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EFILE news and program updates

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T1 EFILE

The EFILE and ReFILE services are open for transmission from February 24, 2025 at 8:30 a.m. (Eastern time), until January 30, 2026. You can electronically file your clients 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 initial personal income tax and benefit returns using the EFILE service and you can file your clients amended T1 returns for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 using ReFILE.

T3 EFILE

The T3 EFILE service is open for transmission from February 24, 2025, at 8:30 a.m. (Eastern Time), until January 30, 2026. Visit the T3 EFILE information web page for more details on the services available this year.

News and program updates

May 6, 2025 - Annual Processing Review Program

The Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) annual post-assessment review of individual income tax and benefit returns has started.

If your client's tax return is selected for review, you will receive Processing Review letters if:

Processing Review letters can be viewed in Represent a Client (RAC). For authorized representatives who choose to receive these letters electronically, Represent a Client provides fast and easy online access. To sign up for this service, go to Services available directly in Represent a Client.

For the 2025 tax season, we are continuing the Federal foreign tax credit claims pilot project; the time to respond can be extended beyond the normal period. If an extension is needed, please call the number in the letter.

Note: To avoid delays, it is important to send requested information to the centre indicated in the letter.

April 25, 2025 - Update - Error codes setting incorrectly

Further to our message of April 14, 2025.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is confirming the only outstanding error codes triggering incorrectly in EFILE and NETFILE certified software impacting a small number of returns, are the following:

The CRA continues to track cases affected by these errors, and in the event that an issue is not resolved before the April 30th filing deadline, the CRA still intends to provide arrears interest and penalty relief proactively for impacted individuals who file late after having received an incorrect error code that could not be resolved when attempting to file on or before their tax filing deadline.

To be eligible for relief, an impacted filer must have attempted to submit the return electronically on or before April 30th, received the specific error code, and was unsuccessful in resolving the error code despite taking the appropriate corrective action.

April 22, 2025 - Reminder - Help your clients be ready to vote in the federal election by checking the appropriate boxes

Sent on behalf of Elections Canada

Elections Canada encourages tax preparers to ask their clients for their consent to check the boxes in the Elections Canada section of their income tax and benefit return. By consenting, eligible clients will make sure they are registered at their current address and ready to vote when a federal election is called. Sharing their name, address, and date of birth with Elections Canada is the easiest way for Canadian citizens to make sure their voter information stays up to date.

Young Canadians aged 14 to 17 who file a tax return can also consent to sharing their information with Elections Canada for the Register of Future Electors. Once eligible future electors turn 18, their information will be added to the National Register of Electors.

Accurate lists of electors allow us to better serve electors, and they also contribute to electoral integrity. Elections Canada thanks you for your continued support during this tax season.

To learn more about the Electi­ons Canada consent questions, visit elections.ca. You can also call Elections Canada at 1‑800-463-6868 or 1-800-361-8935 (TTY).

April 15, 2025 - Reminder - Help us improve our process of accurately recording dates of death

Dates of death on tax returns

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) noticed that tax preparers occasionally include a deceased person’s date of death on the living spouse’s tax return. This may result in the CRA mistakenly recording the living spouse as deceased.

This error can cause major financial and emotional consequences as it can stop all benefit payments to the living person. The benefits that can significantly impact them include the Canada child benefit (CCB), the Goods and Services Tax Credit / Harmonized sales tax credit (GST/HST), the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS). Additional benefits may also be affected.

Therefore, please ensure the date of death information is included only on the tax return of the deceased individual.

Social insurance numbers (SIN) on legal documents

If you are a representative settling a deceased person’s estate, the deceased’s social insurance number (SIN) must be provided with any request or document sent to the CRA. This will help ensure there are no delays in updating the appropriate records with the date of death information.

Thank you for your cooperation.

April 14, 2025 - Error codes setting incorrectly

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is aware of a system issue that is triggering incorrect error codes in EFILE and NETFILE certified software and is preventing some users from being able to submit returns.

Users are receiving one or more of the following error codes:

The CRA is actively working to resolve these issues as quickly as possible and will provide further information and resolution dates as they become available. The CRA is tracking cases affected by these errors, and in the event that an issue is not resolved before the April 30th filing deadline, the CRA intends to provide arrears interest and penalty relief proactively for impacted individuals who file late after having received an incorrect error code that could not be resolved when attempting to file on or before their tax filing deadline.

To be eligible for relief, an impacted filer must have attempted to submit the return electronically on or before April 30th, received the specific error code, and was unsuccessful in resolving the error code despite taking the appropriate corrective action.

April 10, 2025 - Reminder - Disability Tax Credit

Before including the disability amount on an individual’s T1 income tax and benefit return, please ask your client if they have applied for the disability tax credit (DTC) before. Your client can give you the notice of determination that was sent to them. This notice will indicate if the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has determined that your client is eligible for the DTC and for which years. The DTC information that is available on My Account or Represent a Client (including the Client Data Enquiry page), can help you determine if your client is eligible to claim the disability amount.

The CRA needs a completed Form T2201, certified by a medical practitioner, to determine if an individual is eligible for the DTC. The T1 income tax and benefit return can only be processed with the disability amount after this determination is made.

Clients who are approved for the DTC don't need to send the CRA a new form every year, unless the CRA asks for one.

If your client needs more information about the DTC, or the application process, they can visit Canada.ca/Disability tax credit.

Thank you for your continued collaboration in offering electronic services to taxpayers.

April 9, 2025 - Reminder - Do you have T1 returns that need to be retransmitted?

Did you know that you can log in to our secure EFILE web service whenever it’s convenient for you?

It's easy!

Note: A rejected transmission will be removed from this list and will no longer be displayed if:

**Important information** Be sure to use the current date when searching any of these transmission links. If you do not have any transmissions to display, the system will bring you back to the EFILE login page.

