Confirm my representative's authorization request

Confirm my Representative is a two-step verification process that allows you to easily and securely control who has access and what level of access your representative has to your personal and tax information. As an individual taxpayer, business owner, or trustee of a trust account, you can confirm certain authorization requests submitted by your representative. You can do this easily and securely using the Confirm my Representative service in your CRA account.

On this page

• If you're an individual
• If you're a business owner
• If you're a trustee of a trust account
• If you're a registered plan owner
• If you have a non-resident tax account
• Relevant information for your representatives

If you're an individual

Alternative process for individuals

You (or your legal representative) can also choose to authorize your representative using your information from a previous notice of assessment. If you choose this option:

1. you must provide your representative with information from a notice of assessment that was sent to you at least six months ago
2. your representative must provide this information when they submit their initial authorization request
3. you'll need to sign the certification page before they can submit it to us
4. your representative will need to submit the signed certification page using the Submit button in their "Pending authorization requests" table in Represent a Client. Do not mail or fax a copy of the certification page to the CRA. These copies won't be processed or returned to you

Even with this information provided, the CRA may still contact you (or your legal representative) to verify your representative's authorization request. Your representative's request for authorization will generally be processed instantly.

If you're a business owner

Your representative can submit authorization requests using Represent a Client or using their certified tax software (EFILE). You must use the Confirm my Representative service in My Business Account to confirm or deny these requests.

How to access Confirm my Representative in My Business Account

You must have already added My Business Account to your CRA account to use the Confirm my Representative service.

• If you have already added My Business Account, you can turn on email notifications to get messages when your representative submits a new authorization request. You can access your authorization requests in the "Authorized representatives" section in My Business Account
• If you have not added My Business Account yet, you have two options:
  • If you're already registered for a CRA account, as a business owner, you also have access to My Business Account. Simply sign in to your CRA account, and select Add account to add My Business Account
  • Register for your CRA account and, after verifying your identity, select Add account to add My Business Account

Once you have accessed My Business Account, you'll need to add your business number to your account. You can only complete this if your name and social insurance number match the information the CRA has on file for your business. If you get an error message at this step, you'll need to contact the CRA to update your records.

Confirming or denying authorization requests

If a representative submits an authorization request, you must confirm or deny it within 10 business days in My Business Account or the request will be cancelled. If you still want to authorize a representative after this time period, you must ask your representative to submit a new request.

To confirm or deny an authorization request from your representative, complete the following steps:

For information about corporations, go to Access to corporate tax information.

Alternative process for sole proprietors

Sole proprietors who want to use the same representative for both their business and personal taxes may not have to use the Confirm my Representative service in My Business Account. If you're a sole proprietor and you don't have access to the CRA account and Confirm my Representative services, the CRA may automatically activate authorization requests that your representative submits through Represent a Client or certified tax software (EFILE) after you have signed the appropriate signature page. You may be eligible if you meet certain conditions such as:

• you're a sole proprietor
• your social insurance number is linked to your business account
• you already have the representative authorized on your individual account

Your representative's request for authorization will generally be processed within five business days.

Exclusions to the Confirm my Representative service

Confirm my Representative isn't available for businesses where all of the owners or directors have been identified to the CRA as being non-residents of Canada and there is no delegated authority, or if the authorization request is certified (signed) by a legal representative (such as an executor or a trustee) of the business. In these cases:

1. your representative will need you to sign the certification page generated in Represent a Client when they submit the authorization request to the CRA
2. your representative will then need to submit the signed certification page using the Submit button in their "Pending authorization request" table. Do not mail or fax a copy of the certification page to the CRA. These copies won't be processed or returned to you

Even with this information provided, the CRA may contact the business by telephone to verify a representative's authorization request. Your representative's request for authorization will generally be processed within five days. It is very important to keep the residency status of a business owner up-to-date in the CRA's records.

If you're unable to access My Business Account, you may contact Business Enquiries at 1-800-959-5525 for more information.

If you're a trustee of a trust account

Your representative can submit authorization requests using Represent a Client and ask you to finalize the request. You must use the Confirm my Representative service in My Trust Account to confirm or deny these requests.

If you're a primary trustee and you don't have access to My Trust Account, go to About My Trust Account.

