Open letter to the Federal Revenue Minister

[Gilles Hudicourt]

Open letter to

The Honourable Kerry-Lynne D. Findlay PC, QC, MP
Minister of National Revenue
7th Floor
555 MacKenzie Avenue
Ottawa ON K1A 0L5

Dear Minister Findlay,

I am a highly taxed Canadian airline pilot working for a Canadian airline. As though I didn't already pay enough income taxes, the CRA recently decided that the airport parking space that our employer has always paid for us, was to be considered a taxable benefit, retroactive to fiscal year 2011. I recently received new Tax Assessments for 2011 and 2012, and expect another one for 2013 to arrive shortly. I suddenly owe Revenue Canada several more hundred dollars for the previous years.

While thousands or airlines employees and myself are all subject to this new taxation, there are about 120 Temporary Foreign Worker Pilots flying for Sunwing Airlines, which arrived in Canada in late 2014 on ESDC issued LMOs, and which are working for Sunwing Airlines on Immigration Canada issued Temporary Work Permits. Some of the higher paid TFW pilots earn over $200 an hour, if I am to base myself on the LMO applications Sunwing filed with ESDC.

While your department decided to impose an additional tax on all airline employees in Canada, many of which earn just the minimum legal salary, I would like to know if any of those 120 TFW pilots working for Sunwing Airlines, pay any form of taxes in Canada, or contribute at all to the CPP or EI as we all do in Canada? Do these TFW pilots even declare Canadian revenue, as your CRA employees informed me they should ? In fact, have any of these TFW pilots even applied for a Social Insurance Number within three days of starting their temporary work for Sunwing Airlines, as the laws and regulations of this country require them to ?

Some of us are under the impression that the taxation laws of Canada are not applied equally to all as they should. Could this be true ?

Hoping that you will appreciate the reason and the timing of my concern,

I remain yours truly,

Gilles Hudicourt
A highly taxed concerned citizen

[tincanflyer]

Alright, I have given you some slack with your posts in the past but am feeling for ya with this one. The taxable benefit seems like some BS.
Gotta pat ya on the back for not giving up.

[AirFrame]

While I sympathize on the TFW front, defined parking spaces being a taxable benefit has been well established for about 15 years... My recollection is that assigned parking spaces are deemed taxable benefits, but "festival parking" (ie. here's a lot with spaces, first come first served) is not.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

This is the airport employee parking lot that all airport employees use.

[Marksmandude]

Now his tax issues are TFW fault. This guys becoming quite the joke...

[AirFrame]

Then it's probably something to do with the fact that generally airport parking is in paid parking lots, so you're getting a benefit equal to the value of paying for parking.

The situation I was involved in (around 2000, but the rules haven't changed) was a little different. Our company had both assigned and non-assigned parking (assigned was underground) and was able to argue that the unassigned lot was oversubscribed, so there was no way to "guarantee" a spot for everyone, every day, and therefore it wouldn't be practical to track who received the benefit on what days. Also, the alternative if you didn't get in was to park on the street, which was free, so the only real "benefit" was convenience... Not financial.

Maybe someone could try a similar argument at the airport, if the lot is oversubscribed, but as the alternative is a paid lot almost anywhere on the airport, i'm not sure you'd get very far.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

Now his tax issues are TFW fault. This guys becoming quite the joke...

Where do you work ?

[Legacy14]

.

[Marksmandude]

Where do you work? Is that all you've got. Your tax issues have nothing NOTHING to do with TFW. You're becoming a joke because you make ridiculous arguments like this one. If you have tax issues blame the government or your employer for not changing the way they provide parking, not TFW.

FYI I don't work for your nemesis. I do work with the company as well as others. I'm an outside observer of all operators and aviation in general. I've been reading your posts for years and when you started I respected your position. Now it's become very sad.

[altiplano]

I think it's a good fight.

F- tfws and F- taxable benefit airport parking.