Thank you.

April 8, 2025 - Reminder - Phishing Scam

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has become aware of a new phishing scam targeting the tax preparation community, where bad actors are prompting EFILERs to log into a fake EFILE Sign in page to “activate” their account. Note that the CRA will never send you a link asking you to provide financial or personal information.

Protect yourself from spoofing by never clicking links received via text message or email. When visiting a website, always verify the URL and domain to make sure you are on the official website. Only log into your accounts from trusted sources.

If you believe that your EFILE ID and password have been compromised as result of this or other scams, contact the EFILE Helpdesk immediately. Please note that failure to notify the CRA of the potential compromise of EFILE credentials will result in suspension of your EFILE privileges.

Additional resources – For more security practices, refer to the following resources:

Recognize a scam
Recognize a scam - Scams and fraud - CRA - Canada.ca

Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
Protect yourself from scams and fraud

Canada Revenue Agency
Security and privacy of your information with the CRA

April 3, 2025 - Update on the availability of tax slips in Auto-fill my return and CRA portals

Beginning in January 2025, the CRA introduced a new validation process for organizations that submit information returns (like financial institutions and employers) to ensure the accuracy of the data they submit. While this change improves data quality, some issuers have had difficulties uploading tax slips, resulting in certain slips not appearing in My Account, Represent a Client, or the Auto-fill my return service as early as in previous years.

It should be noted that the difficulties experienced by issuers are separate and apart from their obligation to distribute slips to recipients by the filing deadline. As a result, we expect most taxpayers to have already received a copy of the slips they need to complete their tax returns. If you do not see a client’s tax slip in Represent a Client or when using Auto-fill my return, we recommend using the slips provided by their issuer (e.g., their financial institution or employer).

The CRA is actively working with issuers to address any outstanding issues and ensure tax slips are made available as soon as possible.

April 2, 2025 - You may now EFILE returns reporting capital dispositions

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has been working diligently to ensure that its systems reflect the current capital gains inclusion rate of one-half. The CRA has restored the forms to the current rate and they have been published on Canada.ca. This applies to individuals that are reporting any capital disposition on Schedule 3 of the T1 income tax and benefit return for the 2024 tax year as well as trusts reporting a capital disposition on Schedule 1 of their T3 trust income tax and information return for the 2024 tax year. Changes to CRA’s systems and the corresponding certification of tax software have also been finalized for the reporting of capital dispositions therefore impacted returns can now be processed.

You can monitor the certified T1 EFILE software webpage and the certified T3 EFILE software webpage which will display the software products that are certified by the CRA, including for capital gains dispositions.

If your tax preparation software product has been certified, you can submit the returns on behalf of your clients to the CRA.

The CRA will provide relief from late-filing penalties and interest until June 2, 2025, for individuals and until May 1, 2025, for trusts, giving taxpayers reporting capital dispositions (gain or loss) additional time to meet their filing obligations.

April 1, 2025 - EFILE Helpdesk hours of service: We’re here to help!

The Canada Revenue Agency has extended the service hours of its EFILE Helpdesks in advance of the T1 filing deadline.

Go to our EFILE Helpdesk support page for more information. You can also find copies of all previously issued messages on our EFILE News and Program Updates page.

Thank you. 

March 26, 2025 - Reminder - Help your clients be ready to vote in the federal election by checking the appropriate boxes

Sent on behalf of Elections Canada

Elections Canada encourages tax preparers to ask their clients for their consent to check the boxes in the Elections Canada section of their income tax and benefit return. By consenting, eligible clients will make sure they are registered at their current address and ready to vote when a federal election is called. Sharing their name, address, and date of birth with Elections Canada is the easiest way for Canadian citizens to make sure their voter information stays up to date.

Young Canadians aged 14 to 17 who file a tax return can also consent to sharing their information with Elections Canada for the Register of Future Electors. Once eligible future electors turn 18, their information will be added to the National Register of Electors.

Accurate lists of electors allow us to better serve electors, and they also contribute to electoral integrity. Elections Canada thanks you for your continued support during this tax season.

To learn more about the Electi­ons Canada consent questions, visit elections.ca. You can also call Elections Canada at 1‑800-463-6868 or 1-800-361-8935 (TTY).

March 25, 2025 - EFILE monitoring

As you may be aware, the Canada Revenue Agency may ask you for a number of copies of Form T183, Information Return for Electronic Filing of an Individual's Income Tax and Benefit Return or Form T183TRUST, Information Return for Trusts Filing Electronically as part of its monitoring activities to help ensure taxpayer information is protected.

You may send the requested forms to us electronically using the Submit documents option in the Represent a Client (RAC) service. You must be registered in RAC in order to use this option. Do not send the forms by email. We will provide you with a specific time frame to respond to our request. If you do not respond on time, we may suspend your EFILE privileges.

In addition, after we have received the forms, we may also ask you for a written explanation of any anomalies that we identify.

Do not submit T183 forms unless we ask you for them. If your client has to make a payment, do not ask them to send a copy of Form T183 with the payment. Instead, refer them to the Payments to the Canada Revenue Agency web page for payment options.

If you are asked to provide copies of these forms, you can refer to the letter that you will receive for more information.

If you have questions about this message, please call your EFILE Helpdesk.

Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

March 18, 2025 - Beginning March 24, 2025, The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will no longer accept direct deposit updates or changes submitted via EFILE

If you submit a return with direct deposit information, it will be returned back with an error message that says the direct deposit information must be deleted before the return can be resubmitted and accepted by the CRA.

Taxpayers will be able to register for direct deposit using either My Account online, through a Canadian bank or credit union, or by completing a direct deposit enrolment form (paper).

