Dateline: 10/31/2014

With an election scheduled for October 2015, although that date could change, the Conservatives are appealing to the pocketbooks of Canadian families, especially those in suburban ridings. The biggest benefits go to the highest income earners with stay-at-home spouses, but there are some benefits for low-income families and single-parent families too.

Here are the planned tax breaks.

A Scaled-Down Version of Income Splitting - Now Called The Family Tax Cut

Income-splitting was a big Conservative promise in the 2011 federal election. Now called the "Family Tax Cut," the government is proposing a new non-refundable federal tax credit that will allow a higher-income spouse to transfer up to $50,000 of taxable income to a spouse in a lower tax bracket. To be eligible, couples would have to have children under the age of 18. A cap of $2000 has been put on tax relief for 2014, no doubt because of earlier criticism that income-splitting would only benefit families who are already well off.

Effective Date: 2014 and subsequent tax years

How to Claim: Families will be able to claim the Family Tax Cut in the spring of 2015 when they file their 2014 income tax returns.

Enhancing the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB)

For children under the age of 6, the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB) would be increased by $60, going up to $160 from $100 per month per eligible child. That means $1,920 per child per year.

The increase would be effective January 1, 2015.

The UCCB would also be expanded to children aged 6 to 17. Beginning January 1, 2015, parents would receive a benefit of $60 per eligible child. That makes a total of $920 per eligible child per year.

The enhanced UCCB would replace the existing Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) for 2015 and subsequent tax years.

Parents would begin to receive enhanced UCCB payments in July 2015. The July UCCB payment would include retroactive payments to cover January to June 2015.

How to Claim the Enhanced UCCB: If you already receive the UCCB or CCTB for the child, you do not have to apply. The increase would be automatic. If you don't already receive the UCCB or CCTB for a child, you apply through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) or use your My Service Canada Account.

Increasing the Child Care Expenses Deduction

The government is proposing to increase the amounts that can be claimed for the Child Care Tax Deduction, for 2015 and subsequent tax years.

The maximum amounts that can be claimed will increase to $8,000 from $7,000 for children under age seven, to $5,000 from $4,000 for children aged seven through 16, and to $11,000 from $10,000 for children who are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit.

For more information on claiming child care expenses on your Canadian income tax return, see the Canada Revenue Agency page on Line 214 - Child Care Expenses.

Doubling the Children's Fitness Tax Credit

Earlier in October 2014, the Prime Minister announced that the government intended to double the Children's Fitness Tax Credit and to make it refundable.

The new maximum claim limit will go to $1000 for the 2014 income tax year and subsequent tax years. The tax credit will be made refundable for the 2015 tax year and subsequent tax years, increasing the benefits to low-income families.