Working holiday visa for Canada?

Do I Pay Taxes While Working in Canada Under a Working Holiday Visa?

• I am a UK citizen here in Canada for one year under a Working Holiday Visa. I started working in November and was put down to pay Basic Rate on tax. I only plan to work for a short time (another month at most) before traveling again so I would like to know if I can apply to stop being taxed and also have what I've paid so far in taxes be refunded.

• Answer:

  In order to not be taxed, you would complete a form TD1 and submit it to your employer. This form would stop withholding taxes on a certain portion of your income each year. In Canada, you are normally not taxed on the first $10,527 of your income. However, for new residents, or non-residents, this amount is pro-rated based on the number of days that you are resident in Canada. If your employer is not comfortable reducing the withholding based on the TD1, you can get permission from the CRA to stop the withholding tax. You would send form T1213 to the CRA, and wait for a response letter, which you would then give to your employer. On the T1213, you would have to explain why you should not be taxed. The CRA would check through past records to see what level of income you've had in prior years and make a decision. In your case, however, if you've never filed a tax return, the CRA officials would have nothing to based their decision on, other than what you write on the form. Be specific, and don't be surprised if their response is a polite 'No'. Getting on to the second part of your question, you would get back the previously paid taxes by filing a tax return. Taxes in Canada are based on a calendar year from January 1 to December 31, and the returns are normally filed between February and April of the following year.