March 14, 2025 - Electronic submission of Form T2201, Disability Tax Credit Certificate

The fully digital disability tax credit (DTC) application form is available to applicants and their legal representatives. Applicants can complete Part A of the form online via My Account. To simplify the process and save time, the applicant’s portion of the form is prepopulated with information already on file at the CRA. Once completed, they will receive a reference number to give to their medical practitioner who will use it to complete Part B of the form online.

The traditional paper form will continue to be available to those who are unable to, or prefer not to, complete the application online. Paper copies of Form T2201, Disability Tax Credit Certificate, can be sent by mail to the Sudbury, Winnipeg or Jonquière tax centre, or submitted electronically using the secure Submit Documents tool in the My Account or Represent a Client portals.

A legal representative, or a representative with level 2 authorization, can upload and submit Form T2201, at any time during the year. It's fast, easy, and secure!

This option is a quick way to electronically submit documents on behalf of clients and obtain confirmation that the CRA has received the file(s).

Clients who have submitted Form T2201, Disability Tax Credit Certificate to the CRA are asked not to  submit another copy by any other method as duplicate submissions could delay the approval process.

The status of a Disability Tax Credit Certificate application may be viewed by individuals and their representatives through the Progress Tracker service in My Account. They can also check CRA processing times online.

March 13, 2025 - Help us improve our process of accurately recording dates of death

Dates of death on tax returns

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) noticed that tax preparers occasionally include a deceased person’s date of death on the living spouse’s tax return. This may result in the CRA mistakenly recording the living spouse as deceased.

This error can cause major financial and emotional consequences as it can stop all benefit payments to the living person. The benefits that can significantly impact them include the Canada child benefit (CCB), the Goods and Services Tax Credit / Harmonized sales tax credit (GST/HST), the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS). Additional benefits may also be affected.

Therefore, please ensure the date of death information is included only on the tax return of the deceased individual.

Social insurance numbers (SIN) on legal documents

If you are a representative settling a deceased person’s estate, the deceased’s social insurance number (SIN) must be provided with any request or document sent to the CRA. This will help ensure there are no delays in updating the appropriate records with the date of death information.

Thank you for your cooperation.

March 11, 2025 - Reminder for Discounters

To meet the needs of the tax professional community and to prepare for the upcoming tax-filing season, stay informed of all changes to procedures and policies, by referring to the Information for discounters webpage.

Remember that you are responsible for complying with the provisions of the Tax Rebate Discounting Act.

March 7, 2025 - Phishing Scam

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has become aware of a new phishing scam targeting the tax preparation community, where bad actors are prompting EFILERs to log into a fake EFILE Sign in page to “activate” their account. Note that the CRA will never send you a link asking you to provide financial or personal information.

Protect yourself from spoofing by never clicking links received via text message or email. When visiting a website, always verify the URL and domain to make sure you are on the official website. Only log into your accounts from trusted sources.

If you believe that your EFILE ID and password have been compromised as result of this or other scams, contact the EFILE Helpdesk immediately. Please note that failure to notify the CRA of the potential compromise of EFILE credentials will result in suspension of your EFILE privileges.

Additional resources – For more security practices, refer to the following resources:

Recognize a scam
Recognize a scam - Scams and fraud - CRA - Canada.ca

Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
Protect yourself from scams and fraud

Canada Revenue Agency
Security and privacy of your information with the CRA

March 6, 2025 - Beginning July 15, 2025, you will need to use Represent a Client to obtain access to an Individual’s account.

This message provides information on an enhancement and a change to the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) authorization service for Individuals.

Improvements to the Authorization Request service in Represent a Client.

As part of the CRA’s ongoing efforts to improve service delivery by making it faster, easier, and more secure for taxpayers and their representatives, the CRA has enhanced the Alternative process for individuals Authorization Request service in Represent a Client by removing the five-day processing time. With this new enhancement, representatives will now be given instant access to their clients’ account.

To gain instant access to an Individual’s account using the Alternative process for individuals, you must:

NOTE: To use the Authorization Request service in Represent a Client, the person submitting the authorization request must be the same person seeking to be authorized or a person already associated to a GroupID or a business number(BN) registered in Represent a Client. Authorizations cannot be submitted on behalf of other representatives; however, administrators of GroupIDs or BNs registered in Represent a Client can still manage authorization requests for a group, office or organization.

Upcoming changes to EFILE’s Authorize a Representative service for Individuals

Starting July 15, 2025, in alignment with the above improvement, the current Authorize a Representative service in EFILE software will no longer be available for Individuals. As a result, you will need to use Represent a Client to obtain access. However, it is important to note that this change will not impact authorization requests submitted through EFILE for Business clients.

We all play important roles in protecting information and mitigating risks by staying up-to-date and vigilant on security best practices. This change, coupled with the measures you have in place to validate the identity of your clients, raises the level of confidence that taxpayer information is fully protected. To prepare for the change, the CRA recommends that you work with your clients to ensure the necessary documentation is available for authorizing access through Represent a Client.

Your Individual clients can give you instant access to their account if they:

If you or your client do not have a CRA account, go to Register for a CRA account. To obtain full and immediate access to your CRA account, you can use the document verification service to verify your identity without waiting for a CRA security code. For more information, go to Document verification service.

March 5, 2025 - Reminder: Trust reporting for the 2024 tax year

For the 2024 tax year, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will continue to administer the enhanced trust reporting rules as enacted for tax years ending on or after December 31, 2023. Affected trusts are required to file a T3 Income Tax and Information Return (T3 return), including Schedule 15 (Beneficial Ownership Information of a Trust), unless specific conditions are met.

Bare trusts are not required to file for the 2024 tax year
As announced on October 29, 2024, bare trusts are not required to file a T3 return and Schedule 15 for the 2023 and 2024 tax years, unless the CRA makes a direct request for these filings. Find out more: Trust reporting for the 2024 tax year.

