Student Tax Return Canada Guide 2025

Filing your tax return as a Canadian student is not optional — it unlocks credits, GST/HST rebates, and OSAP eligibility. Here is how to do it right.

Why Every Student Must File a Tax Return

Many students assume that because they earned little income, they do not need to file a tax return. This is wrong and costly. Filing a return, even with zero income, is required to receive the GST/HST credit (up to $519/year for individuals), generate RRSP contribution room, claim the tuition tax credit, and provide income information that OSAP uses to calculate your aid entitlement. Missing a year of filing means missing all of these benefits for that year — and some cannot be recovered retroactively.

Key Slips and Documents for Students

Slip	What It Reports	Where to Get It
T4	Employment income and tax withheld	Your employer (by Feb 28)
T2202	Eligible tuition and months enrolled	Your school's student portal
T4A	Scholarships, bursaries, RESP income	Your school or RESP issuer
T5	Investment income (dividends, interest)	Your bank or brokerage
RC62	Universal Child Care Benefit (if applicable)	CRA

The T2202 — Your Most Important Student Slip

The T2202 (Tuition and Enrolment Certificate) is issued by your educational institution each February for the prior year. It shows the amount of eligible tuition you paid and the number of months you were enrolled full-time or part-time. This slip drives the tuition tax credit, which is 15% federal plus provincial rates on the eligible amount. A $100 tuition year generates at least $1,500 in federal credit alone.

Download your T2202 directly from your school's student portal each February. Schools are required to make them available electronically by the end of February. You need this slip to file your return correctly.

Tuition Tax Credit — Use It or Transfer It

The tuition tax credit reduces the tax you owe. If you owe no tax (common for students with low income), the unused credit can be carried forward to future years or transferred to a parent, grandparent, or spouse — up to $5,000 of tuition can be transferred to a supporting family member in the current year. Any amount above $5,000 must be carried forward by the student.

Strategically, students with low income should carry credits forward rather than transfer them — using the credit in a higher-income year post-graduation reduces tax more effectively. However, if a parent paid the tuition and is in a high tax bracket, the transfer may be more immediately valuable to the family.

GST/HST Credit

The GST/HST credit is a quarterly payment to lower-income Canadians. Students with no or low income typically qualify. The 2024–25 annual amount for a single individual is up to $519 paid in four quarterly instalments. You do not apply separately — filing your tax return automatically assesses your eligibility. This is free money for filing a return you should be filing anyway.

Free Tax Filing Options for Students

• NETFILE-certified free software: Wealthsimple Tax (SimpleTax), TurboTax Free, H&R Block Free — all have free versions that cover student situations.
• Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP): Free in-person tax filing clinics run by the CRA for individuals with modest income. Many campuses host CVITP clinics in February–April.
• CRA Auto-fill My Return: Links directly to CRA to import your T4s, T2202, and other slips automatically — saves data entry time and reduces errors.