ARCHIVED - General Income Tax and Benefit Guide - 2000

More ways to serve you

You now have more ways to get information on how to file your tax return. This year, we offer you service:

over the Internet:

 get the information and forms you need at: www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca

over the telephone:

• 1-800-959-8281 (personal service for individuals)
• 1-800-959-5525 (personal service for businesses)
• 1-800-267-6999 (to access T.I.P.S., our automated Tax Information Phone Service)
• 1-800-959-2221 (to order forms)

in person:

• visit your tax services office to pick up forms and get answers to your questions.
• Check the government section of your telephone book or visit our Web site for the location.

www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca

At your service

What if you need help?

In this guide, we use plain language to explain the most common tax situations. If you need more help after reading this guide, we have other services available.

You can use our T.I.P.S. Info-Tax services to get information on many tax topics. See the T.I.P.S. information inside the back cover.

Throughout this guide, we mention forms, pamphlets, interpretation bulletins, information circulars, and other guides that give more details on specific tax topics. We will send you some of these guides in the mail by late February, depending on the type of income you reported and the deductions or credits you claimed on your return for 1999.

You can get from us any of the publications mentioned in this guide. Visit us or call 1-800-959-2221. In addition, if you need a copy of the General return itself or a particular schedule, you can get exactly what you need from us.

Internet access

You can find most of our publications at our www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca Web site. For any other tax information, you should contact your tax services office.

Before you contact us

We want to provide you with the best service possible. You can help us answer your questions more quickly if you have all of your information ready. Before contacting us you should do all of the following:

• read the appropriate sections of this guide and other publications we mention in this guide;
• prepare all the details of your situation and question; and
• have on hand the working copy of your return, any related papers or receipts, a pencil, and some paper.

Being prepared helps us both!

Contacting us

The telephone numbers and address of your tax services office are listed in the government section of your telephone book and on the "Contact us" page of our Web site. For faster service, call or visit us before 10:00 a.m. or after 2:00 p.m.

By phone (individuals) - You can call 1-800-959-8281. Our automated service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Agents are available Monday to Friday (except holidays) from 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (local time) year round. From February 19 to April 30, this has been extended to 10:00 p.m. weekdays, and from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on weekends.

By phone (businesses) - You can call 1-800-959-5525. Our automated service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Agents are available Monday to Friday (except holidays) from 8:15 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (local time) year round.

In person - You can visit us Monday to Friday (except holidays) from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. year round. From February 19 to April 30, you can visit until 5:00 p.m. In some offices, where there is a continuing demand, this applies year round. Check to see if it applies to your office.

By fax - You can send us correspondence by facsimile. However, because of the nature of facsimile services, we are not responsible for misdirected, incomplete, or illegible documents.

Teletypewriter (TTY) users - If you have a hearing or speech impairment and use a TTY, an agent at our bilingual enquiry service (1-800-665-0354) can assist you during the hours shown under "By phone (individuals)" on this page.

Getting personal tax information

Your personal tax information is confidential. Therefore, we follow certain procedures before we will give your personal information to you or your representative, including your spouse. See "Representatives" below.

If you visit us, and ask for personal tax information, we will ask you to identify yourself. In addition, we will ask for one of the following:

• one piece of signed identification with your picture;
• two pieces of signed identification;
• your Notice of Assessment, Notice of Reassessment, or other tax documents; or
• information about the contents of your return.

If you call us, and ask for personal tax information, we will ask you to identify yourself and give information about the contents of your return. If you call before May 1, use your return for 1999. After April 30, use your return for 2000.

Representatives

You can authorize a representative, such as your spouse, tax preparer, or accountant, to get information on your tax matters. However, we will give information to your representative only after we are satisfied that you have authorized us in writing to do so.

If your representative visits us, and asks for your personal tax information, we will give this information only if we have received (or your representative provides) a completed Form T1013, Consent Form, (or a letter containing the same information) that you have signed. After we confirm that we have your written permission, we also will ask your representative for either of the following:

• one piece of signed identification with his or her picture; or
• two pieces of signed identification.

In addition, we will ask for either of the following:

• your Notice of Assessment, Notice of Reassessment, or other tax documents; or
• information about the contents of your return.

If your representative calls us, and asks for your personal tax information, we will give this information only if we have received a completed Form T1013 or letter that you have signed. After we confirm that we have your written permission, we also will ask your representative for information about the contents of your return. A representative who calls before May 1 should use your return for 1999. A representative who calls after April 30 should use your return for 2000.

Community Volunteer Income Tax Program

We teach volunteers how to complete basic tax returns for low-income individuals with simple tax situations. If you need a volunteer's help, you want to help out in your community, or you want more information about this free program, call us at 1-800-959-8281.

Fairness and client rights

At the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, fairness and the promotion of our clients' rights have long been key goals. Recently, as part of the Fairness Initiative, we formalized our commitment to enhanced fairness through Our Fairness Pledge. We also published a new declaration of client rights (see the back cover of this guide) as well as a new guide called Your Rights. To get a copy of this guide or more information on fairness and client rights, contact your tax services office or visit our Web site at www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca on the "Fairness and Client Rights" page.