CRA Annual Report to Parliament 2011-2012 (PDF - Agence du ...

Given the importance of the benefits we deliver to
Canadians, our goal is to ensure that eligible benefit
recipients receive the right benefit at the right time. We do
this by providing information that is timely and easy to
understand, and by enabling benefit recipients to
self-serve through our online tools or contact us directly
through our call centre network. We also validate
eligibility information to ensure that we deliver the right
amount of benefits and credits to eligible families and
individuals across Canada. Our goal of timeliness and
accuracy serves as the foundation for measuring our
success.
[providing information]
The CRA’s Web site is the primary channel for providing
general information and tools to benefit recipients. The
site offers information on the different types of benefits
and credits available, information on applying online,
online calculators, and commonly used forms. For
instance, the child and family benefits online calculator
gives users an idea of what their benefit amounts will be.
We also use an electronic mailing list to notify benefit
recipients 2 when payments will be issued and to remind
them of their obligation to notify us when their life
situation changes.
self-service
Many benefit recipients prefer to carry out their business
with the CRA on a self-service basis, using our secure
online portal for individuals, called My Account.
Recipients can manage their benefit information online
through My Account by:
viewing their Canada child tax benefit, universal
child care benefit, GST/HST credit, and related
provincial and territorial program payments;
viewing their account balance and statement of
account;
authorizing representatives to act on their behalf;
arranging for direct deposit; and
changing their address or marital status.
2 This service is available to those who sign up.
ANNUAL REPORT
2011-2012
CANADA REVENUE AGENCY
Our Quick Access service gives individuals immediate
access to some of their information in My Account. This
service is a popular method for clients to easily access
benefit information. This year there were 1,123, 208 visits
to Quick Access pages.
Our Automated Benefit Application (ABA) service,
introduced three years ago, has eliminated the need for
separate applications for credits that the CRA delivers,
including federal and provincial or territorial benefits.
Six provinces now use this service, with Manitoba joining
in July 2011. Through the ABA service, the CRA receives
birth information directly from provincial or territorial vital
statistics agencies and uses this information to register
Canadian newborns for the benefit and credit programs
that we administer. The number of applicants using this
service continues to grow.
In 2011-2012, 92.4% of eligible applicants used this
online service.
We continue to work with provinces and territories that
are not yet using the ABA service to encourage them to
do so.
enquiries
The CRA’s telephone services provide general information
to taxpayers, and also help taxpayers with more complex
enquiries. Taxpayers prefer to find general information
themselves on our Web site and then call the CRA if they
need further explanation or information on how it applies
to their specific circumstances.
In 2011-2012:
through agent and automated services, we
answered 6,919,000 enquiries related to the
Canada child tax benefit, GST/HST credit, and
provincial programs;
we met our service standard by answering 76% of
our Canada child tax benefit telephone enquiries
within two minutes; and
we exceeded our service standards for accuracy
and timeliness in responding to written enquiries
and telephone referrals from call centres.