This time of year, Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) sends out requests for certain back-up information from some taxpayers. If you e-filed your tax return, then CRA will frequently ask for some of the receipts that back up your expenses.
They don’t ask for T4, T5, T3 or T4A slips because they have all of those slips. When organizations issue those slips they file them with CRA. They also usually have all of the RRSP contribution receipts for the same reason. What they are interested in is items like moving expenses, child care and interest deductions.
If you get a request to send receipts then you should do so within the time requested, usually 30 days. You can upload the information to the CRA site, fax it or send it by mail. If you are sending it by mail you should make a copy of the information before you send it. There have been cases where receipts have gone astray, and you do not want to lose your only copy. If you live close to a tax services office, then you can drop your envelope of receipts into a “mailbox” outside of this office and save postage.
The reason CRA is looking for items like childcare receipts and moving expenses is not so much that they don’t believe you, it is that they see an opportunity to check up on the providers of these services to make sure that they are reporting the revenue. When you send in the receipts for your childcare, CRA will confirm that your childcare provider reported that revenue.
If you do not send the receipts within the time period requested, then CRA will simply disallow the expense on your return and it is more complicated to get the deduction once it has been disallowed. So, send them in on time.
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