The T5008, or Statement of Securities Transactions, reports the proceeds when you sell or redeem investments held in a taxable account. It tells the CRA what you received; it doesn’t tell either of you what you gained, because the gain depends on a cost figure only you can confirm.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Statement of Securities Transactions |
| Issued by | Brokerages, mutual fund companies |
| Reports | Proceeds of disposition (the sale amount) |
| Does NOT report | Your actual capital gain |
| Threshold | None: the CRA’s T5008 guide says “There is no administrative limit for reporting securities transactions” |
Brokerages issue T5008s by the last day of February; the tax slips table lists the other slips’ deadlines.
T5008 box guide
| Box | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Foreign currency | Currency code; blank for Canadian dollars |
| 14 | Date (MMDD) | Settlement date of the transaction |
| 15 | Type code of securities | Code for the kind of security sold |
| 16 | Quantity of securities | Number of shares or units |
| 17 | Identification of securities | Description, such as the name of the stock or fund |
| 18 | ISIN/CUSIP number | Security identifier |
| 19 | Face amount | Bonds and other debt; blank for shares |
| 20 | Cost or book value | May or may not match your ACB |
| 21 | Proceeds of disposition or settlement amount | What you received for the securities |
Box names are from the CRA’s T5008 guide (T4091).
Why Box 20 may not be your cost
| Issue | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Blank | The dealer may not have your cost on record |
| Only one purchase | Doesn’t reflect your average cost if you bought several times |
| Transfer-in | The receiving brokerage doesn’t know your original cost |
| Reinvested distributions | Book value is meant to include them; check against your own records |
The figure that counts for tax is your adjusted cost base: the average cost of every unit you hold, raised by purchases, commissions and reinvested distributions and lowered by return of capital (which appears on your T3 slip in Box 42). Splits don’t change the total, an in-kind transfer between brokerages doesn’t change it, and the same security held at two brokerages has one combined ACB. The CRA doesn’t track it for you, so you calculate it from your trade confirmations, a spreadsheet or ACB tracking software; the ACB guide works through average-cost examples.
Reporting a T5008 on Schedule 3
| Schedule 3 column | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Description | Security name |
| Proceeds | Box 21 from the T5008 |
| ACB | Your calculated ACB |
| Outlays and expenses | Selling commissions |
| Gain or loss | Proceeds minus ACB minus expenses |
You bought 100 shares at $50 ($5,000) and paid a $10 commission, for an ACB of $5,010. You sold them for $7,500 and paid another $10 commission, so the net proceeds are $7,490. The capital gain is $7,490 − $5,010 = $2,480, and the T5008 shows only the $7,500 in Box 21.
Schedule 3 totals your gains and losses, and the taxable part goes on line 12700. The inclusion rate is a flat 50% on the full capital gain, regardless of size; a 2024 proposal to raise it to 66.67% above $250,000 was cancelled by the Government of Canada in March 2025 and never took effect. A net capital loss can be carried back 3 years or forward indefinitely, so losses are worth reporting even in a year with no gains.
Common T5008 situations
| Situation | What happens |
|---|---|
| ETF sale after years of DRIP reinvestments | Each reinvestment added to your ACB; the T5008 shows only the proceeds |
| Switch between mutual funds | Usually a deemed disposition, so it triggers a gain or loss |
| Switch within the same fund to a different currency series | Usually not a disposition |
| In-kind transfer to another brokerage | No disposition, no gain or loss, and no T5008 |
| Sell and re-buy | A gain or loss is realized |
| Return of capital takes your ACB below zero | If it reduces the ACB below zero, the negative amount is treated as a capital gain in that year. |
Selling at a loss and buying back
A loss is denied if you, your spouse or a corporation you control buys the same security within 30 days before or after the sale; the denied loss is added to the ACB of the new shares instead. The T5008 still shows the sale, so the adjustment is yours to make. The superficial loss rules explain the timing and the exceptions.
What if you don’t receive a T5008?
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Slip missing or late | Still report the sale on Schedule 3 |
| Transfer to another brokerage | No T5008 is needed |
| Holdings in an RRSP or TFSA | No T5008 is issued for registered accounts |
If Box 21 looks wrong, check your trade confirmations and brokerage statements, or multiply the shares sold by the sale price. Every sale of securities in a taxable account is reported, with or without a slip.
T5008 vs other investment slips
| Slip | Reports | Your job |
|---|---|---|
| T5008 | Proceeds from sales | Calculate the gain yourself |
| T5 | Dividends and interest | Report the investment income |
| T3 | Trust distributions | Report each box, including capital gains distributed by the fund |
Related pages
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them on October 1, 2026. How we check facts.
- BlackRock iShares: Tax Information Centre - Distributions & Tax FAQs | BlackRock Canada
- Canada Revenue Agency: Tax treatment of mutual funds