When the federal government announced it was intending to extend the deadline for charitable donations in 2024, it was supposed to provide some relief for local charities and taxpayers.
But with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proroguing the government earlier this month, it's now causing uncertainty and confusion.
With an amendment to the Income Tax Act, parliament was planning on pushing the timeline for when residents could receive a tax break on their 2024 tax returns via donation from Dec. 31, 2024 to Feb. 28, 2025 due to delays in postal service caused by the Canada Post strike.
Many charities and organizations not only welcomed the news, but promoted it to prospective donors.
When reached for comment, the Canada Revenue Agency said it's still looking into the matter but wouldn't provide details on how it might play out.
"The Canada Revenue Agency is currently reviewing a proposal to extend the deadline for making donations eligible for tax support in the 2024 tax year, until February 28, 2025," Benoit Sabourin, media relations for the CRA, said in an email.
"More information will be communicated in due course."
The unknown is something the United Way Waterloo Region Communities has been preparing for.
Ward 7 councillor Scott Hamilton, who doubles as the senior director of philanthropy for the local United Way, said the organization has been proceeding with business as usual given there's been no direction that the deadline has been extended.
"The answer right now is there's nothing that's technically happened," Hamilton said.
"The work that parliament needed to do to pass this CRA legislation didn't actually occur. Right now, there's been no actual change. The deadline is still Dec. 31, 2024."
It's the contrary at the Cambridge Food Bank, as it's operating as if the deadline has been extended.
"I haven't heard anything new and we're working on the assumption that folks have until Feb. 28 to make their donation to qualify for a charitable giving receipt," CFB executive director Dianne McLeod said.
"I won't know until the end of the month if there's been any increase in donations compared to January last year."
At the YWCA Cambridge, chief executive officer Kim Decker also said she has yet to hear any news.
With the YWCA potentially just weeks away from opening the first women's emergency homeless shelter in the region, it's a critical time for donations and the support of the community has been felt.
"Surprisingly, we actually saw a significant increase in donations during the end-of-year giving season, specifically toward our women's emergency homeless shelter," Decker said.
"However, many of those donations were from first-time donors; we did see a decline in donations from regular donors, particularly those who typically send cheques by mail."
Hamilton emphasized the greatest impact on potential charity tax write-offs will be for those looking to make larger donations.
According to CanadaHelps, an organization that enables donations and fundraising online for registered Canadian charities, generally 15 per cent of the first $200 in donations and 29 per cent on additional donations above the first $200 can be credited at the federal level. That percentage varies at the provincial level between 4 and 25 per cent.
But what happens if a cheque dated in 2024 was caught in the postal strike and doesn't arrive until 2025?
"As long as you have evidence that it's a 2024 donation, on the cheque or the envelope, you should be able to receive it for that time period," Hamilton said.
"You'll need proof. The good news is if someone does donate money in 2025 in January or February, it's not like that charitable contribution is lost, it just goes onto your next tax bill."
Hamilton said charitable giving is on the decline globally and although the confusion can be frustrating, it's also stimulating important dialogue.
"We need every dollar we can get," he said.
"I think by extending the deadline you're going to increase the number of donations. We're hopeful that this is a conversation starter, it's creating more discussion about the purpose of charitable giving and the cycles of it."