-language take, written for civic education.

Source: By PoliticalData.ca

AI-assisted, reviewed before publishing
Short Version

Bill C-216 would amend the Income Tax Act to create a tax deduction of $1,000 for individuals who volunteer a minimum of 250 hours for a charity or public authority and receive limited remuneration for their services.

What It Means

Bill C-216 proposes to amend the Income Tax Act to allow individuals who provide volunteer services to registered charities, non-profit organizations, or public authorities to claim a tax deduction. To qualify, an individual must provide at least 250 hours of service in a tax year and receive no more than $3,000 in remuneration for that service. If these conditions are met, the individual can deduct $1,000 from their taxable income. The bill also outlines requirements for issuing certificates of service hours and for record-keeping by the organizations providing the certificates.

What This Bill Does
  • It would amend the Income Tax Act to allow a deduction of $1,000 for individuals who provide at least 250 hours of service in a tax year to a registered charity, a non-profit organization, or a municipality or other public authority.
  • It specifies that the deduction is only available if the individual receives no salary, stipend, or other remuneration exceeding $3,000 for such services.
  • It requires a prescribed form, certified by the charity, organization, municipality, or authority, to be filed with the tax return to claim the deduction.
  • It requires registered charities, non-profit organizations, or municipalities or other public authorities that issue such certificates to keep records and books of account in Canada.
  • These records must include a duplicate of each certificate issued and other information that enables the Minister to verify the hours of service for which a deduction is claimed.
Who Is Affected
  • Individuals who provide volunteer services to registered charities, non-profit organizations, municipalities, or other public authorities.
  • Registered charities, non-profit organizations, municipalities, and other public authorities that receive volunteer services and may issue certificates for those services.
Rights, Duties, Or Obligations
  • Individuals have the potential right to claim a $1,000 tax deduction if they meet the service hour and remuneration requirements.
  • Organizations issuing service certificates have the obligation to keep specific records and books of account in Canada.
  • Individuals must file a prescribed form with their tax return to claim the deduction.
Important Dates
  • The bill does not specify a commencement date; it would come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.
Financial Or Tax Impacts
  • Individuals who qualify may be able to reduce their taxable income by $1,000, potentially lowering their tax liability.
Enforcement Or Penalties
  • The bill requires the Minister to be able to verify the hours of service through the records kept by the organizations. Failure to comply with record-keeping requirements or providing inaccurate information could lead to penalties under existing provisions of the Income Tax Act, though these are not detailed in this specific bill.
Uncertainties Or Limits
  • The term 'prescribed form' is used, but the bill text does not define what this form entails or who prescribes it.
  • The bill does not specify the exact penalties for organizations that fail to keep adequate records or for taxpayers who provide false information on their tax returns related to this deduction.
Laws Or Regulations Affected
Income Tax Act
amends

This bill would amend the Income Tax Act to introduce a new provision allowing a tax deduction for volunteer services.

Source: Section 1 of the Bill

Subsection 110(1) of the Income Tax Act
amends

This bill would amend this subsection to add a new provision (paragraph (l)) that allows a deduction of $1,000 if a taxpayer provides a minimum of 250 hours of service to a qualified organization and receives limited remuneration for it.

Source: Section 1(1) of the Bill

Section 110 of the Income Tax Act
amends

This bill would amend this section by adding a new subsection (1.8) that outlines the conditions for claiming the deduction, including the requirement for a prescribed form certified by the service recipient organization.

Source: Section 1(2) of the Bill

Section 230 of the Income Tax Act
amends

This bill would amend this section by adding a new subsection (2.2) that requires organizations issuing service certificates to maintain specific records in Canada.

Source: Section 2 of the Bill

Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.

Official text

Parliamentary Process

Step 1
First reading
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 2
Second reading
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 3
Third reading
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 1
First reading
Nov 21, 2008
Completed

Bill C-216, an Act to amend the Income Tax Act concerning services to charities or public authorities, completed its first reading in the House of Commons on November 21, 2008.

Introduction and first reading, Nov 21, 2008
End of stage activity, Nov 21, 2008
Chamber sittings
Introduction and first reading - Nov 21, 2008

The House of Commons formally introduced and read Bill C-216 for the first time during a sitting that also included debates on the Speech from the Throne and other parliamentary business.

Step 2
Second reading
Date not listed
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 3
Consideration in committee
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 4
Report stage
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 5
Third reading
Not reached yet
Not reached

We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.

Vote Summary

No published recorded division

This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.

Sponsor
Peter Stoffer
Sponsor party or district not listed
Jurisdiction
Federal Parliament

No published representative vote breakdown

This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.

Official sources

Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.

How this data is sourced