2024 T3 return and guide are now online
The T3 return and T4013 T3 Trust Guide for the 2024 tax year are now online.

The CRA will also be publishing updates to the trust reporting requirements frequently asked questions.

Deadline to file: 90 days after trust tax year-end
The deadline for trusts to file their T3 return, and Schedule 15 if applicable, is no later than 90 days after the trust's tax year-end. The tax year-end for most trusts is the end of the calendar year. Trusts with a December 31, 2024 tax year-end need to file their T3 return by March 31, 2025. For more information, go to When to file a trust return.

Trusts with a capital disposition
The Department of Finance has announced that it will introduce legislation in Parliament in due course, related to the capital gains inclusion rate change with a new effective date of January 1, 2026. As a result, the CRA has reverted to administering the currently enacted capital gains inclusion rate of one-half. This means that all capital gains realized before January 1, 2026 will be subject to the currently enacted inclusion rate of one-half, unless an exemption applies.

With the proposed change to the effective date, the CRA has now reverted the forms posted online to the currently enacted rate.

The CRA will grant relief in respect of late-filing penalties and arrears interest until May 1, 2025, for impacted trust filers to provide additional time for taxpayers reporting capital dispositions to meet their tax filing obligations. This relief applies to both the filing of T3 information returns (slips) and the T3 return. Find out more: Update on the Canada Revenue Agency's administration of the proposed capital gains taxation changes.

Clarifying Period 1 and Period 2 reporting for capital gains dispositions
While the CRA is administering the enacted capital gains inclusion rate of one-half, we are maintaining Period 1 (dispositions that occurred prior to June 25, 2024) and Period 2 (dispositions that occurred on or after June 25, 2024) reporting on the T1 and T3 schedules. Period 1 and Period 2 reporting is being maintained to ensure continued alignment with the tax slips that have already been published and are currently being issued to Canadians and filed with the CRA. As well, the proposed increase to the lifetime capital gains exemption applies starting with capital dispositions in Period 2 of qualified farm or fishing property and qualified small business corporation shares. For more information, go to Update on the filing of information returns.

Penalties may apply
If you do not file a T3 return and you are required to, penalties and interest may apply. For more information, go to Penalties and interest.

March 4, 2025 - Reminder - Security practices for electronic filers

Purpose

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has noticed a growing threat of financial fraud and digital scams. We all play important roles in protecting information and mitigating risks by staying up-to-date and vigilant on security best practices.

This message includes simple steps that you can take to confirm the identity of your client, protect your CRA accounts and your network from cyber threats, and ways to stay alert on the latest scams and fraud trends. These tips are not meant to replace any security procedures present in your organization and should only be considered as best practices that may complement your already existing protocols.

In addition to below, adhering to the following EFILE responsibilities will help protect you against scams, and mitigate the release of taxpayer information to an unauthorized user or bad actor:

  1. An EFILER must deal directly with their client.
  2. An EFILER must validate the identity of their client.
  3. An EFILER respects that access to the EFILE Electronic Filing Service is limited solely for the purpose of the electronic filing of a return of income. Any other use is prohibited, such as but not limited to document retrieval for income verification purposes.

Validate your client’s identity

Validating your client’s identity, especially for new clients, before any transaction or release of information, whether that interaction is in person, by phone, or online, is one of the many ways to mitigate potential fraud.

This helps prevent unintended consequences, such as the release of information to unauthorized users or funds to malicious groups or individuals. Completing full validations on older clients is also recommended, as threat actors can be patient when planning more complex schemes. Below are a few ways that you can validate the identity of your clients.

In person

Telephone

Online

Protect your information and CRA accounts

There are many things you can do to help protect your information and online accounts from potential identity theft or fraud.

Some of these practices can also be applied to secure your EFILE account. For more information, go to the Protect your CRA accounts web page. If you notice suspicious activity on your account, go to the CRA’s Report a scam or identity theft web page.

Sharing insights about fraud trends and schemes with the CRA can help us identify and address fraudulent activities promptly. A collective effort will strengthen our defences against fraud and foster a more secure environment.

Secure your networks

Your networks are the master key to your most important devices and data. Implementing, promoting, and monitoring good cyber hygiene practices are critical to safeguarding your security posture. Consider the following:

Stay alert

Being aware of the latest scams and techniques that threat actors are using to commit fraud will help protect you and your clients against information theft and financial loss. The CRA's Scams and fraud web page and social media platforms share updates and information about scams and fraudulent activities. Below are some of the latest scams.

Additional resources

For more security practices, refer to the following resources:

Canada Revenue Agency
Security and privacy of your information with the CRA

Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
Protect yourself from scams and fraud

Canadian Centre for Cyber Security
Information for small and medium businesses

Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada
Cyber security resources

Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada
Methods to verify the identity of persons and entities
When to verify the identity of persons and entities – Accountants

March 3, 2025 - Change my return and ReFILE

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) strives to continually improve its services to individuals. The Change my return and ReFILE services allow individuals and their authorized representatives to request changes to their returns online. Use these digital services to avoid processing delays.

Change my return is a secure My Account service that lets individuals make online adjustment requests for the 10 previous calendar years. Representatives can access Change my return through the Represent a Client service.

ReFILE is an online service that lets individuals and EFILE service providers send online adjustment requests for the 2024, 2023, 2022, and 2021 returns through certified NETFILE software and EFILE software.

New option in ReFILE for EFILE service providers

EFILE service providers can now request changes for factual resident returns starting with the 2024 tax year and for returning residents to Canada and immigrants starting with the 2023 tax year. This option is not yet available for NETFILE.

