3 Canadians who pushed the limits of tax writeoffs

With the deadline for filing personal tax returns coming up (usually April 30, but extended to May 2 because the end-of-April deadline falls on a Saturday this year), many Canadians are asking themselves what they can deduct on their returns as legitimate expenses.

The Canada Revenue Agency lays out most eligible deductions on its website.

And professional tax preparer Gerri MacVicar says the CRA generally frowns on deductions that aren't specifically referenced in the Income Tax Act.​

She said the most common tax deduction mistakes involve small business owners over reaching with expenses that overlap with their personal lives — like trying to write off the entire cost of a vehicle that's only partially used for work.

Even on personal tax claims, MacVicar says people often go beyond the usual family deductions.

"So for instance, pet health — they're reaching in that they're trying to grab something else back," she said. "So with pet health, they want to wrap that in with their children."

Nonetheless, some Canadians are successful in convincing the courts to approve their "unusual" tax deductions.

Here are three examples:

1. Can an actor write off her new party dress?

Claire Riley earns her living in Toronto as a jazz vocalist, and is also self-employed as an actor — sharing sets with stars like Morgan Freeman and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"Sometimes I just have to pinch myself," she said. "I just loved being on set."

But she was less thrilled when the Canada Revenue Agency decided to have a closer look at taxes filed by entertainers.

In 2003, Riley ended up in court, defending several things she wrote off as business expenses, including items such as clothes purchased for auditions, fees for headshots and even expenses incurred at wrap parties held at the end of movie shoots.

"So you take a taxi there, back and forth, and that's an expense," she said.

"You're networking, basically. And just because you have a glass of vino... or a brew, it doesn't mean that you're not networking. And then if, for example, you want to impress, maybe you're going to buy an outfit for the wrap party."

And that's where the judge drew the line. Riley was on the hook for the party expenses.

But she said going to court was worth it, because many of her other deductions were accepted. And more importantly, she said, she got the opportunity to argue that her line of work is just as legitimate as any other, and her expenses should be respected.

2. Can a bike courier claim food as fuel?

Alan Wayne Scott worked in Toronto as a bike and foot courier for two decades, beginning in the early 1980s. And he noticed that work came with an unexpected expense.

"I was paying more money to fuel my body," he said. "It's a constant physical activity throughout the day."

And so he tried to write off the extra food he needed to eat for his job, arguing his claim was no different than those made by delivery truck drivers or air shipping companies.

"Everyone can write off their fuel," he said.

"It's a cost of doing the job. So why should somebody who's on the street on foot or on a bicycle [not be able to] write off their fuel that they're using to move their vehicle? When I was a walking courier, I was the vehicle."

After years in court, a judge finally agreed with Scott in 1998.

He said the real victory wasn't in the few dollars he made by claiming the food as an expense, but rather the legal recognition that walking or biking should be treated like any other mode of travel.

"You've got to remember the times, and just how auto-addled the society is," he said.

"They didn't get it. Nobody got it."

3. Can a farmer write off cat food?

In the late '90s, Duncan, B.C. blueberry farmer Robert Zeitz began feeding a dog and cat around his property — and he claimed the cost of the food on his taxes.

His argument was that the pets were working animals that helped keep wild animals away from his crops.

That claim was tested in a 2002 court case — which Zeitz won, proving once again that every dog — or at least farm dog — gets its day in court.