This story was updated on May 8 with additional comment from CPA Canada.
If your client is a business owner, they have a new task to add to their already busy calendars: checking for online correspondence from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). That’s because, beginning next week, businesses will receive notices of assessment and other tax correspondence only online, unless they make a specific request for paper mail.
Beginning May 12, the CRA will transition to online mail as the default method of delivering most business correspondence, the agency reminded business owners in a release on Wednesday.
The change, announced last fall, applies as of May 12 to new business number and program account registrations. It will apply as of June 16 to existing businesses registered for My Business Account or those with representatives who access CRA services on their behalf through Represent a Client.
“Going digital means businesses will need to sign in to My Business Account to receive important pieces of correspondence, such as notices of assessment,” the CRA said in its release. The change aims to make it faster, easier and more secure for businesses to manage tax obligations online, it said.
In a blog post in February, Grewal Guyatt LLP said missed mail can have a “significant impact” on a business’s ability to object or appeal the CRA’s assessment. “Business owners should be aware of this upcoming change and be proactive in ensuring that they have access to their CRA Business Accounts,” the firm said. “This includes making sure that the email address on the CRA Account is up-to-date.”
“Without existing online access, businesses will need to promptly sign up for My Business Account to avoid losing access to important CRA correspondence (including notices of assessment), increasing the risk of missed deadlines and compliance issues,” CPA Canada said in an online post in March.
Exempt from the change are existing businesses not registered for My Business Account through the business owner or a representative, charities and non-resident businesses with no access to My Business Account through a representative or Canadian-resident owner or director. These businesses will continue to receive their CRA correspondence by paper mail, the CRA release said.
Business correspondence includes notices, letters, forms, statements and other documents from the CRA regarding business tax accounts or returns. The CRA considers correspondence received on the date it’s posted to My Business Account.
Certain correspondence that can’t be delivered online will continue to be mailed — cheques, for example, if the business isn’t set up for direct deposit.
Beginning May 12, business owners can request to receive correspondence by paper mail via the business account of their CRA account or by filling out and mailing form RC681 (request to activate paper mail for my business).
In an email, Ryan Minor, director of tax with CPA Canada, said it’s unclear whether authorized representatives will be able to make the request on behalf of clients in their CRA accounts.
The CRA warned that if the request is made by paper mail between May 12 and June 16, the business owner may still receive correspondence online in My Business Account until the agency processes the request.
The CRA also said any undeliverable paper mail will result in a change to online mail, so business owners receiving paper mail should keep their mailing addresses up-to-date. Further, to keep receiving paper mail, a request must be made every two years, the release said.
In its March post, CPA Canada said that it had outlined its concerns about the shift to online mail in a submission to the CRA.
For example, it recommended that taxpayers be allowed to request paper correspondence when creating a new business number or adding a program account to an existing business number.
“Many taxpayers require business numbers for specific and often limited purposes, and may not have the capabilities necessary for digital communication,” CPA Canada said. “For instance, relatives of disabled or elderly individuals who employ caregivers may need a business number solely to remit source deductions.”
CPA Canada had also said businesses and taxpayers shouldn’t transition to online mail solely because a representative has access through Represent a Client: “Representatives often have access for specific and limited purposes and are usually not responsible for accessing CRA correspondence for taxpayers.”
With the impending changes as they stand, “timely action is essential to ensure uninterrupted access to CRA communications,” Minor said in his email.