16 Jul 2013

Ah, summer camp.

I remember jumping on the school bus and heading out to fish hatcheries for an educational day trip.

Day camps were about exploring and learning.

And fun.

Sometimes we ran into friends from school, and sometimes they were an opportunity to make new friends.

Calgary has some terrific opportunities for kids to have something to do during the summer months when they’re out of school.

The city offers a full roster of camps and activities, whether your youngster is into arts, sports or nature.

You can also get your kid connected at the YMCA. He or she can explore nature, try new things and create positive, lasting memories at the Y’s summer day camps at Riveredge.

The unique outdoor day camp experience, says the Y’s website, includes a low ropes challenge course, bouldering wall, tubing on the river, canoeing and weekly guest speakers.

If I was a kid again, I’d look at something like Shannon Hilton’s photography camps. Shannon, a Twitter friend, is spreading her passion and knowledge of the art of taking pictures to youths ages seven to 12 at the Calgary Camera Camp.

And don’t miss out on Calgary Child’s list of other activities offered throughout the summer months.

Summer camp and taxes

Now you’re wondering why we’re telling you about summer camps in Calgary.

You may have already guessed if you follow this blog and remember we wrote a post over the winter about some of the tax credits and benefits available to parents.

The registration costs for camp, fitness and arts activities are eligible to claim on your taxes next spring.

For both the children’s fitness credit and the arts credit, you can claim a maximum of $500 per child for the fees relating to the cost of registration or membership of your child in a prescribed program.

All other camps and activities could fall under your eligible childcare expenses on line 214 of your T-1 tax return.

In fact, your fitness and arts program costs must be claimed under your childcare expenses first. After that, any unused expenses can be claimed for the applicable tax credit.

Can you help?

We sure can. We specialize in small-business accounting and financial services. Contact one of our tax specialists and we can help you optimize the tax benefits and credits available to self-employed individuals and small businesses.

Fill out our contact form or give us a call at 403-226-8297.