June 2007 Archives

How Canadians pay their taxes

According to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), to date (for 2006 tax filing), the CRA has received over 18.3 million payments. According to the CRA web site, "the vast majority of Canadians prefer to pay their taxes through their financial institutions, electronic banking, or by cheque. Cash payments continue to decline and make up only 0.3% of all payments."

For more information on how Canadians pay their taxes, see the CRA web site at:
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/newsroom/releases/2007/june/nr070622-e.html

Alberta June Tax Notes

The June 2007 issue of Alberta Finance's Tax Notes is now available on the Government of Alberta web site. Articles in this edition include:
- Budget 2007 impact on small business and tobacco taxes...
- The shoe was on the other foot for TRA, when the IFTA auditors paid a visit...
- Client satisfaction and Tax Notes survey results are in...
- Aggressive tax planning schemes and what we're doing about them...
- IFTA training for carriers coming this fall...
- How we're responding to your needs with web enhancements... and more.

For more information, see Alberta Finance, Tax and Revenue Administration, at:
http://www.finance.gov.ab.ca/tax_notes/Publication/2007_0618.pdf

Electronic filing continues to be the choice of Canadians

According to statistics provided by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), for the 2006 tax filing the majority of Canadians continue to use electronic filing as their method of choice. According to the CRA, "to date, over 23.6 million tax returns have been filed, with the average refund being $1,254.26."

"The most popular methods, EFILE and NETFILE, recorded a combined increase of 5.2% compared to 2006. Paper filing continues to decrease, recording a 4.3% decline from 2006."

For more information on this news release, please see:
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/newsroom/releases/2007/june/nr070614-e.html

Taxpayer Bill of Rights and Taxpayers' Ombudsman

The following news release announcing the Taxpayer Bill of Rights and Taxpayers' Ombudsman is now available on the Canada Revenue Agency Web site.

The Honourable Carol Skelton, Minister of National Revenue, joined by the Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance and Regional Minister for the Greater Toronto area, today announced two new initiatives, a Taxpayer Bill of Rights and a Taxpayers' Ombudsman, to ensure Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is more accountable to Canadians.

“All taxpayers will be better served by these new initiatives that will enhance the services delivered to Canadians by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA),” said Minister Skelton. “We want taxpayers to know they have rights and that we at the CRA take these rights seriously. By introducing a Taxpayer Bill of Rights, we are ensuring that taxpayers are served with a higher standard of service, and if that fails, they have a Taxpayers’ Ombudsman to turn to.”

“When it comes to taxes, this government not only believes in strong accountability, but fairness,” said Minister Flaherty. “We have introduced the Tax Fairness Plan and the Anti-Tax Haven Initiative. Our next important step is introducing a Taxpayer Bill of Rights and a Taxpayers’ Ombudsman, which will ensure fair treatment of all taxpayers by the CRA.”

The Taxpayer Bill of Rights includes 15 rights, plus 5 new commitments for small businesses. The Ombudsman is expected to be operational by fall 2007, and will operate independently and at arm’s length from the CRA. Taxpayers who are unsatisfied with the action or response from the CRA may request the Taxpayers’ Ombudsman, to undertake an independent review.

For more information, see the CRA web site at:
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/newsroom/releases/2007/may/nr070528-e.html