For more information on changing your client’s return, go to After you file your tax return - Personal income tax - Canada.ca.

February 27, 2025 - Availability of Tax Slips in My Account, Represent a Client and Auto-fill my return

The CRA has granted relief in respect of late-filing penalties for information returns, such as the T3 (trust income), T4 (remuneration paid), T4A (pension and other income) and T5 (investment income). As a result, certain information returns (tax slips) may not be available in My Account, Represent a Client or the Auto-fill my return service at the time of your request.

Penalty relief period until March 7:

Penalty relief period until March 17:

Penalty relief period until May 1:

If you suspect that information is not available, please try the service again at a later date. For more on the relief periods for information returns, please go to CRA’s update on the filing of information returns - Canada.ca.

February 27, 2025 - Reminders

EFILE online service - Transmission History

You can track your transmission history, for the current filing program, on our secure EFILE web service. This service provides links to access:

Be sure to check your transmission history on a regular basis, so you can correct any errors and retransmit before the filing due dates (April 30 for most Canadians).

You can sign in to the secure site whenever it’s convenient for you!

Form T183

Be sure to check out the updates made to the Form T183, Information Return for Electronic Filing of an Individual’s income tax and benefit return.

Remember that you are required to have a completed Form T183, signed by your client, for each T1 initial and amended return you transmit, when using the EFILE or ReFILE services.

If you are also submitting a T3 Trust income tax return, please note that Form T183 TRUST, Information Return for the electronic filing of a Trust Return, must be completed and signed by the trustee, executor, liquidator or administrator prior to transmission of the return for the Trust.

February 25, 2025 - Notices of assessment and reassessment in certified tax software

The service will include the following update for February 2025:

Individuals and authorized representatives can view the NOA or NOR in certified tax software right after the return has been received and processed by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

To view the NOA or NOR:

 you must:

your client must:

Note: When your client completes Part E of Form T183 to have their NOA or NOR made available electronically to you, the CRA will not send you or your client a paper copy of the NOA or NOR.

For more information, go to NOA via tax software.

February 20, 2025 - Help your clients be ready to vote in the federal election by checking the appropriate boxes

Sent on behalf of Elections Canada

Elections Canada encourages tax preparers to ask their clients for their consent to check the boxes in the Elections Canada section of their income tax and benefit return. By consenting, eligible clients will make sure they are registered at their current address and ready to vote when a federal election is called. Sharing their name, address, and date of birth with Elections Canada is the easiest way for Canadian citizens to make sure their voter information stays up to date.

Young Canadians aged 14 to 17 who file a tax return can also consent to sharing their information with Elections Canada for the Register of Future Electors. Once eligible future electors turn 18, their information will be added to the National Register of Electors.

Accurate lists of electors allow us to better serve electors, and they also contribute to electoral integrity. Elections Canada thanks you for your continued support during this tax season.

To learn more about the Electi­ons Canada consent questions, visit elections.ca. You can also call Elections Canada at 1‑800-463-6868 or 1-800-361-8935 (TTY).

February 18, 2025 - EFILE for Non Residents

Effective for the 2024 tax year, electronic filers will be able to submit T1 income tax and benefit returns through EFILE for deemed residents of Canada filing under section 250 of the Income Tax Act (some exclusions apply).

To confirm if your software supports these return types, visit the detailed information page by clicking on the name of the company for your software product at the following website: EFILE certified software for the 2024 EFILE program.

February 17, 2025 - Business mail is going online

Get ready for online mail for business

Starting in spring 2025, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will transition to online mail as the default method of delivering most business correspondence, reflecting the CRA’s ongoing commitment to enhancing service delivery. This means your business clients will stop receiving paper mail and will start receiving most of their notices and other correspondence through the CRA’s secure online portal, My Business Account.

This change applies to all:

Businesses can prepare for this change by signing in to or registering for My Business Account and ensuring their account includes an up-to-date email address. Adding an email address allows the CRA to send notifications when important changes are made to your clients’ account and to alert you when there is new mail to view in My Business Account. Your clients can have up to three email addresses on file for each program account, and can also add you or other authorized individuals.

If your business clients are not ready to make the switch to online mail, they’ll need to make a request to activate paper mail using form RC681 – Request to Activate Paper Mail for Business to the CRA or through My Business Account starting May 2025.

For more details, you and your clients can go to canada.ca/cra-business-mail-online.

February 14, 2025 - Auto-fill my return

Auto-fill my return service will include the following updates for February 2025:

While the proposed effective date for the increase to the capital gains inclusion rate has been deferred to January 1, 2026, the CRA is maintaining capital disposition reporting for period 1 (dispositions that occurred before June 25, 2024) and period 2 (dispositions that occurred on or after June 25, 2024). This applies to both the T1 and T3 income tax return. Period 1 and period 2 reporting is being maintained to ensure continued alignment with the tax slips that have already been published and are currently being issued to Canadians and filed with the CRA. As well, the proposed increase to the lifetime capital gains exemption applies starting with the capital dispositions in period 2 of qualified farm or fishing property and qualified small business corporation shares.

Note: Auto-fill my return service will not deliver box 14 of the T5008, Statement of Securities Transactions, which is relevant for period 1 and period 2 reporting of capital dispositions and boxes 270 to 273 on the T5013, Statement of Partnership Income. Please ensure that all proper fields on the return are filled in correctly, including information not delivered by the Auto-fill my return service, and that the information provided is true, accurate and complete.

For more information, go to Auto-fill my return.

February 13, 2025 - Forms for the 2024 tax year

Sent on behalf of the Correspondence and Reporting Division.

Need a form? We encourage you to download forms, publications, and income tax products for quick and easy self-service access.

You can download the forms or publications you need directly from our website at canada.ca/get-cra-forms. The CRA will accept these forms for processing.

