This is an official version.

Copyright © 2008: Queen's Printer,
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Important Information
(Includes details about the availability of printed and electronic versions of the Statutes.)

Newfoundland and Labrador
Regulation 2008


NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR REGULATION 32/08

NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
REGULATION 32/08

Home Heating Tax Credit Program Regulations
under the
Income Tax Act, 2000
(O.C. 2008-141)

(Filed May 26, 2008)

Under the authority of section 68 of the Income Tax Act, 2000, the Lieutenant-Governor in Council makes the following regulations.

Dated at St. John's, May 23, 2008.

Gary Norris
Clerk of the Executive Council

REGULATIONS

Analysis


        1.   Short title

        2.   Definitions

        3.   Home heating overpayment refund

        4.   Benefit reduction calculation

        5.   Adjustment for death, long term care or adult education

        6.   One overpayment per home

        7.   Application of subsection 38(6) of Act

        8.   NLR 64/07 Rep.

        9.   Commencement


Short title

        1. These Regulations may be cited as the Home Heating Tax Credit Program Regulations.

Definitions

        2. In these regulations

             (a)  "Act" means the Income Tax Act, 2000;

             (b)  "adjusted income" has the meaning assigned to it under subsection 122.5(1) of the federal Act;

             (c)  "department" means the department presided over by the minister;

             (d)  "eligible householder" means an individual who has an adjusted income of $40,000 or less for the taxation year preceding the program year;

             (e)  "home heating fuel"  means, for the purpose of these regulations, 

                      (i)  furnace oil,

                     (ii)  stove oil, or

                    (iii)  propane;

              (f)  "home" means an individual's principal dwelling place and self contained living unit consisting of 2 or more rooms in which individuals reside and usually sleep and prepare and serve meals for their own consumption;  

             (g)  "Labrador program area" means, for the purpose of these regulations, the electoral districts of Torngat Mountains and Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair; 

             (h)  "minister" means the minister appointed under the Executive Council Act  to administer the Act; and

              (i)  "program year" means October 1 in a year to April 30 in the following year.

Home heating overpayment refund

        3. (1) Where an eligible householder or his or her spouse or common law partner has incurred a cost to heat his or her home during the program year and applies to the department that eligible householder shall be considered to have made an overpayment of tax in the amount set out in section 4 and the minister shall refund the amount of that overpayment to that householder.

             (2)  An application made to the department for a refund under this section shall be in the form and contain the information required by the minister and shall be accompanied by an invoice or other document that he or she considers to be satisfactory that indicates that the purchase of electricity, home heating fuel or wood was made by the eligible householder or his or her spouse or common law partner.

             (3)  Notwithstanding subsection (2), where an eligible householder or his or her spouse or common law partner incurred a cost to heat his or her home and that home is not connected to an electrical power service or equipped for and using home heating oil as a source of heat, the minister may accept an invoice, receipt or other evidence showing the cost of heating the home that he or she considers satisfactory.

             (4)  Where the department receives an application under this section from an individual who is not an eligible householder and that application is co-signed by his or her spouse or common law partner who is an eligible householder, the application shall be considered to have been made by the spouse or common law partner who is the eligible householder.

             (5)  An application for a refund under this section shall be submitted to the department by September 30 following the end of the program year.

Benefit reduction calculation

              4.  (1) Where an eligible householder's adjusted income is $35, 000 or less for the taxation year preceding the program year, the amount of overpayment of tax referred to in subsection 3(1) shall be:

             (a)  $200, where the primary source of heat is electricity or other primary source of heat which is not home heating fuel;

             (b)  $300, where the primary source of heat is home heating fuel; or

             (c)  $400 in the Labrador program area, without consideration of the primary source of heat.

             (2)   Where an eligible householder's adjusted income is more than $35,000 but is $40,000 or less for the taxation year preceding the program year, the amount of the overpayment of tax referred to in subsection 3(1) on electricity or other primary source of heat which is not home heating fuel, shall be the greater of

             (a)  $200 minus ((adjusted income minus $35,000) X 4%); and

             (b)  $100.

             (3)  Where an eligible householder's adjusted income is more than $35,000 but is $40,000 or less for the taxation year preceding the program year, the amount of the overpayment of tax on the home heating fuel referred to in subsection 3(1) shall be the greater of

             (a)  $300 minus ((adjusted income minus $35,000) X 6%); and

             (b)  $100.

             (4)  Notwithstanding subsections (2) and (3), where, in the Labrador program area, an eligible householder's adjusted income is more than $35,000 but is $40,000 or less for the taxation year preceding the program year, the amount of the overpayment of tax referred to in subsection 3(1) shall be the greater of

             (a)  $400 minus ((adjusted income minus $35,000) X 8%); and

             (b)  $100.

Adjustment for death, long term care or adult education

        5. Notwithstanding another provision of these regulations, where

             (a)  an eligible householder's spouse or common law partner dies before January 1 in a program year, the adjusted income of the surviving eligible householder will be used to determine eligibility for the purpose of section 4; or

             (b)  an eligible householder's spouse or common law partner resides in a long term care facility, the adjusted income of the eligible householder shall be reduced by the amount of contributions made towards the cost of care of that spouse or common law partner for a continuous 12 month period

                      (i)  in the taxation year ending before the program year, and

                     (ii)  in the taxation year ending in the program year;

             (c)  an eligible householder has divorced or has separated from his or her spouse or common law partner before January 1 in a program year, the adjusted income of the eligible householder, without reference to the income of the spouse or common law partner, will be used to determine eligibility under section 4; or

             (d)  where an eligible householder has received government funding from the province or Canada for Adult Basic Education or for skills training during the taxation year previous to the program year, the amount of that funding shall be deducted from that individual's income to determine eligibility for the purpose of section 4.

One overpayment per home

        6. (1) Where more than one individual who resides in a home may qualify for an overpayment of tax refund under these regulations, only one of those individuals may apply for and receive that refund.

             (2)  Where, notwithstanding subsection (1), more than one eligible householder of a home applies for a refund under section 3, the minister may, in his or her discretion, determine which eligible householder is to receive the overpayment of tax amount under these regulations.

Application of subsection 38(6) of Act

        7. Subsection 38(6) of the Act shall apply to an amount considered to be an overpayment of a tax under these regulations.

NLR 64/07 Rep.

        8. The Home Heating Tax Credit Regulations, 2007, Newfoundland and Labrador Regulation 64/07, are repealed.

Commencement

        9. These regulations shall be considered to have come into force on December 6, 2007.