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Results: 61 - 90 of 210
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
The Canada Revenue Agency receives 30 million tax returns per year, from individuals or companies, and I cannot comment on any of them.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
The Canada Revenue Agency will do the job it has to do. I can assure you that, as long as I am in this position, it will be done exactly in that way, meaning that we will not discuss any specific case.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I work with the officials of the Canada Revenue Agency. What our government has done in the last two years is invest almost $1 billion specifically to combat tax evasion and tax avoidance.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
All taxpayers' files are confidential and will remain confidential. I can assure you that no, repeat no, parliamentarian will have access to the Canada Revenue Agency's files.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I certainly do not believe that you would like the Minister of National Revenue to be talking about your file, or about the file of any other parliamentarian. That would be completely inconceivable.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Our current telephone system does not allow us to record calls. We have to set up a new platform that will meet the needs of Canadians.
Commissioner Hamilton will be able to give you more details on the three measures that we will soon be implementing.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
The agency has a program that allows people to challenge its decisions. I will invite the Commissioner to talk to you about the unique features of that program.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
In our first two budgets, we have invested $1 billion. As we have repeatedly said, these are unprecedented budgets in which the government gave priority to the fight against tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance. This has enabled us to hire 100 auditors. However, the Conservative government eliminated 50 auditor positions assigned to international tax evasion.
As of September 30, 2017, those funds had allowed the agency to conduct more than 990 audits and 42 criminal investigations related to financial structures abroad. Those activities are still ongoing.
That's the work those investments will allow the Canada Revenue Agency to accomplish in the next five years. The first budget, approved in 2016, covered the period ending in 2021. Budget 2017 provided for additional funds. This will help us work on tax evasion until 2022.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Unlike the Conservative government before us, our government decided to look into the tax gap. It was our promise to Canadians, and that's exactly what we are doing. We have taken a fact-based approach. To date, we have demonstrated our commitment to estimating the tax gap. We have actually published three studies since June 2016. We are continuing our efforts on the tax gap. That's what Canadians expect. In the summer of 2018, we will submit another report on the international tax gap.
I invite Commissioner Hamilton to give you more details on the issue.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Let me say to everyone here, around the table, that the Income Tax Act has not changed when it comes to the disability tax credit. No changes have been made to the eligibility criteria for the disability tax credit.
In addition, I can tell you that, at the Canada Revenue Agency, we are currently working to improve our communications with people so that they are much more respectful, much easier to understand—
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
What I am saying is that, at the Canada Revenue Agency, we are working to improve our communications with all Canadians so that they are much more respectful and do a good job of explaining the legislation to Canadians. Whether we decline or accept, we are trying to be much more human in our communications. Humanizing the Canada Revenue Agency's services is part of my mandate letter.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I can tell you that, between 2015 and 2017, the number of approved tax credit claims has increased by 20%. We have made the tax credit much more accessible. We have simplified the forms. We rehired nurses. We also give people access to specialized nurse practitioners who can answer questions and complete forms.
That's what we are doing at the Canada Revenue Agency so that people receive the tax credits they are entitled to.
I will ask Mr. Hamilton to elaborate on the technical aspects.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
It's ridiculous to say that the Prime Minister will interfere in cases that fall under the Canada Revenue Agency. We will let the revenue agency do its job.
All the information about the Paradise Papers is taken very seriously by the agency. If any charges need to be laid, it will certainly not be up to any parliamentarian to do so.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I would like to add something about the disability tax credit. By dismantling the important disability advisory committee, your government deprived the disabled, those who protect their rights and professionals in the area of the opportunity to share their opinions in order to better guide the agency's decisions. The disability advisory committee, which we have reinstated, will be a major tool for the agency. We must continue to work with our partners.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Since our government took office, the public has been at the heart of its concerns, a mission that is also part of my mandate letter. This has helped increase the number of people eligible for the disability tax credit.
