Influencing change
Since its creation, the Office of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson (OTO) has been submitting systemic examination reports to the Minister of National Revenue (Minister) on issues found in the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) service affecting a large number of taxpayers or a segment of the population. These reports include recommendations to the Minister for changes to be made by the CRA to address the issues examined and improve its service to taxpayers. Once submitted to the Minister, the OTO publishes the report on its website no sooner than sixty (60) days after.Footnote 1
The OTO has been requesting follow-up information from the CRA on its actions in response to the recommendations made in systemic examination reports. In December 2017, the CRA provided follow-up information on eight of the systemic examination reports. Since then the OTO has been doing additional research and obtaining further information from the CRA on actions it has taken in response to the recommendations, to determine if the recommendations have been implemented and the service issues addressed.
In August 2018, the OTO received follow-up information on the three systemic examination reports published in 2017 and 2018. The OTO will also do additional research on this information and the issues raised in those systemic examination reports, to determine if the recommendations have been implemented and the service issues addressed.
The following is a breakdown of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson’s systemic examination reports, the recommendations, the actions taken by the CRA, and the OTO’s analysis of those actions:
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| Systemic Examination Reports | Published | Ombudsperson's recommendations | Recommendations accepted by Minister of National Revenue | Actions taken by the CRA | OTO's analysis of the CRA's actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Right to Know Examination of the sufficiency of information in Decision Letters from the Appeals Branch of the CRA [view report] |
August 2010 | 1 | 1 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | The CRA has implemented the recommendation and addressed the issues. [view analysis] |
| Proving Your Status Establishing eligibility for the Canada Child Tax Benefit [view report] |
October 2010 | 5 | 5 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | The CRA has not taken appropriate action to resolve the issues raised in the report. The OTO has opened an examination into the ongoing service issues. |
| Knowing the Rules Confusion about the rules governing the Tax-Free Savings Account [view report] |
June 2011 | 3 | 3 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | Analysis in progress. |
| Earning Credits Service and fairness issues in the assessment of tuition tax credits for expenses incurred attending educational institutions outside Canada [view report] |
March 2012 | 5 | 5 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | The CRA has taken appropriate steps to address this issue and the recommendations in the report. |
| Acting on ATIP Service issues in the CRA’s Access to Information and Privacy processes [view report] |
March 2012 | 7 | 7 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | Analysis in progress. |
| Getting it Right Investigation of service and fairness issues arising from the misallocation of payments by the CRA [view report] |
July 2012 | 3 | 3 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | Analysis in progress. |
| Donor Beware Investigation into the sufficiency of the Canada Revenue Agency's warnings about questionable tax shelter schemes [view report] |
December 2013 | 4 | 4 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | The CRA has taken appropriate steps to address this issue and the recommendations in the report. |
| Alive and Well Investigation into the erroneous coding of taxpayers as deceased by the Canada Revenue Agency [view report] |
February 2014 | 8 | 8 | The CRA's December 2017 update. | The CRA is taking appropriate steps to address the issue raised in the report. The OTO continues to monitor for complaints. |
| Rights and Rulings An examination into the sufficiency of informe-agency/corporate/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/service-improvements-updates.htation in ruling letters from the CPP/EI Rulings Division of the Canada Revenue Agency [view report] |
March 2017 | 5 | 5 | The CRA's August 2018 and September 2019 update. | The CRA has taken appropriate steps to address this issue and the recommendations in the report. |
Without Delay |
September 2017 | 4 | 3 | The CRA's August 2018, and September 2019 update. | Analysis in progress. |
| Benefits Unsheltered An examination into the Canada Revenue Agency's communication and outreach efforts to shelters and other support organizations about benefits and credits administered by the Canada Revenue Agency. [view report] |
December 2017 | 3 | 3 | The CRA's August 2018, and September 2019 update. | Analysis in progress. |
| Fair warning An examination into service issues related to legal warnings issued by the Canada Revenue Agency during debt collection procedures. [view report] |
March 2019 | 9 | 9 | The CRA's September 2019 update. | Analysis pending. |
| Sub-Standard An examination into delays and lack of transparency in the Canada Revenue Agency's processing of individual income tax and benefit returns and adjustment requests. [view report] | February 2020 | 15 | 14 | ||
| Reaching Out An examination into improving the Canada Revenue Agency’s Community Volunteer Income Tax Program [view report] | May 2020 | 15 | 14 | ||
| Back to Basics An examination into whether the CRA is using the Taxpayer Bill of Rights as a foundational document to guide its daily activities; and how the CRA ensures it is continually accountable in upholding taxpayer rights and reporting publicly on how it does this. [view report] | June 2020 | 14 | 14 | ||
| 15 Reports | 101 recommendations made | 98 recommendations accepted |
Select [view report] under each Systemic Examination Report title to view the report. Click on the number under the "Ombudsperson's recommendations" column to view the recommendations specific to that report. Select "update" under "Actions taken by the CRA" to see the update provided by the CRA. Select “[See OTO’s News Release]” under “Recommendations accepted by Minister of National Revenue” to see information on the one recommendation not accepted.
The OTO will follow up on actions taken by the CRA in response to future recommendations made by the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson.
The Taxpayers' Ombudsperson also achieves results for Canadians by examining and resolving individual taxpayer complaints. For more information, see the Digest of Taxpayer Service Rights.
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