YYZ scramble parking is a great way to start my day... Not. Some benefit...

I think the benefit is to the employer, how else to get to and from Pearson at all hours, sometimes on short notice, and pull off full duty days...

Pilots should get airport limos so we aren't red-eyeing it down the Gardiner or 401 after a 14... But I digress...

Tax those TFW mofos. For a broke government that's out of ideas it seems like a good one... Or even better get those jobs in the hands of Canadians so we don't need to convene committees, create a new cra division and pass laws to figure out how to do it.

Who are we kidding though... this government keeps and will continue flogging the same golden goose (us)...

[snoopy]

Interesting: http://www.avcanada.ca/forums2/search.p ... 5&sr=posts

[KK7]

I am unclear what the issue being presented is here... Is it taxed parking spaces or TFWs?

Parking spaces are pretty simple. Our companies do not own the parking lot. They pay another corporation for us to use the space in the parking lot. Companies with their own buildings and lots do not pay for the parking space for each employee, hence there is no exchange of money and no tax required. But for airport parking Airline company X is paying Airport Authority Y xx dollars, and in Canada whenever there is an exchange of money, there is tax that has to be paid. I hate paying taxes too, but frankly how else do you expect us to have universal health care, roads, infrastructure, etc.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

The TFW are paid by Sunwing to do exactly what I do. Except they do it in Canada six months out of the year, I do it year round.
I pay Federal and Provincial income tax, CPP and EI and am taxed on many things which the two levels of government consider taxable benefits.

The TFW pilots flying for Sunwing receive a paycheck, a lot of overtime pay, a hotel room, a rental car, a hotel as well as an airport parking space, health insurance, tickets to and from home. All paid by Sunwing.

How are they taxed for all that ? The CRA officials I talked to says that if they are in Canada on a Canadian Work permit, they must get taxed like I do.

This does not apply to the Foreign pilots who are in Canada flying the five wet leases that Sunwing leased from Czech Travel Service but only to the 120 TFW. So I am asking the Federal Revenue Minister what the deal is ?

[Liquid Charlie]

Where is your Union support -- gives you a little more leverage -- but it seems in my fuzzy recollection of by gone years RC took a run at passes and declared them taxable benefits -- solution - charge a small service charge or paying the taxes on the tickets as we all do now eliminated that.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

Where is your Union support -- gives you a little more leverage -- but it seems in my fuzzy recollection of by gone years RC took a run at passes and declared them taxable benefits -- solution - charge a small service charge or paying the taxes on the tickets as we all do now eliminated that.

I have an Air Transat MEC. Beyond that, just void, empty nothingness.

[Liquid Charlie]

I have an Air Transat MEC

Well light a fire under their ass and maybe ALPA in general - if this is common across the industry there could be a very large group effected. My past dealings with the Transat MEC was always positive but that was 4 years ago - if they aren't doing their job - it's simple - get involved.

[Legacy]

Where do you work? Is that all you've got. Your tax issues have nothing NOTHING to do with TFW. You're becoming a joke because you make ridiculous arguments like this one. If you have tax issues blame the government or your employer for not changing the way they provide parking, not TFW.

FYI I don't work for your nemesis. I do work with the company as well as others. I'm an outside observer of all operators and aviation in general. I've been reading your posts for years and when you started I respected your position. Now it's become very sad.

What are YOU talking about? I see clearly what GH is getting at. And BTW, the way I read it, he IS questioning of the tax law and not the TFW.

Good on ya Gilles.

[KK7]

The TFW are paid by Sunwing to do exactly what I do. Except they do it in Canada six months out of the year, I do it year round.
I pay Federal and Provincial income tax, CPP and EI and am taxed on many things which the two levels of government consider taxable benefits.

The TFW pilots flying for Sunwing receive a paycheck, a lot of overtime pay, a hotel room, a rental car, a hotel as well as an airport parking space, health insurance, tickets to and from home. All paid by Sunwing.

