CRA Data Breeches Put Taxpayer Information at Risk

An important deadline is coming up, around the same time that Canadians get ready to file their 2026 tax returns at the start of tax season 2027. Since 2020, more than 42,000 data breaches have occurred at the CRA. A class action lawsuit was launched in 2020 and a $8.76 million settlement was reached.  Eligible Canadians affected by these security incidents can now submit claims through the KPMG Claims Portal until February 3, 2027.  

Last week, Federal Finance Minister Joe Oliver announced in the House of Commons that the government is open to allowing Canadians to make additional voluntary contributions to their CPP in order in increase their CPP savings.

Parents with children under age 18 living at home will be receiving a lump sum of $420 per child with their July Child Tax Benefit payment. This lump sum represents the additional $60 per month per child payable as of January 2015.

CRA has applied a net-worth assessment against your client, who now comes to you for help . . . and they are emotional and scared. What do you do first?

The most recent economic data is indeed atrocious, as Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz predicted in England late last year.

Last week’s KBR reported on a recent Statistics Canada study, Changes in Debt and Assets of Canadian Families, 1999 to 2012, that confirmed a trend that Canadians are carrying more debt than ever before.

There are three certainties in life – death, taxes and change.  So, dealing with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) can prove a stressful interaction for both taxpayers and their advisors.