Tax Tip Thursday

Alternative ways to deal with the CRA

Ottawa sets 100-day timeline to fix CRA delays, service issues

100 days to fix CRA delays

Minister of Finance and National Revenue Francois-Philippe Champagne issued a statement – giving CRA 100 days to fix service delay problems.

OR ELSE! 😊

Champagne says in a letter to the chair of Parliament’s finance committee that it’s clear the CRA is not meeting Canadians’ standards amid complaints of service delays at the agency’s call centres.

He says he asked the CRA to take concrete steps to address the issues, which could mean reallocating or adding personnel and expanding digital options for Canadians.

Recently, a new surge in complaints to our Office as well as current media coverage have made it clear that the public is frustrated and disappointed with the level of service they have been receiving from the CRA, especially related to its contact centres.

In our Office’s 2020–2021 annual report, we had recommended “that the CRA provide Canadians with the opportunity to request a callback, without the need to call the contact centre first.” This practice would be similar to the one used by Service Canada, where taxpayers are able to schedule a call online and avoid waiting on hold to reach an agent. At the time, the CRA agreed with this recommendation. However, in its 2024 update to its response to this recommendation, the CRA told us that, because of technical limitations and the high cost of upgrading its telephone system, it would not be pursuing this solution.

With this in mind, I was pleasantly surprised that the 100-day plan includes a new call-scheduling system. I still believe that such a system would greatly benefit taxpayers.

Skip the Line – Get faster help from the CRA

At the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), we believe Canadians should have support at their fingertips—without waiting in line. That’s why we’ve built secure online tools that empower you to find answers to most questions in minutes.

On this page is essential information on better ways to find the answers you need without calling, as well as what to expect when contacting the CRA, if you do need to call.

Before you call

Ask the GenAI chatbot
Check your CRA account
Check the FAQs
Check the wait times to contact the CRA
Have everything you need on hand

Many calls could be resolved without speaking to a service representative. Only some situations require a phone call. Use this table to know when you should use our online tools, and when to call us.

When to use our online tools and when to call the CRA

Use our online tools when:

You want to register for a CRA account
You want to confirm a payment or balance owing
You want to update your personal information
You want to find your TFSA contribution room information
You want to know the status of your tax return or other CRA processing times
You need to change your tax return
You have a general question about credits and benefits for individuals
You need a proof of income statement or a notice of assessment
You suspect a scam, fraud, or identity theft
Your want to verify if it’s the CRA calling you
You represent someone who died

Call us when:

You’re locked out of your CRA account
You’re dealing with a complex reassessment or an audit notice
You need help with your CRA debt

Online tools

Your CRA account

Your CRA account is an online portal that empowers you to self-serve. With a CRA account you can complete many tasks quickly and easily—no need to call.

GenAI Chatbot beta

The CRA’s GenAI chatbot beta is available 24/7 to answer questions relating to benefits, charities, personal income tax, as well as information relating to accessing a CRA account.

Prompts you can ask the CRA GenAI chatbot beta

Online chat in My Account

The CRA offers an online chat service within My Account that lets you discuss account-specific issues with a live CRA service representative.

This chat service is available for both account-specific and general questions about:

How to use the chat service

Sign in to your CRA account
Select the chat widget at the bottom right corner of the page
Accept the privacy statement and select your topic to begin

The online chat service is available in My Account Monday to Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm ET.

Call volumes and wait times

From April to June 2025, the CRA’s enquiries contact centres received more than 16 million calls— Statistics below are daily averages for that period:

Number of calls received – 253,000

Number of calls answered – Between 36,000-38,000

Average length of call – 15 minutes

Behind each of those calls is a person with an important question: a parent trying to understand a child benefit, a retiree looking for their refund, or a newcomer navigating our tax system for the first time. And on the other side of the line, there are CRA service representatives who do their best to answer your questions.

To avoid leaving Canadians waiting for too long, we redirect incoming calls to our automated services when average wait times reach 30 minutes. This helps us serve as many people as possible, as fairly as possible.

Tip: Before calling, check current wait times. If the wait time is showing “Not available”, it means calls are being redirected to automated services (due to high volumes), contact centres are closed, or the CRA is experiencing a phone outage. Call only when a wait time is displayed.

We know not being able to get through to a service representative is frustrating. That’s why we continue to improve our self-serve options—so you can get the help you need, faster and on your own time, without waiting on hold.

Contact centres myth-busting

In this section, we will clear up a few common myths about CRA contact centres.

Myth: “The CRA does not answer the phone.”

Fact: We understand how frustrating it can be to wait for help. The CRA answers between 36,000 and 38,000 calls every day to support Canadians with their needs. When wait times go beyond an average of 30 minutes, we redirect calls to automated services to provide you with secure, easy-to-use options.

Myth: “Letting more people join the phone queue would mean more calls get answered.”

Fact: Call volumes currently exceed our capacity to respond. When we reach full capacity, we redirect calls to automated services. Think of it like a full glass of water: adding more doesn’t help, it just overflows. Letting more callers into the queue wouldn’t make it possible to answer more calls, it would only increase wait time and frustration.

Myth: “Calling the CRA is the best way for me to make changes to my personal information.”

Fact: The fastest, most convenient way to update your personal information is through your CRA account—there is no need to call. Keeping your personal information up to date ensures you receive all correspondence and payments without delay.

Make An Appointment today!

Disclaimer:

This article provides information of a general nature only. It is only current at the posting date. It is not updated and it may no longer be current. It does not provide legal or tax advice nor can it or should it be relied upon. All tax situations are specific to each individual. If you have specific tax questions you should book an appointment for a 1 on 1 consultation.