Canadian landlord tax guide

A practical guide to preparing your T776 rental records.

Form T776 is the CRA statement used to report real-estate rental income and expenses. This guide explains its structure and the recordkeeping workflow behind it; it does not replace the form instructions or tax advice.

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Jurisdiction
Canada, federal income tax
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What Form T776 covers

The CRA says people who receive income from renting real estate or other real property must report rental income and expenses. Form T776 helps calculate rental income or loss and, where applicable, capital cost allowance.

The form includes identification, co-owner or partner details, income, expenses, and CCA areas. Complete only the areas that apply to your circumstances and use the current CRA form and guide for the tax year.

Build the source record before mapping categories

Start with complete transactions and evidence. Classification is easier to review when the date, amount, vendor, property, business purpose, and receipt are already together.

  • Reconcile gross rents and other rental income for the calendar year.
  • Separate expenses by property and preserve invoices, receipts, statements, and payment evidence.
  • Distinguish repairs and maintenance from purchases or improvements that may be capital in nature.
  • Document shared-use or personal-use allocations and co-ownership details for professional review.
  • Review CCA choices carefully; they can affect future years and deserve tax advice.

Common preparation mistakes

Frequent record problems include missing receipts, totals without transaction detail, expenses assigned to the wrong property, duplicated entries, and treating every large cost as an immediate expense.

CRA generally requires supporting records to be kept for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to, subject to exceptions in its guidance. Keep the current CRA record-retention page with your year-end checklist.

How DwellTrack helps

DwellTrack organizes rent, expense categories, receipts, properties, and T776-oriented PDF/CSV summaries so you or your tax professional can review a cleaner source record.

It does not determine deductibility, calculate every tax adjustment, submit Form T776, or provide tax advice.

Sources

  1. Canada Revenue Agency: Completing Form T776, Statement of Real Estate Rentals (accessed 2026-07-25)
  2. Canada Revenue Agency: Rental expenses you can deduct (accessed 2026-07-25)
  3. Canada Revenue Agency: Keeping Records (accessed 2026-07-25)

Authored by DwellTrack Editorial Team. Review owner: Editorial review required before each tax-year update.

Prepare the records before you prepare the return.

See how DwellTrack organizes income, expenses, and supporting documents.

Explore the T776 workflow