I also want to point out that our interactions with stakeholders will help us examine the agency's administrative practices and improve the quality of, and accessibility to, the services we provide to people with disabilities.
We checked the numbers with Diabetes Canada. Diabetes Canada is not able to explain where the numbers we were given come from. The Canada Revenue Agency is doing all the checks manually. Anyone who meets the criteria is entitled to the tax credit, period.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Thank you, Mr. Chair, for the opportunity to provide input into the standing committee's study of the main estimates.
I am joined by Mr. Roch Huppé, the agency's chief financial officer and assistant commissioner of the finance and administration branch, and Mr. Ted Gallivan, the assistant commissioner of the international, large business and investigations branch.
First off, I would like to highlight that the agency is seeking $4.2 billion through these main estimates—$3.2 billion of which requires approval by Parliament. This number represents a 1.9% increase from last year’s main estimates. The agency will use these funds to successfully continue its important work.
In November, when I last spoke to this committee, I gave an overview of the Canada Revenue Agency’s efforts to combat aggressive tax planning and tax avoidance, as well as how the agency is improving services for Canadians. I would like to take a few minutes, Mr. Chair, to update the committee on these two fronts and the ways they are being addressed by the agency.
As you know, the Canada Revenue Agency is an increasingly client-focused agency that exists to serve Canadians. As it says in my mandate letter, my overarching goal as Minister of National Revenue is to ensure that the agency is fairer and more helpful, and that its services are easier to use. The agency is currently overhauling its service model so that people who interact with it feel like valued clients, not just taxpayers.
The agency is committed to ensuring that Canadians have access to the information they need about taxes and benefits—on its website, through its call centres, or through written correspondence.
Since my last appearance, the agency has responded to the public’s needs by making it easier to get help over the phone. To make sure that Canadians understand the information they're receiving from the agency, we have simplified the language in 75% of the correspondence we send to Canadians, making it easier to read and understand.
The agency is also ramping up its outreach efforts to ensure that taxpayers understand and meet their tax obligations. These efforts improve tax compliance through a “get it right from the start” approach to educate, inform, and support taxpayers by improving service and encouraging voluntary compliance.
As you are well aware, we have just completed the 2017 filing season. Over 22.8 million T1 returns were received from February 20 to April 30. Close to 90% of returns were filed electronically. Roughly 58% of those returns were filed by tax preparers through EFILE, and 32% were filed by individuals through NETFILE.
New services were launched to help individuals and tax preparers submit their returns electronically for the 2017 tax filing season. The Auto-fill my return service automatically fills in parts of tax returns, making filing online easier. This tax season, additional slips and prior year returns are available for Auto-fill. Tax preparers can also amend their clients' returns electronically by using the new ReFILE service.
I'm pleased to tell this committee that our service improvements that benefit all Canadians will not stop there.
The agency is developing a new service for February 2018 that will fully prepare returns for Canadians with simple tax situations, low or fixed income, and whose financial situations are unchanged from year to year.
In addition, in order to meet our commitment to provide the best possible service to Canadians from coast to coast, the agency’s service renewal plans are well under way. With more Canadians than ever filing their taxes online, the resources needed for the agency to deal with paper returns are decreasing. So, we are reviewing and reorganizing workloads in order to work smarter and more efficiently.
That means we are improving our call centres and creating national verification and collections centres. These changes mean the Canada Revenue Agency will be a more efficient organization and provide better service to Canadians.
Still, we always strive to do better, prioritizing Canadians in everything we do. As our prime minister says, we can always do better.
Since my appointment as Minister of National Revenue, I have been committed to ensuring that Canadians get the benefits to which they're entitled. That's why the agency is proactively contacting Canadians who are not receiving the tax credits or benefits they should, to make sure that the government is supporting the most vulnerable and ensuring Canadian families have the support they need.
The agency is also expanding the community volunteer income tax program; now, more Canadians than ever with low and modest incomes will benefit from free tax preparation clinics.