January 27, 2025 - Security practices for electronic filers

Purpose

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has noticed a growing threat of financial fraud and digital scams. We all play important roles in protecting information and mitigating risks by staying up-to-date and vigilant on security best practices.

This message includes simple steps that you can take to confirm the identity of your client, protect your CRA accounts and your network from cyber threats, and ways to stay alert on the latest scams and fraud trends. These tips are not meant to replace any security procedures present in your organization and should only be considered as best practices that may complement your already existing protocols.

In addition to below, adhering to the following EFILE responsibilities will help protect you against scams, and mitigate the release of taxpayer information to an unauthorized user or bad actor:

  1. An EFILER must deal directly with their client.
  2. An EFILER must validate the identity of their client.
  3. An EFILER respects that access to the EFILE Electronic Filing Service is limited solely for the purpose of the electronic filing of a return of income. Any other use is prohibited, such as but not limited to document retrieval for income verification purposes.

Validate your client’s identity

Validating your client’s identity, especially for new clients, before any transaction or release of information, whether that interaction is in person, by phone, or online, is one of the many ways to mitigate potential fraud.

This helps prevent unintended consequences, such as the release of information to unauthorized users or funds to malicious groups or individuals. Completing full validations on older clients is also recommended, as threat actors can be patient when planning more complex schemes. Below are a few ways that you can validate the identity of your clients.

Ways to validate your client’s identity
In person Telephone Online 
  • Authentic, valid, and current Government-issued photo identification
  • Appropriately complex confidentiality questions about information on file or account
  • Real-time credit file check to compare the information contained in the report with that provided by the client
  • Confidentiality questions about information on file or account
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Personal Identification Number system for clients
  • Video call, if applicable, to validate authentic, valid, and current Government-issued photo identification
  • Document validation software
  • Multi-factor authentication

Protect your information and CRA accounts

There are many things you can do to help protect your information and online accounts from potential identity theft or fraud.

Some of these practices can also be applied to secure your EFILE account. For more information, go to the Protect your CRA accounts web page. If you notice suspicious activity on your account, go to the CRA’s Report a scam or identity theft web page.

Sharing insights about fraud trends and schemes with the CRA can help us identify and address fraudulent activities promptly. A collective effort will strengthen our defences against fraud and foster a more secure environment.

Secure your networks

Your networks are the master key to your most important devices and data. Implementing, promoting, and monitoring good cyber hygiene practices are critical to safeguarding your security posture. Consider the following:

Stay alert

Being aware of the latest scams and techniques that threat actors are using to commit fraud will help protect you and your clients against information theft and financial loss. The CRA’s Scams and fraud web page and social media platforms share updates and information about scams and fraudulent activities. Below are some of the latest scams.

Additional resources

For more security practices, refer to the following resources:

January 23, 2025 - Interruption of services - System maintenance

Some Canada Revenue Agency systems will be undergoing annual maintenance. As a result, the following service interruptions will occur during the time frames noted below.

Note: There will be no interruption of service to the following EFILE online services: "Register for EFILE", "Yearly renewal" and "Account maintenance".

January 21, 2025 - Lifting of the electronic filing exclusion – Payments that are considered Qualifying retroactive lump-sum payments (QRLSP)

New for the 2025 tax filing season!

The CRA is introducing an enhancement for the 2025 tax filing season that will allow you to file electronic returns for individuals that have received payments that are considered Qualifying retroactive lump-sum payments (QRLSP). (Applicable to tax year 2024 and later years only.)

Effective February 24, 2025, if an individual provides you with a form T1198, Statement of Qualifying Retroactive Lump‑Sum Payment, or a letter from their employer that contains the same information, you can file the return electronically and advise the individual to keep the T1198 or letter for their records in case the CRA asks to see it at a later date.

You will also be able to submit electronic adjustment requests for your clients if all other conditions have been met.

For more information on QRLSP, visit Qualifying retroactive lump-sum payments - Canada.ca

January 14, 2025 - Attention: Last day to transmit T1/T3 returns and T1135 forms for T1 and T3

The Canada Revenue Agency’s T1 EFILE, ReFILE and T1135 web services will stop accepting transmissions of your clients’ initial and amended T1 individual income tax and benefit returns and T1135 forms for T1 at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, January 31, 2025 (Eastern Time), in order to convert our systems for the next filing season. These services will re-open at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, February 24, 2025 (Eastern Time).

The Canada Revenue Agency’s T3 EFILE and T1135 web services will stop accepting transmissions of your clients’ T3 Trusts returns and T1135 forms for T3 at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, January 31, 2025 (Eastern Time), in order to convert our systems for the next filing season. These services will re-open at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, February 24, 2025 (Eastern Time).

Please ensure you transmit any initial or amended T1 or T3 returns and T1135 forms by the respective dates to avoid having to wait until the new program starts.

 The following services will still be available after January 31, 2025:

Thank you for your continued support and participation.

January 10, 2025 - Update on the status of Capital Gains Tax Changes

On September 23, 2024, the government tabled a Notice of Ways and Means Motion to introduce a bill entitled An Act to amend the Income Tax Act and the Income Tax Regulations. This Notice of Ways and Means Motion modified the motion tabled on June 10, 2024. For more information about the capital gains tax changes, please visit the Notice of Ways and Means Motion.

Although these proposed changes are subject to parliamentary approval, consistent with standard practice, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is administering the changes to the capital gains inclusion rate effective June 25, 2024, based on the proposals included in the Notice of Ways and Means Motion tabled September 23, 2024. Parliamentary convention dictates that taxation proposals are effective as soon as the government tables a Notice of Ways and Means Motion; this approach provides consistency and fairness in the treatment of all taxpayers.