How are they taxed for all that ? The CRA officials I talked to says that if they are in Canada on a Canadian Work permit, they must get taxed like I do.

This does not apply to the Foreign pilots who are in Canada flying the five wet leases that Sunwing leased from Czech Travel Service but only to the 120 TFW. So I am asking the Federal Revenue Minister what the deal is ?

Gilles, I wholeheartedly agree with your case regarding TFWs. However, you're barking up the wrong tree here. Tax law is pretty clear.

You do not get taxed on the money the company spends on hotel rooms, transportation, etc. when you are away overnight on a pairing. You require this to do your job. The same applies to the TFW. The TFW was brought to Canada by the company to do the job, and therefore everything the company provides is provided for them to do their job.

Revenue Canada is clear that it does not consider your travel from your home to your work place to be part of work. Therefore you cannot deduct travel expenses, tolls, and so on, to get to your place of work (the airport). The company is not required to provide you with parking, I have worked for a major airline in Canada where they did not provide parking, I paid $40/month to park in the employee parking at YOW. But in your case they do pay for parking, great! It's as if they are giving you the money to give to the airport to park your car there. By giving you that money, it is income, you must pay tax on it. It just so happens they just skipped the middle man and gave the money directly to the airport for you. You must still pay tax on it.

A TFW may not live in Canada. They are away from their home for a long time and company is providing them with the means to do the job, therefore it is not a taxable benefit.

I want to re-emphasize that I am not for the TFWs in the industry, just that you're straying from your path Gilles. I am fairly certain you're not going to get anywhere with CRA on this.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

The TFW are paid by Sunwing to do exactly what I do. Except they do it in Canada six months out of the year, I do it year round.
I pay Federal and Provincial income tax, CPP and EI and am taxed on many things which the two levels of government consider taxable benefits.

The TFW pilots flying for Sunwing receive a paycheck, a lot of overtime pay, a hotel room, a rental car, a hotel as well as an airport parking space, health insurance, tickets to and from home. All paid by Sunwing.

How are they taxed for all that ? The CRA officials I talked to says that if they are in Canada on a Canadian Work permit, they must get taxed like I do.

This does not apply to the Foreign pilots who are in Canada flying the five wet leases that Sunwing leased from Czech Travel Service but only to the 120 TFW. So I am asking the Federal Revenue Minister what the deal is ?

Gilles, I wholeheartedly agree with your case regarding TFWs. However, you're barking up the wrong tree here. Tax law is pretty clear.

You do not get taxed on the money the company spends on hotel rooms, transportation, etc. when you are away overnight on a pairing. You require this to do your job. The same applies to the TFW. The TFW was brought to Canada by the company to do the job, and therefore everything the company provides is provided for them to do their job.

Revenue Canada is clear that it does not consider your travel from your home to your work place to be part of work. Therefore you cannot deduct travel expenses, tolls, and so on, to get to your place of work (the airport). The company is not required to provide you with parking, I have worked for a major airline in Canada where they did not provide parking, I paid $40/month to park in the employee parking at YOW. But in your case they do pay for parking, great! It's as if they are giving you the money to give to the airport to park your car there. By giving you that money, it is income, you must pay tax on it. It just so happens they just skipped the middle man and gave the money directly to the airport for you. You must still pay tax on it.

A TFW may not live in Canada. They are away from their home for a long time and company is providing them with the means to do the job, therefore it is not a taxable benefit.

I want to re-emphasize that I am not for the TFWs in the industry, just that you're straying from your path Gilles. I am fairly certain you're not going to get anywhere with CRA on this.

You are probably correct in most of what you state.

But I was on the phone for hours with the CRA. TFW must have a Social Insurance Number. They must declare Canadian revenue. They must have EI and CPP deductions. No buts, no ifs. Always.

If I already pay tons of tax and the CRA put its hand in my pocket for more, I want them to apply their rules to the TFW who are in Canada masquerading as wet lease pilots when they are not.

