2017-0697371C6 2017 STEP - Q14 Dedicated Telephone Service

Principal Issues: Update on the CRA's dedicated phone line for tax professionals.

Position: The CRA’s Income Tax Rulings Directorate is introducing a new dedicated telephone service (DTS) for income tax service providers by July of 2017. The DTS will assist people in the business of preparing income tax returns by providing access to experienced CRA staff who can help with more complex technical issues.

Reasons: Introduction of the DTS will provide those in the business of preparing income tax returns greater access to CRA information to the benefit of the many clients they serve.

Author: Basso, Denise
Section: -

STEP CRA Roundtable – June 13, 2017

QUESTION 14 – Dedicated Telephone Service

The Income Tax Rulings Directorate recently confirmed at the 2017 CPA-BC & CRA Roundtable the CRA’s plan to introduce a new dedicated telephone service (DTS) for income tax service providers, which was originally announced in Budget 2016.  Under a three-year pilot project beginning in July, 2017, the DTS will initially be offered to certain Chartered Professional Accountants in Ontario and Quebec.  The DTS is intended to provide participants in the project with access to experienced CRA staff who can help with more complex technical issues. 

Can the CRA provide an update on this pilot project?

CRA Response

On June 5, Rulings Officers assigned to the Dedicated Telephone Service began to accept calls from 500 registrants who were provided access under an early “soft” launch of the new service. In the coming weeks, access to the service will be gradually expanded until 3,000 participants are registered under the pilot project. The response to date from initial DTS registrants has been very positive. The DTS participants benefit from having telephone access to experienced staff within the CRA who will provide guidance on more complex technical income tax issues.

Under the DTS pilot project, registration is open to small accounting practitioners in Ontario and Quebec – namely, CPAs who are in public practice as sole proprietors or in groups of up to three professional partners or shareholders. Beginning in April, eligible participants were contacted by CPA Ontario and CPA Quebec with information on how to register to use the CRA’s new dedicated telephone service. Registrations will continue to be accepted under the pilot project on a first-come, first-served basis until 3,000 participants are registered.

If the pilot is successful, the DTS may be expanded nationwide and to more income tax service providers on a permanent basis.

While the DTS is intended to be a technical resource for those who are in the business of preparing income tax returns, the service is not intended to be a problem resolution line for dealing with specific taxpayer issues. Accordingly, DTS officers will not have access to taxpayers’ accounts. Also, the DTS is not intended for specialized tax professionals whose services focus on complex tax planning. These tax advisors should continue to use the advance income tax rulings or technical interpretations services to address their issues. More information about these and the other services provided by the Income Tax Rulings Directorate is available in Information Circular IC70-6R7, Advance Income Tax Rulings and Technical Interpretations, at cra.gc.ca/E/pub/tp/ic70-6r7.

Denise Basso
2017-069737

All rights reserved. Permission is granted to electronically copy and to print in hard copy for internal use only. No part of this information may be reproduced, modified, transmitted or redistributed in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system for any purpose other than noted above (including sales), without the prior written permission of Canada Revenue Agency, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0L5.

© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2017

Tous droits réservés. Il est permis de copier sous forme électronique ou d'imprimer pour un usage interne seulement. Toutefois, il est interdit de reproduire, de modifier, de transmettre ou de redistribuer de l'information, sous quelque forme ou par quelque moyen que ce soit, de façon électronique, mécanique, photocopies ou autre, ou par stockage dans des systèmes d'extraction ou pour tout usage autre que ceux susmentionnés (incluant pour fin commerciale), sans l'autorisation écrite préalable de l'Agence du revenu du Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0L5.

© Sa Majesté la Reine du Chef du Canada, 2017