Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Government Red Tape


I received a letter from our Canadian equivalent to the IRS. The purpose was to verify my claim of a child as a dependant & that I have sole custody. Fair enough, audits happen all the time & this isn’t exactly an audit so I’m lucky, right?

Just a small problem…here is the documentation requested to prove my claim:

·         Schedule 5, Amounts for Spouse or Common Law Partner

·         Documents to confirm I have custody such as a court order or written agreement which must be signed by both parents

·         In the absence of that they will accept a signed statement from the other parent detailing the custody agreement

·         OR a signed statement from an authority who is aware of the custody arrangement…Doctor, religious leader or recognized community official, etc…

 

I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that the Canadian Government wouldn’t even consider that I had my child on my own. I felt like pointing them towards my 2010 Tax Return in which I claimed all my medical expenses that weren’t covered by insurance for my IUIs.

It all worked out in the end. I called their info line, explained my situation & was advised to write a letter to them explaining it all plus provide a letter from a third party who could verify my statement. One of my bosses was amendable to writing a letter since he was aware of my situation...but that was an awkward request. He was gracious about it…though the first draft of his letter needed some work:
Dear Feds,
Elena got no baby daddy.
Sincerely,
Tara’s Boss

When I first received the letter, I imagined having to hire a lawyer & spend all kinds of money getting legal documents drawn up…I received another letter on Friday. They accepted my claim & closed the file. Phew! I am grateful as the tax benefits we receive do make a difference.

17 comments:

  1. Did your boss seriously write that letter?! That is so brilliant, I LOVE it! This makes me think that it would not be a bad idea to have a letter from your RE or OB stating you had your baby with an anonymous donor, and just file it away with birth certificate. I may do that just in case.

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  2. LOL. Your boss's first draft is awesome!

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  3. LOL!! I LOVE your boss!

    I am glad that you were able to get ahold of someone who could tell you what to do and they accepted it!

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  4. Yes, that truly was my bosses 1st draft! I just about died laughing!

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  5. Brilliant first draft!!

    I am glad it all worked out!

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  6. Your boss is hilarious!!! Love it! I say go with the first draft, it is simple and straight to the point! :)

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  7. Geez, what a hassle! So glad it was resolved. And LOVE your boss! LOL

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  8. Your boss is hilarious! Glad it all worked out quickly and without expense.

    Like Claire, its got me thinking that it may be worthwhile getting a letter from the RE office that I used a donor since it may be needed for stuff like passports.

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  9. That's hilarious, I wish I had written the same thing. Revenue Canada did the same thing to me and my accountant called and told them, well it stands to reason if she claimed for IVF the year before that may have resulted in a baby. I ended up just sending them her birth registration which clearly identifies that she is an IVF baby and there is no baby daddy, so to speak. I also sent a copy of her birth certificate listing me as the only parent. Dumb asses.

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  10. I love your boss' first draft. I think I would have been tempted to send that one in. ;)

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  11. Yikes! Glad it all worked out. And you're boss is funny!

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  12. I hope you kept a copy of that first draft!

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  13. Funny boss (and I don't use those words together often). Glad the situation was quickly resolved!

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  14. Funny, I just got the same type of audit letter in the mail today from California.

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  15. OMG! Thank God it worked out! That's scary!
    They have to realize in this day and age that many of us have no "baby daddy" for one reason or another...

    Love the letter! Classic! :)

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