[AirFrame]

Masquerading. Bad spelling hurts your credibility.

I think you'd be better off finding out somehow whether or not they are paying taxes, and whether or not they are required to, and just keeping those facts in your back pocket. Use it as the answer to "why do you have such a bee in your bonnet about TFW's?" when all other lines of reason fail.

Your letter reads like "why are you coming after me for more taxes when hey, there are these other people... are they paying taxes?" It sounds sort of like you want them to overlook taxes that you aren't paying and should be, and to go look at some other group of people instead who might not be paying taxes but should be. Kind of like asking the police officer who pulls you over for speeding why he pulled you over and not the five cars driving the same speed within 100' of you.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

Last June, I sent an Access to information request to ESDC asking to see all approved LMO application for pilot jobs in Canada for the year 2012 with all supporting letters and documents. I still have not received it. Why ? It is 13,000 pages long.

The basic and main condition for applying for a TFW is that there must be a pilot shortage in Canada. But several hundred TFW pilots are allowed into Canada every year and are provided work permits to take flying jobs instead of giving those flying jobs to Canadians, and this includes:
Basic flight instructors, crop dusters, helicopter pilots, corporate pilots, charter pilots, commuter pilots, airline pilots, test pilots, military pilots. The only TFW pilot I have not seen yet is the Transport Canada Inspector type.

Is there a shortage of the above mentionned pilots in Canada ? We all know there is not. But the employers all have a sad sorry to tell ESDC when they need to explain why this particular Australian, British, German, New Zealand, Dutch or French pilot needs to get first shot at a flying job in Canada rather than let a Canadian pilot get it. Most of the time, its to save training costs, because said foreigner has x hours on the Super Turbo Twin Gopher Z -300 series, , that a Canadian does not have. Industry is mostly in favor of TFW pilots and is quite vocal about it, no one speaks for the pilots.

To make matters worse, as though taking our jobs was not bad enough, at least some TFW take our jobs and pay no taxes. The employer never declares them to the CRA and pays them offshore. I know this for a fact.

So anyone here want to defend tax evading TFW pilots, I know where you sit on the fence.

[leftoftrack]

Last year June, I sent an Access to information request to ESDC asking to see all approved LMO application for pilot jobs in Canada for the year 2012. I still have not received it. Why ? It 13,000 pages long.

The basic and main condition for applying for a TFW is that there must be a pilot shortage in Canada. But several hundred TFW pilots are allowed into Canada every year and are provided work permits to take flying jobs instead of Canadians, and this includes:
Basic flight instructors, crop dusters, helicopter pilots, corporate pilots, charter pilots, commuter pilots, airline pilots, test pilots, miitary pilots. The only TFW pilot I have not seen yet is the Transport Canada Inspector type.

Is there a shortage of the above mentionned pilots in Canada ? We all know there is not. But the employers all have a sad sorry to tell ESDC when they need to explain why this perticular Australian, , British, German, French, Dutch or French pilot needs to get first shot at a flying job in Canada rather than let a Canadian pilot get it. Most of the time, its to save training costs, because said foreigner has x hours on the Super Turbo Twin Gopher, that a Canadian does not have. Industry is mostly in favor of TFW pilots and is quite vocal about it, no one speaks for the pilots.

To make matters worse, as though taking our jobs was not bad enough, at least some TFW take our jobs and pay no taxes. The employer never declares them to the CRA and pays them offshore. I know this for a fact.

So anyone here want to defend tax evading TFW pilots, I know where you sit on the fence.

I thank you for your effort you are fighting a good fight for a good cause

[TFWPILOT]

Gilles.

I am a TFW pilot working in your truly fantastic country for the Winter. I have found 99.9% of people extremely welcoming and friendly, both within the industry and outside it. Unfortunately there is always the 0.1%, such as yourself Gilles, who seem to hold a somewhat xenophobic view. I am thoroughly enjoying the experience, a good example of the experiences that are available to us as pilots that include living and working all over the world. A great perk of the job you'd have to agree.

