CANADA REVENUE AGENCY SEEKS OFFSHORE RECORDS

The Canada Revenue Agency is seeking information from three Canadian banks about customer transactions linked to an Israeli financial institution as part of a federal crackdown on offshore tax evaders.

Newly filed court records reveal the agency wants to see account records associated with Bank Hapoalim to determine whether Canadians are concealing income or assets.

The Federal Court of Canada filings come amid renewed public pressure on the government to show it is taking steps to find and penalize Canadians who improperly use offshore accounts to avoid paying taxes.

The revenue agency is asking the Bank of Montreal, Royal Bank and Toronto-Dominion Bank for records of deposits, cheques and electronic funds transfers associated with Hapoalim.