CRA Moving to Email Communications in 2015

The new T1 return includes a space to send the taxpayer’s email address to CRA.

The promise of email communications from CRA – both to individual taxpayers and to tax preparers will become a reality for 2014. If the email address is included on the return, the taxpayer is agreeing to receive communications from CRA in electronic format.  Subsequently, paper communications will no longer be generated (except for payment where direct deposit is not selected).

When CRA wishes to communicate with the taxpayer, be it a Notice of Assessment or a request for information, they will send a message to the taxpayer’s email address notifying them that there is a pending communication from CRA and asking them to log on to their “My Account” page to view the message.  To gain access to the page and communication, four bits of information will have to be provided:
• Social insurance number,
• Date of birth,
• Current postal code (much match what is in CRA’s records), and
• An amount entered on the tax return (line numbers vary and the info may be from the current or a prior year return).

The communication will be deemed to have been sent when the notice is emailed to the taxpayer, regardless of whether the message is actually opened by the taxpayer.

Tax preparers may receive notification of these messages as well if they complete the following steps:
1. Register for “Represent a Client”
2. Register an email account on the “Represent a Client” page
3. Complete Part D of T183 and have the client sign it
4. Indicate on the return that communications should be sent to the preparer (contact code 2).