The CRA will issue the forms to allow taxpayers to file in accordance with the new capital gains rules by January 31, 2025. Arrears interest and penalty relief, if applicable, will be provided for those corporations and trusts impacted by these changes that have a filing due date on or before March 3, 2025.

When Parliament is prorogued, or dissolved, the CRA will generally continue to administer proposed legislation consistent with its established guidelines.

Upon resumption of Parliament, if no bill is passed in the House of Commons, and the government signals its intent to not proceed with the proposed measures, the CRA would cease to administer them. If this scenario described were to materialize, the CRA will be ready to support taxpayers in ensuring any corrective reassessments of implicated returns are processed.

January 9, 2025 - Reminder - CVITP – Important information

The 2025 filing season is fast approaching! If you plan to volunteer at a free tax clinic again this year and wish to transmit returns electronically, you must renew your EFILE account online.

The EFILE suitability screening process will only begin once you have completed your volunteer registration and submitted your EFILE renewal request. You will receive an email or a letter to advise you of the result of the screening process. This process is normally completed within 30 business days of the CRA receiving an online registration or renewal application form.

However, it is important to note that some applications may take longer to process due to circumstances that are outside of the CRA’s control, such as but not limited to: an applicant’s failure to file an income tax return, failure to comply with a requirement to pay, collect or remits taxes, and complex applications.

If you are a volunteer from Quebec, your application for NetFile Québec will be processed after your EFILE application process has been completed.

Remember to follow the steps below in order to avoid delays!

Step 1 – Register with the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP) to volunteer at a free tax clinic. If you are a resident of Quebec, register with the Income Tax Assistance – Volunteer Program (ITAVP).

Step 2 – Renew your EFILE account by going to canada.ca/efile. Only volunteers who plan to transmit returns electronically should renew their EFILE account. If you do not plan to transmit electronically, do not renew your EFILE account.

Please note: If you renew your account after October 21, 2024, you must update your tax preparation software with your newly assigned password. If you do not renew your account after October 21, 2024, you may continue to use your current password until January 31, 2025.

As of January 31, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. eastern time, we will stop accepting T1 transmissions temporarily to convert our systems for the next filing season.

As of February 1, 2025, in order to be able to transmit authorization requests, you will need to have:

If you have questions:

Renew as soon as possible!

January 6, 2025 - Interruption of services – System maintenance

Some Canada Revenue Agency systems will be undergoing annual maintenance. As a result, the following service interruptions will occur during the time frames noted below.

The following services will be temporarily unavailable from 11:00 p.m. on Friday, January 10, 2025, until 6:00 a.m. on Monday, January 13, 2025 (Eastern Time):

Note: There will be no interruption of service to the following EFILE online services:

January 2, 2025 - Reminder – Have you renewed your access to our electronic services? 

Thank you for using the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) electronic services!

We are proud to work with you to continue to build on this success story and are grateful for your hard work and dedication as we embark on another filing season.

To maintain your access for the coming year, including receiving emails from the CRA, you must renew your participation online. This will allow you to use the following electronic services:

The CRA conducts suitability screening each year before electronic filing applicants are permitted to electronically file income tax returns on behalf of their clients. This process is normally completed within 30 business days of the CRA receiving an online registration or renewal application form.

However, it is important to note that some applications may take longer to process due to circumstances that are outside of the CRA’s control, such as but not limited to: an applicant’s failure to file an income tax return, failure to comply with a requirement to pay, collect or remits taxes, and complex applications. Please submit your renewal as early as possible to avoid unnecessary delays.

When you renew, you must update your tax preparation software with your newly assigned password. If you DO NOT renew your account, you may continue to use your current password until January 31, 2025.

As of February 1, 2025, in order to be able to transmit individual and business authorization and cancellation requests, special elections and returns, and file T2 returns, you will need to have:

In order to update our systems for the next filing season:

Access to the EFILE Electronic Filing Service is limited solely for the purposes of the electronic filing of any return of income. Any other use is prohibited. As an electronic filer, you have to comply with the EFILE procedures that are available at canada.gc.ca/efile. We encourage you to review the criteria for our suitability screening process and familiarize yourself with the information on these pages before using EFILE. Special attention must be made to review your responsibilities as an electronic filer, which include verifying your clients’ identity and protecting taxpayer information.

IMPORTANT NOTE: You have to complete Form T183 for each initial and amended T1 return you transmit. Form T183 will be revised for the 2025 filing program. Please ensure that you review the changes made to the form.

How to renew

Have you lost your EFILE number or password?

Note: You only need one EFILE number to file all your clients’ income tax returns. Only tax preparation businesses that operate more than one location are required to have multiple EFILE numbers. If you operate more than one location, remember to complete a separate renewal request for each EFILE number.

Discounter Information

Questions

December 13, 2024 - Working Canadians Rebate

File your clients’ 2023 tax return(s) by December 31, 2024 to ensure they receive the proposed $250 Working Canadians Rebate. This one-time payment, announced on November 21, 2024, is expected to be issued in Spring 2025, pending parliamentary approval. Eligibility details and more information will be available in the coming weeks.

Filing these tax returns also means clients will receive any federal, provincial, or territorial benefits and credits they may be entitled to.

November 28, 2024 - Reminder – Have you renewed your access to our electronic services?

Thank you for using the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) electronic services!

We are proud to work with you to continue to build on this success story and are grateful for your hard work and dedication as we embark on another filing season.

To maintain your access for the coming year, including receiving emails from the CRA, you must renew your participation online. This will allow you to use the following electronic services:

The CRA conducts suitability screening each year before electronic filing applicants are permitted to electronically file income tax returns on behalf of their clients. This process is normally completed within 30 business days of the CRA receiving an online registration or renewal application form.

