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CRA and CPA Canada Establish Framework Agreement and Consultative Committees
On November 26, 2014, CPA Canada and the CRA signed a framework agreement
that promises an enhanced working relationship between the two parties.
The intent of the agreement is to achieve the two parties’ common goal
of a well-administered tax system that will better serve Canadian
taxpayers. This framework agreement is one of the benefits of the newly
unified accounting profession in Canada: it is much easier for the CRA
to work with one national organization than with the previous three
national accounting bodies.
Created under this agreement is an overarching steering committee,
which will manage this new relationship and oversee the seven committees
that cover particular areas. The committees allow CRA and CPA
representatives to meet at least twice a year to discuss tax-related
matters and to provide avenues for issue identification and discussion.
The committees will not be the decision-making bodies: the CRA retains
the sole authority and responsibility for dealing with any issues that
are identified.
A CPA Canada blog posting dated January 6, 2015 provides the following brief account of the focus of the seven joint CRA-CPA committees:
1. Services—returns, publications, electronic services and non-audit compliance programs
2. Compliance—tax audits, dispute resolution and general risk assessment tools
3. Tax administration—technical issues, administrative or other fixes, technical information
4. Scientific research and experimental development (SR&ED)—audits, disputes and administrative policies
5. Commodity tax—claims processing, audit processes, technical issues and fixes, technical information
6. Red tape reduction—clarity, redundant information and
processes, availability and timeliness of information and communication
with taxpayers
7. Training and learning—improving CRA auditor training programs
The blog post notes that progress has already been made in
cooperation between the CRA and CPA Canada—namely, consultations to fix
problems related to the current deadlines for T1 and T3 reporting, and
CPA Canada’s first national SR & ED Symposium, to be held in Toronto
on February 5 and 6, 2015.
The blog post links to a presentation
by CPA Canada’s Vice-President of Taxation, which lists the CRA and CPA
Canada co-chairs of each of the seven committees. The presentation also
lists several bullet points for each committee that describe the
committee’s focus in more detail. For example, the commodity tax
committee will work on pre-assessment claims processing; the quality of
CRA audit processes; the maintenance of required technical capacity;
problematic technical issues and the availability of administrative
fixes; identifying possible non-administrative solutions; the
availability of technical information; and CRA-Revenu Québec
consistency.
An appeals advisory committee, apparently established before the new
framework agreement, is to continue its work, providing input on
(1) appeals case backlog, (2) independence and impartiality, and
(3) settling agreements and operational irritants.
Will this new structure of joint committees between CRA and tax
practitioners be successful? CPA Canada has identified the following
factors as critical to success: top-down commitment on the part of CPA
Canada and the CRA; participants’ willingness to find effective
solutions; effective changes resulting from discussions; CPA Canada’s
influence on members’ tax practices; and inclusion of other stakeholder
groups where appropriate.
Leona Liu
Ernst & Young LLP, Ottawa
leona.liu@ca.ey.com
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