Podcast: Automatic Tax Filing - Will It Work?

Last week Taxpayers' Ombudsperson François Boileau  tabled his annual report:  In Pursuit of Better Service: Taxpayers Deserve More.  once again, it was nothing short of scathing, as CRA received its highest number of complaints in the last three years.  Calling our “completely nuts” Income Tax Act a potential barrier, he is nonetheless pushing for automatic tax filing as a potential solution.  A new episode of Real Tax News with Evelyn Jacks & Friends available next week, will feature guest Gillian Petit, Ph.D. - author of a great report, Welcome News for Lower-Income Canadians, but There’s More to Do - which takes a deeper dive.  Consider the following:

Last fall, Cheryl Gallant, MP for Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke introduced the Disability Tax Credit Promoters Restrictions Act, a private members bill to limit the fees charged for the preparation of Disability Tax Credit Applications.

Tax filing season is over for close to 20 million Canadians whose tax returns have already been assessed this year. Of those, 14%, or just under 3 million taxpayers, had a balance due. On average, they owed $3700 upon filing; the rest got refunds (65%) or filed a nil return (21%) to receive refundable tax credits.

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The May 2 Ontario Budget announced the government’s intention to introduce legislative changes on various issues.

The article "Must Audit Support Documents be Electronically Filed?", published in the April 17, 2013 issue of Knowledge Bureau Report has been amended.

A “synthetic disposition” refers to financial arrangements which allow taxpayers to defer tax by “economically” disposing of a property while continuing to own it for tax purposes. These transactions were shut down as of Budget Day, March 21, 2013.