I would like to inform you of a few points that I think you may not be aware of. Probably through lack of research.

First of all, the agreement with the airline in question is reciprocal. Yes, a large number of us Europeans come over for the winter to work, however did you know that an equal number of Canadian pilots come and work for us during our busy Summer schedules? There are bases in POZ, WAW, BHD and DUB (among others). All crewed by Canadian pilots. I believe on the whole they are very happy with the situation, as it provides them some fantastic opportunities of flying in Europe. They get the same deal we do. An apartment, car, car parking, ID's, training, uniform etc. All included. We welcome them every year.

You mentioned that the jobs should go to Canadians if there is not a shortage of pilots. I remind you that in an airlines view, a pilot for short term hire must be rated and current on type. I ask you if you think there are enough rated and current drivers out there already familiar with the SOP's that are a reliable source of help each and every winter. It is important, on safety grounds, that the pilots coming back each year are the same handful of pilots, since training records etc can be tracked and monitored for underperformance. Getting pilots from a reliable source from sister companies works because these pilots are more conscientious regarding the job, as short fallings in performance, lateness, absence, sickness, OTP etc can all be reported back to their main employer. No one wants 'unknowns' each season. This is the airlines view, which is supported by your authorities. This is also why we in Europe take the same handful of Canadians each year. The are known quantities with a proven quality.

Tax. We do not pay Canadian tax. Why? The same reason the Canadians coming to Europe each year do not pay tax in Europe. The double taxation agreements between our countries means we pay tax on where we are declared permanent residents, i.e. (simplistically) where we live for more than 6 months in a tax year. If we were in Canada more than 6 months a year we would have to pay Canadian tax. We have prior approval from your authorities, negotiated through a Canadian legal firm, that instead of paying Canadian tax and then claiming it back when we leave, we just pay none in the first place. A lower burden on the admin system I'm sure you'll agree. To sum up, we continue to pay tax in Europe, your guys continue to pay tax in Canada. I would say that is fair.

I would even go so far as to say that, aside from income tax, we put more money into the local economy than a local Canadian pilot would. We tend to treat it as a paid holiday, so we eat out, rent cars, go travelling, go skiing, watch hockey, stay in hotels, buy domestic flights, buy souvenirs and tend to live a lifestyle of spending more than we would back home. Not to mention the money the company is spending on apartments and cars. Trust me, I don't end up taking much of my earnings home, it usually ends up in the pockets of local Canadian business owners anyway. I'm sure this is similar for the Canadians that Summer in Europe.

It is also fair to mention that the various companies in question both sides of the pond are all in some way part of the famous German travel leviathan, so are we really working for different companies? Or different parts of the same company? We have all recently adopted the same SOP's for example, after many months of meetings between the companies.

The opportunities we as pilots have to live and work all over the world is tremendous. Please don't try and close these doors. I would happily buy you a beer in Europe sometime if you ever get a spot of work over there. It's a great place to be for variety of work and culture.

Rgds,
TFWPILOT

[timel]

First of all, the agreement with the airline in question is reciprocal. Yes, a large number of us Europeans come over for the winter to work, however did you know that an equal number of Canadian pilots come and work for us during our busy Summer schedules?

Sunwing has approximately 75 pilots going to Europe this summer I heard there were around 100 pilots from Europe here this winter. Overtime this gap should be equal.

I heard there was 200 TFW this winter and your co-workers say 75 Canadian going in Europe this summer.
This is not really reciprocal.

Are EASA legislators going to make it possible for Canadian pilots with a Canadian license to work in Europe for more then a season? Nobody is against reciprocal work agreement. But this is not true as we speak now.

[TFWPILOT]

200?!?! it's less than half of that.

Furthermore we come for 4-5 months. Your guys are with us for up to 6 months.