Mr. Huppé will speak to the details of the main estimates, but before I yield the floor to him, I would like to briefly touch on the agency’s accomplishments on the compliance front and our plans for the way forward.
Most Canadians pay their taxes in full and on time. But some do not pay what they owe. This is not right; this must change. By combatting offshore tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance, as does our government, we are protecting the important public services that Canadians rely on.
Since my last appearance before this committee, the agency has taken concrete and effective steps to crack down on tax cheats. We are currently conducting audits on over 820 taxpayers and criminally investigating over 30 cases of tax evasion specifically linked to offshore tax havens.
Through Budget 2016, the agency increased its information-gathering capabilities and improved the tools at its disposal. The agency now has access to more of the information it needs to fulfill its obligations.
In the last year, the agency has increased the number of auditors reviewing offshore tax schemes, promoters and large multinational corporations. It has started reviewing all taxpayers in certain segments of the population identified as high risk. The agency is using external data and publicly available information to maximize its efforts to identify non-compliance. It has expanded its efforts specifically geared towards intermediaries, making promoters a focus of our criminal investigations, with several under way.
As well, the agency is taking a much harder stance on taxpayers who appear on leaked lists of offshore holdings. For example, with the Panama Papers, the agency has over 122 taxpayer audits under way and is reviewing a treasure trove of data linked to these taxpayers. It has also executed search warrants, and several criminal investigations involving both participants and facilitators are under way.
Audits of the highest-risk taxpayers moving money between Canada and four foreign tax administrations of interest are under way, with more to come. So far, a total of 41,000 transactions have been analyzed, totalling over $12 billion. The Canada Revenue Agency continues to build its capacity to detect and crack down on tax cheats. It is developing a powerful business intelligence infrastructure and risk assessment system to target cases of high-risk Canadian and international tax evasion and abusive tax avoidance.
It is clear, Mr. Chair, that our government is committed to protecting the integrity of the Canadian tax system by combatting offshore tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance on all levels. As Minister of National Revenue, I am committed to ensuring that the agency has all the tools and resources it needs to fulfill its role and meet Canadians' expectations.
Thank you.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I thank my colleague for his question.
Cracking down on tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance is indeed a priority for our government. Last year, the Department of Finance allocated extraordinary resources to the Canada Revenue Agency for that purpose, in the amount of $444 million. This meant that we were able to hire auditors throughout the year and acquire the tools necessary to combat tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance. We are also busy getting rid of tax loopholes that result in tax advantages for some at the expense of others.
I will let Mr. Gallivan provide you with some more technical details.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
I thank my colleague for his question.
I have to tell you that I am particularly sensitive to the whole issue of small and medium-sized businesses, given that I was raised by parents who owned a small business. I come from a rural area where there are a lot of small businesses.
Our government has committed to supporting small businesses. In my view, they create jobs and wealth, and they diversify our economy.
At the Canada Revenue Agency, we have established a service to support small businesses as they are starting up. Last year, we held consultations with small businesses across the country. We wanted to determine how the agency could continue to improve its services and to help small businesses not only as they start up, but also as they continue their activities.
Mr. Gallivan will be able to provide you with additional information on that.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his question and for his interest in small businesses.
As I was saying earlier, small businesses are a priority for me, given that I come from an area where there are a lot of them.
However, I do not entirely agree with what he has just said. We have not changed the tax rules on deductions that apply to small and medium-sized businesses. The same provisions continue to apply.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I repeat that our government is committed to supporting small and medium-sized businesses. I must also tell my colleague once more that we have not changed any tax rules. The same provisions continue to apply.
I would also like to tell the committee that, in 2014, our colleagues here—
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
So, as I was saying, in 2014-2015, the party in power, my colleague's party, held consultations about the rules and decided to change none. The rules continued to apply and we are still applying them now.
Mr. Gallivan will be able to give you more details about the rules that apply to campgrounds.
Results: 61 - 90 of 210 | Page: 3 of 7

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