The CRA is requesting more information about your income tax return after you’ve already cleaned out and packed up your tax folders.
Breathe.
A tax review is different from a tax audit. A review is a simpler look at the tax return information, where an audit is a more formal and detailed analysis of the taxpayers return.
The CRA regularly conducts review programs as an important part of the self-assessment tax system. To determine if they’ve assessed your return correctly, they may request more supporting documents and information that applies to the situation your being reviewed for.
They may select your income tax for review for multiple reasons:
A. Could be a conflict of information between third-party sources (slips issued by your employer, financial institution, your history of credits claimed and deducted)
B. Could be unusual claims or significant changes from your filing history; or…
C. Sometimes, its as simple as a random selection.
Also keep in mind that there are a few different types of reviews:
- Pre-assessment Review Program (The CRA conducts a review before processing your return and issuing a Notice of Assessment. The peak period for this program is between February and July.)
- Processing Review Program (The CRA reviews your return after issuing a Notice of Assessment usually between August and December.)
- Matching Program (This can take place before or after the Notice of Assessment is issued, where information from your tax return is compared to a third-party source -your employer or a financial institution.)
- Special Assessments Program (This also takes place after the Notice of Assessment is issued. It is a more in-depth review, resulting from trends in non-compliance that have come to the attention of the CRA.)
If you get selected for review, not to worry…We are here to help! It’s time to co-operate!
Avoid unwanted fees. Do not ignore the CRA’s request to provide additional information on your tax return. The CRA can adjust as they see fit based on the information available. Respond to their request within the specified time frame (usually 30 days) of receiving your notice and avoid the unnecessary hassle. To respond, you must include your reference number (located at the top right corner of their letter to you) and provide all of the information requested.
Do not fret! As concerning as it may seem to receive a letter from the CRA requesting additional information, it’s quite common. As long as you keep your legitimate receipts, slips and letters organized, you won’t need to scramble. This process is as fast and simple as you make it.
If your claim was changed after being reviewed by one of the CRA’s programs and you have additional information or documents related to the claim, the CRA will accept all new submissions and review your claim again for a possible adjustment. Send any additional information or documents to the address indicated on the letter you received or online using your “My Account”.
If you have any other questions regarding a letter you may have received, the SheDo Squad is happy to help. Reach out and will respond in a timely manner.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
Shannon Smith, 1/3 of our Epic SheDo Squad