CRA Line 15000: Total Income on Your Tax Return
Line 15000 is a total from your filed return, not a separate slip and not your taxable income. The year matters whenever the CRA uses it to verify your identity.
Line 15000 in the income sequence
Line 15000
Total income
Income before the deductions that follow.
Line 23600
Net income
Used for many income-tested credits and benefits.
Line 26000
Taxable income
The amount to which tax brackets are applied.
If you are reading a return for 2018 or an earlier year, the same total is printed as line 150. The CRA renumbered the T1’s three-digit lines to five digits starting with the 2019 tax year; the figure did not change, only its label.
Registering for a CRA account? What the prompt is asking for
The CRA asks for line 15000 to confirm you are who you say you are. The registration screen names a specific year and asks for the amount in whole dollars. Three details decide whether verification succeeds:
1 · The year the screen names
The CRA says registration needs the line 15000 amount from your most recent income tax and benefit return, and the sign-in help page for recovering a CRA user ID refers to a line 15000 amount from one of the previous 2 tax years. A return you filed last week may not yet be assessed, in which case the figure the CRA holds is still the prior year’s.
2 · Enter the amount as the screen asks
If the screen takes whole dollars, an assessed total income of $52,310.25 is entered as 52310. Drop the cents rather than rounding up, and leave out the dollar sign, commas and spaces.
3 · The assessed amount, not your draft
Use the figure the CRA assessed. If the return was reassessed, the reassessed total income is the one on file. A number from a draft, an un-filed return or a spreadsheet will not match.
Still rejected after checking all three? The most common cause is using net income (line 23600) or taxable income (line 26000) instead of total income, which are different numbers on the same page.
Where to find the amount
Any of these show the same assessed figure. You do not need the paper Notice of Assessment.
- Your CRA account — open the tax return details for the year the prompt names and read line 15000 “Total income”.
- Your Notice of Assessment — the assessment summary for that year.
- Your own copy of the filed T1 — valid when the return was assessed as filed and never reassessed.
- Your tax software’s summary — same caveat: it shows what you filed, not necessarily what the CRA assessed.
- Read the CRA prompt and note the exact tax year it requests.
- Open the assessed T1 return or the return details for that year in your CRA account.
- Find line 15000 - Total income; do not substitute line 23600 or 26000.
- Enter the assessed dollar amount exactly as requested. If you recently filed, confirm the return has been assessed first.
Line 15000 is not the amount on your T4
A T4 reports employment income in box 14, and that amount goes on line 10100 of the return — one of several income lines that add up to line 15000. The two figures are equal only when a single job was your only income all year.
Anything else you reported — a second T4, self-employment, EI or pension income, interest, dividends, taxable capital gains, rental income or other amounts on a T4A — is added before the total reaches line 15000. If you are reconciling slips against the total, start from the T4 slip guide and the T4A slip guide.
Need the assessed version?
If the figures on your saved return differ from what the CRA assessed, use the assessment record. The Notice of Assessment guide explains where to retrieve an NOA and how a reassessment changes the record.
Frequently asked questions
What is line 15000 on a Canadian tax return?
Line 15000 is total income: the sum of the income amounts reported in the first part of the T1 return before deductions used to calculate net income and taxable income.
Is line 15000 the same as taxable income?
No. Line 15000 is total income. Line 23600 is net income and line 26000 is taxable income after applicable deductions. These figures can differ materially.
Is line 15000 the same as line 150?
Yes — it is the same total under a newer number. The CRA renumbered the T1 return’s three-digit lines to five digits starting with the 2019 tax year, and total income moved from line 150 to line 15000. A return for 2018 or earlier shows the figure as line 150.
Is line 15000 the same as box 14 on my T4?
No. Box 14 of a T4 is employment income, which is reported on line 10100 — only one of the income lines that add up to line 15000. The two amounts match only if employment income from a single T4 was your only income for the year. Add every other income source before comparing.
The CRA is asking me to enter line 15000 to register. Do I include the cents?
Only if the prompt asks for them. If the field takes whole dollars, an assessed total income of $52,310.25 is entered as 52310 — drop the cents rather than rounding up, and leave out the dollar sign and commas. Follow the wording on the screen in front of you; if verification fails, recheck the year and the exact assessed figure before changing the format.
Where can I find line 15000?
Look on the assessed T1 return for the requested tax year or in the return details available through your CRA account. Your Notice of Assessment can help identify the assessed return, but use the exact line and year requested by the CRA.
What if I do not have my Notice of Assessment?
You do not need the paper notice. The same assessed figure is available in your CRA account under your returns for that year, and your own copy of the filed T1 or your tax software’s summary will show it if the return was assessed as filed. If the CRA reassessed the return, use the reassessed amount.
Which line 15000 year does CRA account registration need?
Use the tax year named in the registration prompt. The CRA asks for line 15000 from your most recent return and a requested line from your current or previous return. Do not automatically use the newest return if it has not yet been assessed.
What if line 15000 is zero?
Enter zero when the assessed return shows zero and the prompt allows it. If the CRA cannot verify the information, recheck the requested year and exact dollar amount rather than substituting net income or taxable income.
Is there a line 15000 on a corporate return?
No. Line 15000 is a T1 personal income tax return line. A corporation files a T2 return, which uses its own schedules and line numbering, so a corporate notice of assessment will not show a line 15000 total income figure.