The Canada Revenue Agency will pilot a new automatic method to enable needy Canadians who do not file taxes receive their benefits the following year.
Following conversations with stakeholders and community members, the Canada Revenue Agency will offer a plan to expand the programme in 2024, according to the government budget released this week.
The shift towards automatic tax filing, first announced in the 2020 address from the throne, is one of several budget changes, according to the Liberals, designed to assist Canadians with the cost of living.
Professionals and advocates have advocated for automatic filing, citing the fact that many vulnerable Canadians do not receive the benefits to which they are entitled.
Unless they owe money, Canadians are normally not forced to file annual tax returns, but the federal government increasingly relies on the Canada Revenue Agency to distribute income-tested benefits to individuals.
This consists of the Canada Child Benefit, the recent increase to the Canada Housing Benefit, and the temporary doubling of the GST tax credit.
Jennifer Robson, an associate professor of political management at Carleton University and co-author of a 2020 report, believes that 10 to 12 percent of Canadians do not file their taxes.
Although there were non-filers in every income level, they were most prevalent in the lowest income ranges.
In 2015, the report projected that the value of benefits lost by non-filers of working age was $1.7 billion.
The federal budget also indicates that the Canada Revenue Agency will increase access to a programme established in 2018 that allows certain Canadians with low or fixed incomes to file simple tax returns automatically over the phone.
According to the budget, two million Canadians will be eligible to use the “File My Return” service by 2025, which is roughly three times the current amount.
