Tax deductions you should know about
By Stephanie Farrington • Bankrate.com

Working from away
Do you work away from your employer's regular place of business? Do you pay for your trips on your own dime? That's deductible, too.

If you don't receive a nontaxable allowance for your automotive expenses and are required to have a car in order to do your job, fill out a copy of the CRA's T2200 Declarations of Conditions of Employment form, and you can deduct a lot of your automotive expenses, including the cost of interest on the car's loan or lease payments, maintenance and repairs, licence and insurance fees and fuel costs.

Food is fuel
If you drive for a living or your employer asks you to travel on your own dime for employment purposes, you can also make a claim to defray the expense of eating on the road.

For long distance truck drivers, the CRA website recommends you use a simplified method of calculation for your meals. It suggests you multiply the number of days it was necessary for you to be on the road by three and then again by $17, since that is the price the taxman puts on meals on the road.

If you choose to keep your receipts instead of using the simplified method, you can claim 50 cents on the dollar for whatever you spend on meals. But one benefit of using the simplified method is that while you are required to keep accurate records of your time on the road, you do not need to submit receipts for meals using this method.

While you're on the road, the cost of showers and lodgings are also deductible. If you're part of a work crew that goes to a remote location where your employer provides cooking facilities, you can also use a batching method to claim your meals. Each employee on the crew is allowed to deduct $34 per day for the cost of eating away from home.

Do your homework
The CRA is making an effort to get the word out on deductions through TV ads and an expanded website. Caitlin Workman, a communications officer at the CRA, says they are making it as easy as possible to file your return and get the refund you may be owed.

The fastest way to file your return is to do it online. If you're worried about what to do with the receipts for expenses you've written off, rest easy. "You don't have to send receipts, but make sure you've got them on hand in case we do ask for them," says Workman.

Should you use professional help to find all your deductions? "It's a personal choice," she says. "The tax forms are quite complete, and they do provide a lot of information. You can find everything you need online. Personally I've done both: If I'm in a hurry, then I have filed online, but I've also done it myself, and it's been fairly painless."

Stephanie Farrington is a writer living in Ottawa.