Canada Gets a CRA Umbudsman this fall.

June 8, 2007 by Dan White.

This is good news for tax payers and for WNBC. 

When we are not happy with CRA behaviour, we will soon be able to complain to an ombudsman. 

We are expecting that the new ombudsman office will open by this fall to hold the agency accountable for honouring an expanded list of taxpayers’ rights. 

The ombudsman will not offer a cheaper route to challenge tax assessments, however. The taxpayer could still have to use the WNBC services and go to court to object to a tax ruling. 

For the first time, though, the CRA will have to explain its findings to taxpayers who complain. The agency could also see its service standards and performance criticized in an annual report. 

Most other provisions in the 20-point Taxpayer Bill of Rights, including five points devoted to small businesses, are no more than a repackaging of existing promises. Putting everything into a single document is intended to help improve taxpayer awareness of existing practices. 

WNBC welcomes the attempt to make the CRA more accountable. 

The new bill of rights highlights the long-standing right to delay paying disputed taxes until the outcome of an appeal is known. Interest will be charged if the ruling goes against the taxpayer. 

Taxpayers will be reminded they can plead for interest and penalty charges to be waived in light of an unavoidable delay, or because of CRA error. 

As always, our clients can appoint us to act for them in dealings with the CRA by providing authority in writing. (The Consent Form) 

The ombudsman process will still require strategy and experience to unsure the tax payer achieves their objective of paying no more tax than they are legally obligated to pay. This new entity will be a useful tool, but will not be a slam dunk for a tax payer to get justice. 

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