What we’ve done so far - Improving services at the CRA

We’ve made tax filing easier

Many tax-filing software programs offer the CRA’s Auto-fill my return, which automatically fills in parts of a tax return with the information the CRA has on file. It was used over 9 million times during the 2018 filing season.
My Account, the CRA’s online portal for individuals, has been redesigned to be clearer and easier to use.
In response to requests from our clients, the CRA released BizApp, a mobile web app for small business owners and sole proprietors. BizApp lets My Business Account users view their business accounts and make payments on the go.
The CRA made it easier for some 2 million paper tax filers to do their taxes by mailing them their forms and guides directly.
The Community Volunteer Income Tax Program helps individuals who have a modest income and a simple tax situation by preparing their income tax and benefit returns free of charge. During the 2017 tax-filing season, over 702,000 individuals got help.
The new File my Return service lets eligible Canadians file their income tax and benefit return through a dedicated, automated phone service.

With the Liaison Officer Service, small businesses can now ask for free, in-person help to understand and meet their tax obligations.
The CRA is reducing wait times and improving accuracy for call centre clients. We’re modernizing our technology to offer more self-serve options, hiring more agents, putting in place a new national quality assurance team, making sure employees have the right tools and training, and launching immediate feedback surveys.
The CRA now offers a Dedicated Telephone Service to income tax service providers to help them answer complex technical questions that can come up when they are preparing returns on behalf of their clients.
The CRA is improving the letters and statements we send to Canadians. As of February 2018, the CRA has made nearly 90% of its correspondence easier to understand.
The CRA is improving its web content on Canada.ca to make it easier for Canadians to find and understand high-demand information related to business registration and payroll. We will measure the success of these changes, and continue to update and test additional content on Canada.ca that is most used by Canadians.

The CRA will enhance services offered to territorial residents by opening three new in-person northern service centres, increasing outreach and activities of the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program, providing dedicated phone lines, and expanding the Liaison Officer Service.
Since October 2016, the CRA has sent over 560,000 letters to taxpayers who have not filed income tax and benefit returns and may be entitled to benefits or credits. The CRA has issued over $19.4 million in tax refunds and $59.7 million in benefit payments as a result of this campaign.
The CRA has reinstated the Disability Advisory Committee to consult with Canadians on CRA services, policies, communications and other initiatives related to the disability tax credit program.
As part of the Northern Service Improvement Strategy, the CRA is working on simplifying the process for claiming the Northern residents deductions.

The CRA recently launched the 2018 Serving You Better consultations with small and medium businesses and their representatives across Canada to improve how we help them meet their tax obligations.
The CRA regularly conducts public opinion research and consultations with stakeholders and the general public to gauge their perception of how we are serving Canadians. Over the next year, we have a number of research projects planned to better understand these perceptions.
The CRA is updating its service standards to be more transparent, accurate, consistent, ambitious, and meaningful to Canadians. In spring 2018, we published several new service standards, improving how we report to Canadians on access to key services, including call centres, and processing times.