How to access Confirm my Representative in My Trust Account

You must be authorized as a trustee in My Trust Account to use the Confirm my Representative service.

If you're a trustee with online access to the trust account, you can sign in to your CRA account to access Represent a Client and find your authorization requests in the "Authorized representative(s)" section in My Trust Account.

To confirm or deny an authorization request from your representative, complete the following steps:

If you’re a registered plan owner

How to confirm a representative in the Registered Plan Administrator Account

You must have already added the Registered Plan Administrator Account to your CRA account to confirm a representative.

If you have already added your Registered Plan Administrator Account you can access your authorization requests in the “Authorized representative” section. You can turn on email notifications to get messages when your representative submits a new authorization request.

If you have not added the Registered Plan Administrator Account yet, refer to How to access the Registered Plan Administrator Account. Once you have accessed your Registered Plan Administrator Account, you’ll need to add the registered plan number you want your representative to access.

Confirming or denying authorization requests

If a representative submits an authorization request, you must confirm or deny it within 10 business days in your Registered Plan Administrator Account or the request will be cancelled. If you still want to authorize a representative after this period, you must ask your representative to submit a new request.

To confirm or deny an authorization request from your representative, complete the following steps:

1. Sign in to your CRA account
2. On the Welcome page, select your registered plan to access Registered Plan Administrator Account
3. From the navigation menu on the left, select Profile
4. In the "Authorized representatives" section, select Confirm pending authorizations
5. Select the name(s) of the representative(s) that are pending authorization
6. Select Confirm authorization or Deny authorization

Alternative process – for representatives

From the Represent a Client page, select Authorization Request from the navigation menu on the left-hand side.

Then take the following steps:

1. Select the applicable representative identifier from the drop-down list of selections:
   1. RepID
   2. BN
   3. GroupID
2. After this selection you will be redirected to the Manage authorization request page
3. Select Add authorization request to provide details about your authorization request and Plan identification information:
   1. Select the Registered Plan client type
   2. Select the authorization level Add authorization information – Plan identification information
4. After you have made the mandatory selections, you will be redirected to a process to review and submit your request
5. Once your request is complete, have your client finalize the authorization in their Registered Plan Administrator Account from the Pending authorization requests table on their “Profile – Authorized representatives” page

If you have a non-resident tax account

Your representative can submit authorization requests using Represent a Client. You must use the Confirm my Representative service in Non-Resident Withholding Tax to confirm or deny these requests.

How to access Confirm my Representative in Non-Resident Withholding Tax

You must have already added Non-Resident Withholding Tax to your CRA account to use the Confirm my Representative service.

• If you have already added Non-Resident Withholding Tax, you can turn on email notifications to get messages when your representative submits a new authorization request. You can access your authorization requests in the "Authorized representatives" section in Non-Resident Withholding Tax 
• If you have not added Non-Resident Withholding Tax yet, you have two options:
  • If you're already registered for a CRA account, to view other accounts, simply sign in to your CRA account, and select Add account to add your non-resident tax account number and have access to Non-Resident Withholding Tax
  • Register for your CRA account and, after verifying your identity, select Add account to add your non-resident tax account number and access Non-Resident Withholding Tax

Confirming or denying authorization requests

If a representative submits an authorization request, you must confirm or deny it within 10 business days in Non-Resident Withholding Tax or the request will be cancelled. If you still want to authorize a representative after this time period, you must ask your representative to submit a new request.

To confirm or deny an authorization request from your representative, complete the following steps:

Step 1: Sign in to your CRA account

Step 2: Select your Non-resident tax account to access Non-Resident Withholding Tax

Step 3: From the navigation menu on the left, select Profile

Step 4: In the "Authorized representatives" section, select Manage authorized representatives

Step 5: Select Confirm pending authorizations

Step 6: Select the pending request

Step 7: Select Confirm or Deny to finalize the request

Relevant information for your representatives

The process to confirm a representative will apply to all new authorization requests that your representative submits using Represent a Client and for requests they submit through the Business Consent Service in certified tax software (EFILE).

After submitting the authorization request

Your representative can view the status of their authorization requests in Represent a Client. If they submit a new request before the original request is confirmed or denied, it will replace the original request.