Tax season has officially come to an end! The relief of filing that last return (minus the stragglers here and there) is unbeatable. So what’s next?
Maybe you’ve been selected for a review. There are many reasons why your income or benefit return could be selected by the CRA for review and here is your complete guide to understanding your return review.
Here are some of the reasons why your return could be selected for review:
- the information on your return does not match the information received from third-party sources, such as T4 slips
the types of deductions or credits you claimed - your compliance history
- random selection
- The process of selecting returns for review is the same whether the return is filed on paper or online (EFILE and NETFILE).
But, the chances of your return being selected are higher when Netfiled or paper filed.
The Canada Revenue Agency processes most returns without conducting a manual review of the information reported so that a notice of assessment can be issued as quickly as possible. However, all reviews are screened by the CRA’s computer system and may be subject to a review at a further date.
This leads us to our next point, keep everything. Receipts, claims, income tax records, T4’s, and so on and so forth. At any point, the CRA could decide that they want to look a little deeper into a specific year and you don’t want to be left scrambling. Keeping all your records in one place can save you the headache if ever that day should arrive. Be sure to keep these records for at least 6 years to be safe.
Most importantly, when in doubt contact your accountant. Don’t bother with the guesswork when you have someone who can answer your questions and ease your concerns at the press of a button.
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