Is the $631 filing fee that I paid to the federal government for my pardon/criminal record suspension tax deductible?

[coryherb]

My career advancement is highly dependent upon my ability to obtain a pardon/record suspension. 

[TurboTaxJeffrey]

No, you are not able to claim this on your tax return.

[merv1934]

Can you deduct on income tax

[TurboTaxSusan]

As Jeffrey said above, no. Generally, you can only deduct legal fees that you paid:

• while earning of income from a business or property
• to collect salary/wages from an employer
• to collect a retiring allowance or pension benefit
• in certain child support situations
• to fight the CRA

This blog post talks more about what legal fees are deductible: https://turbotax.intuit.ca/tips/are-all-legal-fees-fully-tax-deductible-6542

In the case of legal fees to collect salary/wages, it has to be for money that’s actually owed, not “potential” money such as a possible raise that could come with a promotion. In this Financial Post article, they talk about some prior rulings as to what was and was not deductible: https://business.financialpost.com/legal-post/vern-krishna-cra-rules-make-it-tough-for-employees-to-...