|
March 26, 2003
Injury on Duty Leave Amendment of
T-4 and Relevé-1
The purpose of this bulletin is to
advise departments of the process to obtain an amended T-4 or Relevé-1 for
employees on leave with pay for injury in the workplace. This process does
not apply to employees who receive benefits directly from WCB while on leave
without pay for injury in the workplace.
During the past few months, the Pay Administration section has
been exploring options to deal with the requirement to produce amended T-4's and
Relevé-1's as a result of leave with pay for injury on duty. Following
discussions between Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), the Labour Division of
Human Resources Development Canada and some provincial Workers Compensation
Boards (WCB), it was agreed that effective January 2003, departmental corporate
Compensation Managers will be responsible for authorizing Public Works and
Government Services Canada (PWGSC) to produce an employee's amended T-4 and
Relevé-1 as a result of leave with pay for injury in the workplace. A
list of authorized departmental Corporate Compensation Managers is being
forwarded to the provincial Workers Compensation Boards.
The following information will assist corporate Compensation
Managers in dealing with WCB's and PWGSC.
Background
Under some provincial Workers Compensation Board's legislation,
an employee on leave with pay as a result of an injury on duty is
entitled to receive a tax credit equal to the amount the employee would have
received had the WCB paid the claimant directly. WCB is responsible for the
issuance of a T5007 or a Relevé-5 (from CSST) to the employee for income tax
purposes. WCB and CSST also provide to the employer the value of the benefit
(deemed value of lost wages) paid during the year for reporting purposes on the
employee's T-4 and Relevé-1. PWGSC will report the amount in box 77 of the T-4.
For the Relevé-1, PWGSC will deduct the amount from box A, for the year in
which the benefits are applicable. PWGSC will also print the following note in
the centre of the Relevé-1 "Indemnity reimbursed by the CSST, not included
in box A" followed by the amount reimbursed.
Federal tax regulations require the employer to report income in
the year it was paid. In the case of an employee on leave with pay
because of an injury on duty, the award (deemed value of lost wages) is to be
treated for income tax purposes as if the payment was made in the year approved
by the WCB.
In the case of the Commission de la santé et sécurité au
travail (CSST) awards (deemed value of lost wages), the Revenue Quebec
regulation requires the employer to report the amount of the award as if the
payment was made in the year in which the benefits are applicable, regardless of
when the CSST decision is rendered.
Each year the employer receives provincial WCB data files. These
files contain information on:
- Employees on leave with pay who received benefits (deemed value of
lost wages) during the previous calendar year, and
- Employees whose claims were filed in a previous year and decisions were
only rendered by WCB in the current tax-filing year.
The amount reported for the latter case will include the deemed
value of lost wages up to the date of the decision in the current tax-filing
year and any other amount paid during the current tax-filing year. For example,
WCB may render a decision in 2002 on a claim for an accident that occurred
sometime prior to 2002. The value of the award covering the total period of
absence will be reported on the 2002 T-4.
The data file for employees covered by the CSST contains
information on employees on leave with pay who received benefits (deemed
value of lost wages) during the previous calendar years and reflects the
calendar year in which the benefits are applicable.
Initial Process
The provinces listed below allow for the crediting of the amount
(deemed value of lost wages) received for injury on duty. At the beginning of
each calendar year, TBS obtains data files for the following provincial Workers
Compensation Boards:
Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta,
British Colombia
On receipt of the data files, the Pay Administration section in
TBS reviews, formats and forwards the data files to PWGSC for processing. The
records on the data file are matched with the PWGSC pay master file to identify
in which pay office and pay list the employee belongs. When the process is
completed, a report is produced for all the matched records and contains the
employee's Personal Record Identifier, Pay Office, Paylist and the amount to be
reported in box 77 of the T-4 and where applicable, the amount to be deducted
from box A of the Relevé-1 for each year the benefits are applicable. These
reports are then sent to the appropriate pay offices for input prior to the
production of the T-4 and Relevé-1. If PWGSC receives the data files after the
annual production of the T-4 and Relevé-1, the same process described above
takes place except that PWGSC pay offices are instructed to produce amended
T-4's and Relevé-1's.
Requesting Amended T-4 and Relevé-1
There are two situations where a department will have to
investigate and take action. The first situation is where the amount of WCB
benefits reported on the original or amended T-4 and Relevé-1 is different from
the amount of benefits the employee claims should have been reported. The second
situation is where no amount was submitted to PWGSC for processing. For both
situations, the Compensation Manager should contact the appropriate provincial
WCB to obtain the correct amount to report on the T-4 and Relevé-1. A list of
provincial WCB contacts who should be able to answer your enquiries will be sent
to you.
It is preferable to forward your enquiries through e-mail. The
phone numbers of the WCB/CSST contacts are provided so that you can follow-up on
your enquiries. Because of privacy concerns, you should not include the Social
Insurance Number in your e-mail request. You should always use the WCB/CSST
claim number. This number appears on the T-5007 or Relevé-5 issued by WCB/CSST.
If you do not have a copy of the employee's T-5007 or Relevé-5, you should
obtain one from the employee. You should not use the amount reported on the
employee's T-5007 or Relevé-5 because it may be different from the amount
reported by WCB / CSST as lost wages while on leave with pay. The amount
reported on T-5007 or Relevé-5 may include benefits paid directly from WCB or
CSST to the employee.
The basic information in your e-mail should contain the name of
the employee, the claim number, the year of the claim and the amount, if
available. You should also provide your phone number in case the WCB requires
additional information. WCB will provide you with the amount of the deemed value
of lost wages while on leave with pay and the calendar year in which the
amount was approved (deemed to have been paid). As previously stated, CSST will
provide you with the amount(s) and calendar year(s) the benefits apply to and
the calendar year(s) the benefits were deemed to have been paid. Once you have
obtained the confirmation in writing from the WCB or CSST, you should prepare a
letter authorizing the pay office to amend the T-4 and/or Relevé-1. In order to
assist you, sample letters that cover situations where the full amount was
credited in the calendar year and situations where the amount or partial amount
was credited in the following calendar year will be sent to you.
Compensation Managers should direct any questions that they may
have to their corporate Compensation Manager who, if need be, can contact the
Pay Administration Section.
Original signed by
Thomas A. Smith
Director, Pay Administration
Sector
Labour Relations and Compensation Operations
Human Resources Management Office
|
