2 June 2003 External T.I. 2003-0021005 - TRAVEL EXPENSES

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CRA.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ARC.

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CCRA.

Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ADRC.

Principal Issues: Employer's obligation to complete forms T2200 and TL2

Position: General comments

Reasons: Inadequate information about expenses

XXXXXXXXXX 2003-002100
S. Parnanzone
June 2, 2003

Dear XXXXXXXXXX:

Re: Claim Forms for Meal Expenses

This is in reply to your letter of May 28, 2003 regarding the above-noted subject.

Your enquiry concerns the obligation of the XXXXXXXXXX ("Employer")

to complete form T2200, Declaration of Conditions of Employment, and form TL2, Claim for Meals and Lodging Expenses, for certain of its employees at a plant located in XXXXXXXXXX. The employees are members of the XXXXXXXXXX ("Union"). In your letter you state:

XXXXXXXXXX.

You indicate that the Employer and the Union agreed to resolve the dispute by sending the question to our office. Accordingly, counsel for the Employer, XXXXXXXXXX, wrote us a letter on February 19, 2002 concerning the filing of the forms mentioned above. In due course, we replied to her on May 31, 2002. With your letter to us, you enclosed a copy of XXXXXXXXXX letter and our reply to her.

It would appear that our reply to XXXXXXXXXX did not lead to a resolution of the dispute and you seem to suggest that we did not answer the question posed to us by her. You are asking us to confirm that our office cannot answer the question at issue between the Union and the Employer.

Our Comments

Concerning the filing forms, after a careful reconsideration of the matter we remain of the same opinion we expressed in our May 31, 2002, letter to XXXXXXXXXX:

We would expect employers to complete forms in situations where the employees have reasonable grounds to make claims. However, we would not expect an employer to complete the above forms where all the related deductions clearly do not apply to its employees. In this regard, we also note that, for instance, subsection 8(10) of the Act refers to certification that certain conditions "were met," not certification that the conditions were not met.

If the dispute between the Union and the Employer revolves around the eligibility of the employees to claim certain expenses for tax purposes, the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency is in a position to offer assistance concerning such eligibility. However, under the circumstances outlined in your letter, it would be the local tax services office that would supply this assistance, provided all relevant facts have been submitted by the parties. It is for this reason that we suggested contacting the local tax services office in our reply to XXXXXXXXXX :

Disagreements between employers and unions over their employees' eligibility to make certain tax claims and the employers' requirement to complete supporting tax forms are usually resolved to the mutual satisfaction of the employers, unions and employees. In those situations where employers and unions are unsure whether certain amounts can be deducted by the employees for tax purposes and therefore, whether the employers should complete the tax forms, they are encouraged to contact the local tax services office for assistance.

We trust that this clarifies our position on the matter.

Yours truly,

Milled Azzi, CA
For Director
Business and Partnerships Division
Income Tax Rulings Directorate
Policy and Legislation Branch

??

- 2 -