Something about the CRA that all Canadians Should Know

A client notified us this week that she received an email from the CRA notifying her of her tax refund. Thankfully she immediately forwarded the email on to us and asked for our advice.

One thing that all Canadians should know about the Canada Revenue Agency is that they will NEVER contact you via email.

My recommendation on what to do next after receiving such an email is to forward it on to the RCMP's antifraud cantre at info@antifraudcentre.ca.

One thing I have also learned lately after dealing with some fraud on my credit card is to never give your information out over the phone if you have been contacted. Thankfully I followed that advice and stopped a scam.

If the CRA contacts you over the phone, they tend not to ask verifying questions. If you are being asked questions to give your SIN or other personal information and feel wary about the situation, ask them for their name and employee number and information to call them back. Trust your instincts. If you think to yourself "they should already know this information", trust that feeling.

It is important that you protect your personal information. Just because you think the CRA has contacted you, doesn't mean that they have. The CRA will generally contact you via snail mail prior to any contact via phone. You should have an idea why they are calling you before they do.

Do what you can to protect yourself from fraud. I don't want to live in a world where I have to suspect the intentions of each person that contacts me, but we all need to have a bit of caution and not give up our information just because we think the government or another institution we trust is contacting us. Do your due diligence. Even if it takes a few extra minutes, it is definitely worth the time you will save yourself if you fall victim to a scam.

Have a wonderful day!