What Can Content Creators Write Off on Their Taxes?

What expenses can you claim as a content creator?

A tax write-off, according to the CRA, is a business expense you can deduct from your income to lower your taxable income. But keep in mind, not every service or item you spend on as a creator qualifies as a write-off.

According to the CRA, a tax-deductible business expense generally has to meet three conditions:

1. You incurred the expense to help generate income. For example, a ring light can directly help you make money as a content creator by improving filming quality, but skincare that you already use daily typically isn’t directly tied to your content creation business.
2. The amount must be reasonable. The CRA can disallow—or reduce—a claim it considers excessive, even if the expense is otherwise legitimate.
3. The business expense needs to be documented. You need to be able to produce receipts and invoices if asked.

“A lot of creators think posting something turns it into a write-off,” says Ross. “If your honest answer to purchasing an item or service is ‘because I wanted it,’ the content around it doesn’t change that.”

Deciding whether an expense is for business or personal consumption

As an influencer, you need to do more than simply turn on a camera to stream or record something to qualify for a tax deduction. Here’s a look at how the CRA generally treats such expenses and how that may apply to content creators.

Eating out for content—mukbangs and restaurant reviews

There’s a difference between filming a structured restaurant review or mukbang series you plan to monetize and casually filming dinner with friends. The former can have a legitimate business purpose, while the latter is personal consumption with a camera pointed at it.

Even when a meal counts as a business expense, the CRA caps the deduction at 50% of what you spend on food, beverage, and entertainment expenses, or the amount that is considered reasonable, whichever is lower.

Beauty, skincare, and personal upkeep

Haircuts, manicures, skincare routines, and everyday makeup are typically not tax-deductible, since grooming is considered a personal necessity you’d have to do regardless of your job. The fact that you use makeup or skincare products in a “get ready with me” (or GRWM, in creator parlance) or “day in my life” video doesn’t change the fact that those items are still considered personal expenses.

But there are exceptions. For example, products used for an intricate makeup routine or theatrical costume for a specific shoot could count as business expenses if their use is directly tied to producing content and they aren’t part of your normal personal routine.

Cosmetic procedures and surgeries—such as hair replacement, filler injections, liposuction, or teeth whitening—are not eligible deductions. (If a cosmetic procedure is necessary for medical or reconstructive purposes, you might be able to claim a Medical Expense Tax Credit.)

Clothing and accessories

Planning to use your life as a content creator as a cost-effective way to stock your closet? Not necessarily.

An everyday outfit, even one styled specifically for a post, is still clothing you could wear off camera, which makes it personal. However, you may be able to claim actual costumes, uniforms, or clearly branded promotional apparel provided for a campaign.

Travel, “work trips,” and creator networking

Travel vlogging can be a tricky grey area. Whether a trip can be considered a business expense hinges on the primary intent.

For example, a trip built around a brand shoot, a conference, or contracted deliverables is more likely to qualify as a business expense. A beach vacation with your friends and family that you just so happened to film for a few Instagram Reels or TikTok clips is personal, regardless of how it’s captioned or framed.

Networking dinners and creator meetups can be considered business expenses, too, but there are a few important considerations.

Who attended, what was discussed, and how attending a creator meetup or dinner connects to your content creation income all need to be documented before the fact. The 50% limit also applies to the cost of your meals when you travel to a meetup or dinner.

Claiming income and expenses as an influencer

What constitutes income may catch some influencers and content creators off guard. Beyond any compensation you receive from platforms and brand collaborations, the CRA also looks at tips, gifts, and free products sent by brands in exchange for exposure or reviews.

Sponsored trips and other perks received because of the content creation business also fall into that category.

Whether you’re an influencer or running a small business, the way you claim expenses works the same way. Report the business portion of eligible expenses on Form T2125, Statement of Business or Professional Activities.

Managing mixed-use items and software tax deductions

For assets like your smartphone, internet, camera, or laptop, you can calculate a reasonable business-use percentage and claim that portion, but not the whole bill. So, if you use your phone 40% of the time for communicating with brands or clients, content planning, and editing, that’s the portion of the bill you can claim, provided that you can back it up.

The same logic applies to a home office deduction. If you’ve dedicated a specific space in your home to filming or editing, you may be able to claim a portion of your household costs based on that space’s share of your home. These home expenses can include heating, cleaning supplies and home insurance.

A software tax deduction works similarly. Editing software, scheduling tools, or design subscriptions used for the business can generally be claimed as business expenses.

Record-keeping essentials to prevent a CRA review

Keep in mind that good record-keeping isn’t optional paperwork. Here’s a handy checklist of a few non-negotiables:

• Hang on to documents. Keep every single receipt, not just the ones for big expenses. 
• Take notes. Annotate the business purpose on or alongside each expense while it’s fresh in your memory. If it was a dinner for a creator meet-up, make note of who you met, what was discussed, and the purpose of attending. 
• Be consistent. Large or unexplained inconsistencies in your expenses may attract additional CRA scrutiny.

Don’t assume that simply posting something online—a mukbang for a popular restaurant in your city or the makeup in your GRWM reel—automatically makes it tax-deductible. Overclaiming everyday spending as business expenses and forgetting to document the intent at the time of purchase can cost you down the line.

Remember to claim only what you can actually stand behind, and maintain detailed records to back that up. Making aggressive, unsupported, or inconsistent claims on Form T2125, for instance, could potentially trigger a formal CRA review.

Navigating taxes with confidence

Consumers may not give much thought to scrolling through clips, but for many creators, this is a legitimate business that puts you on par with other sole proprietors in the country—right down to the tax code.

Understanding what qualifies as a business expense for a content creator, maintaining detailed records, and learning to abide by certain obligations—like GST/HST registration once your taxable earnings top $30,000 cumulatively over four consecutive quarters or $30,000 in a single quarter—is essential to your income, and it’s also a sign of business maturity.