Taxes?

[DaveC]

I make a very reasonable salary at my current job. Every pay cheque I look at my pay stub and look at my income taxes, and immediately cringe. Should I be doing my flight training at an FTU (rather than on my own?) to be more economical?

I pay ~$70 per hour wet on my share C-150, whereas at the training unit it would cost $110 wet + tax (13%). Instruction also costs me less (as the FTU isn't getting a piece of the pie).

Does the T11b's only reimburse you for the cash you paid into tax, or is the entire amount tax deductible (like university/college training)?

I plan on doing my MIFR at a FTU, so I would assume I would get a fair chunk of my tax back there.

[straightpilot]

IIRC the deduction is applied using the lowest possible rate (17%) so it really doesn't make much difference. You're probably thinking that it's directly deductible against your gross income - no such luck!

[tsgas]

On a cash flow basis , I'd take the savings from operating the lower cost airplane, then invest that money in a TFSA.

[dcabrown]

I Did this math as well when considering a share of a plane vs. FTU training...

In the end, the savings from operating your share at $70 wet is far better than paying more, then getting the crummy tax refund much latter.

Also, I *THINK* If I remember correctly, the flight training course has to be a complete course to be eligible for the tax refund (i.e. you complete all the way through CPL). I'm sorry I dont remember the exact details here, but after doing some research, I was left with the impression that if you are employed full time and were doing your PPL for recreational purposes, EVEN if you did it with an FTU, you would be ineligible for the tax credit.

At the end of the day, if you can run a plane wet at $70/hr, take it, and nevermind whatever BS the CRA will let you have. Its a long way from $70/hr all the way to $124/hr....