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Federal tax relief for western livestock producers

July 23, 2015 - The federal government today released a list of designated regions in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba where tax deferrals have been authorized for 2015.

The designation allows livestock producers in prescribed drought regions who are facing feed shortages to defer a portion of their 2015 sale proceeds of breeding livestock for one year in order to help replenish that stock in the following year. Proceeds from deferred sales are then included as part of the producer's income in the next tax year, when those proceeds may be at least partially offset by the cost of replacing their breeding animals.

To defer income, the breeding herd must have been reduced by at least 15 per cent. If this is the case, 30 per cent of income from net sales can then be deferred. In cases where the herd declines by 30 per cent or more, 90 per cent of income from net sales can be deferred. Eligible producers can request the tax deferral when filing their 2015 income tax returns.

From April 1 to July 21 of this year, 60 per cent of the Prairie agricultural landscape has received very low to record low precipitation. This area represents 27,000 farms and more than 5.8 million cattle.

July 24, 2015  By Top Crop Manager