Filing tax return online is easy, and perhaps free
Last year, more than 10 million Canadians filed their own returns electronically
March is such a wonderful month. As the weather warms and the days get longer, we can finally leave the house without wearing a parka and begin to enjoy spring. Unfortunately, spring is also the season when we will have to submit our income tax returns.
This annual ritual used to involve spending an enormous amount of time cooped up inside as you laboured away doing complicated calculations and filling in forms. Or you packed everything up in a box and paid an accountant to do it for you. Now, however, the internet and a computer or tablet will allow you to do your taxes quickly and accurately and receive a tax refund in next to no time, and the whole process could be free.
If you’ve never prepared your own tax return, the idea of using a computer might seem daunting. However, Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) statistics show that last year more than 10 million Canadians filed their own tax returns electronically using tax software and a service called Netfile.
One reason for this could be that doing your tax return electronically is designed to be easy. You are led through a series of questions and fill in blanks with information from your tax slips. Even easier, if you set up an account at the CRA website, the tax program can download data from your forms and auto-fill the tax return with all the information from your various tax slips.
When the return shows no errors, it is filed via Netfile, and you can print a copy. You can also log in to your CRA account to check the progress of your return or read any messages from the CRA.
To use Netfile, you must prepare your tax return using CRA certified software, and you have two choices of how to do this.
One is to log in to a tax preparation website and let the software do the calculations and filing. Your personal information is stored in the cloud, accessible any time, and protected by your password.
There is no software to install, and you can use any computer or type of mobile device.
The other method is to download and install a tax preparation program or app. The advantage is that all of your data is stored securely on your computer and not in the cloud, although you should make a backup to an external flash drive.
Choosing which program or online service may be the most difficult decision. Tax prep software and online services have proliferated and are available for computers and mobile devices and in retail, pay-what-you-can, and free offerings.
The CRA website has a full list of certified tax preparation software grouped according to free or paid services and whether they are online or downloadable programs or apps (tinyurl.com/bdw4w6jy).
If in doubt, you can try any of the services and programs on a trial basis and will not have to pay until you Netfile or print the return.
Otherwise, you could purchase tax software from the numerous displays visible in supermarkets, drugstores and other retail stores.
If you or someone you know has an income of less than $20,000, or are preparing a very simple return, most online services will do your taxes free. Good news for post-secondary students is that UFile provides free online tax preparation and filing for Canadian college and university students regardless of income.
The details are the Ufile website (tinyurl.com/45mbxe2z).
Low-income Canadians can get their taxes prepared and filed by volunteers in the CRA community volunteer tax program. The details and locations of free tax clinics in your area are at the CRA community volunteer website (tinyurl.com/2ef3aa5f ).
This time of year is fraught with online, email and telephone income tax scams. The CRA has invaluable information at its website (tinyurl.com/2uvsm6mh) to protect you and your family from tax fraud. Being informed is the best defence.
Perhaps the best part about using tax software or online services is that your tax return will be completed quickly, and you’ll have more time to enjoy the spring weather.