However, it is important to note that some applications may take longer to process due to circumstances that are outside of the CRA’s control, such as but not limited to: an applicant’s failure to file an income tax return, failure to comply with a requirement to pay, collect or remits taxes, and complex applications. Please submit your renewal as early as possible to avoid unnecessary delays.

When you renew, you must update your tax preparation software with your newly assigned password. If you DO NOT renew your account, you may continue to use your current password until January 31, 2025.

As of February 1, 2025, in order to be able to transmit individual and business authorization and cancellation requests, special elections and returns, and file T2 returns, you will need to have:

In order to update our systems for the next filing season:

Access to the EFILE Electronic Filing Service is limited solely for the purposes of the electronic filing of any return of income. Any other use is prohibited. As an electronic filer, you have to comply with the EFILE procedures that are available at canada.gc.ca/efile. We encourage you to review the criteria for our suitability screening process and familiarize yourself with the information on these pages before using EFILE. Special attention must be made to review your responsibilities as an electronic filer, which include verifying your clients’ identity and protecting taxpayer information.

IMPORTANT NOTE: You have to complete Form T183 for each initial and amended T1 return you transmit. Form T183 will be revised for the 2025 filing program. Please ensure that you review the changes made to the form.

How to renew

Have you lost your EFILE number or password?

Note: You only need one EFILE number to file all your clients’ income tax returns. Only tax preparation businesses that operate more than one location are required to have multiple EFILE numbers. If you operate more than one location, remember to complete a separate renewal request for each EFILE number.

Discounter Information

Questions

November 26, 2024 - Taxpayer Self-service (TSS) – Payment transfers and other online requests for individuals

A new service option, “Make an online request”, has been added to the “Accounts and payments” page in My Account. In addition to the self-service real time transfer options already available, this enhancement allows taxpayers and their authorized representatives to submit requests to:

The new TSS online request functionality will reduce the need to call the Individual tax enquiries line, or prepare and mail paper correspondence.

October 30, 2024 - CVITP – Important information

The 2025 filing season is fast approaching! If you plan to volunteer at a free tax clinic again this year and wish to transmit returns electronically, you must renew your EFILE account online.

The EFILE suitability screening process will only begin once you have completed your volunteer registration and submitted your EFILE renewal request. You will receive an email or a letter to advise you of the result of the screening process. This process is normally completed within 30 business days of the CRA receiving an online registration or renewal application form.

However, it is important to note that some applications may take longer to process due to circumstances that are outside of the CRA’s control, such as but not limited to: an applicant’s failure to file an income tax return, failure to comply with a requirement to pay, collect or remits taxes, and complex applications.

To ensure that your application is processed before the start of the next filing season, we encourage you to submit your application before December 31. Please submit your renewal as early as possible to avoid unnecessary delays.

If you are a volunteer from Quebec, your application for NetFile Québec will be processed after your EFILE application process has been completed.

Remember to follow the steps below in order to avoid delays!

Step 1 – Register with the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP) to volunteer at a free tax clinic. If you are a resident of Quebec, register with the Income Tax Assistance – Volunteer Program (ITAVP).

Step 2 – Renew your EFILE account by going to canada.ca/efile. Only volunteers who plan to transmit returns electronically should renew their EFILE account. If you do not plan to transmit electronically, do not renew your EFILE account.

Please note: If you renew your account on or after October 21, 2024, you must update your tax preparation software with your newly assigned password. If you do not renew your account on or after October 21, 2024, you may continue to use your current password until January 31, 2025.

As of January 31, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. eastern time, we will stop accepting T1 transmissions temporarily to convert our systems for the next filing season.

As of February 1, 2025, in order to be able to transmit authorization requests, you will need to have:

If you have questions:

Renew as soon as possible!

October 21, 2024 - Electronic Services – 2025 Program

Thank you for using the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) electronic services!

We are proud to work with you to continue to build on this success story and are grateful for your hard work and dedication as we embark on another filing season.

To maintain your access for the coming year, including receiving emails from the CRA, you must renew your participation online. This will allow you to use the following electronic services:

The CRA conducts suitability screening each year before electronic filing applicants are permitted to electronically file income tax returns on behalf of their clients. This process is normally completed within 30 business days of the CRA receiving an online registration or renewal application form.

However, it is important to note that some applications may take longer to process due to circumstances that are outside of the CRA’s control, such as but not limited to: an applicant’s failure to file an income tax return, failure to comply with a requirement to pay, collect or remits taxes, and complex applications. Please submit your renewal as early as possible to avoid unnecessary delays.

If you renew on or after October 21, 2024, you must update your tax preparation software with your newly assigned password. If you DO NOT renew your account on or after October 21, 2024, you may continue to use your current password until January 31, 2025.

As of February 1, 2025, in order to be able to transmit individual and business authorization and cancellation requests, and file T2 returns, you will need to have:

In order to update our systems for the next filing season:

Access to the EFILE Electronic Filing Service is limited solely for the purposes of the electronic filing of any return of income. Any other use is prohibited. As an electronic filer, you have to comply with the EFILE procedures that are available at canada.gc.ca/efile. We encourage you to review the criteria for our suitability screening process and familiarize yourself with the information on these pages before using EFILE. Special attention must be made to review your responsibilities as an electronic filer, which include verifying your clients’ identity and protecting taxpayer information.

IMPORTANT NOTE: You have to complete Form T183 for each initial and amended T1 return you transmit. Form T183 will be revised for the 2025 filing program. Please ensure that you review the changes made to the form.

How to renew

Have you lost your EFILE number or password?

Note: You only need one EFILE number to file all your clients’ income tax returns. Only tax preparation businesses that operate more than one location are required to have multiple EFILE numbers. If you operate more than one location, remember to complete a separate renewal request for each EFILE number.

Discounter Information

Questions

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