Cape Breton Island 
Eligible young tradespeople in Nova Scotia can now apply for More Opportunity for Skilled Trades provincial income tax refund.
More Opportunity for Skilled Trades (MOST) provincial income tax refund returns the provincial income tax paid on the first $50,000 of income earned by eligible young tradespeople.
To be eligible for the refund, workers need to be under 30 years old and either registered as an apprentice or certified as a journeyperson in an eligible trade or employed in an eligible film or video industry occupation.
The refund can be applied only after filing a 2022 income tax return and receiving a notice of assessment from the Canada Revenue Agency.
To apply online, you will need the following:
- Social Insurance Number
- a copy of your 2022 income tax return (including T1 Form and Form NS428)
- your 2022 Canada Revenue Agency Notice of Assessment (or your most recent 2022 Notice of Reassessment if Canada Revenue Agency reassessed your return)
- employer information for all work in eligible trades and occupations during 2022 (including employer legal name, business operating name, city, province, total income paid by employer, positions you worked and eligible income paid by each position worked)
- Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency ID, journeyperson certificate number (and location of certification) or red seal number, if applicable
- T4 Statement of Remuneration Paid for each eligible employer where you earned eligible income in 2022, if applicable
- Statement of Employment (PDF) for each eligible employer where you earned eligible income in 2022, if applicable
- Declaration of Self-Employment (PDF), if applicable
MOST was introduced to help address labour shortages in industries in the province and support the retention and attraction of young workers.
The credit is expected to cost $21 million in 2023-24, with around 7,600 workers expected to benefit from an average refund of $2,700. In the 2023-24 budget, the program will also expand to include nurses working in the publicly funded healthcare system.
Detailed criteria and required supporting documents can be found in the More Opportunity for Skilled Trades and Occupations Tax Refund Guidelines.
