From: sharx335@hotmail.com   
      
   On 2018-07-31 6:40 p.m., Alan Baggett wrote:   
   > Northerners targeted for tax reassessments by CRA 51% more often than rest   
   of Canada :CRA SOTW   
   >   
   > ‘What can we do to make them trust us?’ asks Nunavut resident reassessed   
   4 times in past 5 years   
   >   
   >   
   > Jamie Malbeuf • CBC News   
   >   
   > Northerners are getting their taxes reassessed 51 per cent more often than   
   other Canadian residents, according to a document tabled in June in the House   
   of Commons.   
   >   
   > In 2016, nine per cent of Canadians had their taxes reassessed by the Canada   
   Revenue Agency (CRA). But for northerners, that number was 13.6 per cent.   
   >   
   > Yukon had the highest rate of reassessment in the country at 15 per cent,   
   followed by Nunavut and the Northwest Territories with 13 per cent.   
   >   
   > Quebec residents had the lowest rate of getting their taxes checked again,   
   at six per cent.   
   >   
   > The document also showed that people who file for the northern residents   
   deduction are reassessed more often than those who don't. Twelve per cent of   
   people who filed the deduction were reassessed in 2016, compared to 8.9 per   
   cent for those who didn't.   
   >   
   > On July 26, Cathy McLeod, the Conservative Party's Indigenous affairs   
   critic, and Pat Kelly, the critic for national revenue, issued an open letter   
   to Minister of National Revenue Diane Lebouthillier.   
   >   
   > The letter said that the "discrepancy raises concerns that the CRA is   
   disproportionately targeting Northern residents."   
   >   
   > They also asked the minister to "eliminate the disparity" between   
   northerners and other Canadians — or to provide Canadians with a reason why   
   there's disproportionate reassessment rates for northerners.   
   >   
   > "The minister needs to explain," said McLeod.   
   >   
   > "Reassessments are not something that people take lightly … so if   
   Northerners are being targeted, we need to know if there's a reasonable   
   reason."   
   >   
   > Concrete plans coming soon: minister's office   
   > Lebouthillier was not available for comment, but her parliamentary   
   secretary, Kamal Khera, said the government's goal is to make it easier for   
   Canadians to access benefits to which they're entitled.   
   >   
   > Khera said the government introduced programs in the 2016 budget to help   
   northerners with their taxes.   
   >   
   > Khera added that northerners will see concrete plans and actions laid out in   
   the coming months to deal with the high rate of reassessment.   
   >   
   > She said there are two main focuses: increase the clarity of filing for   
   northerners to decrease errors, and see how the CRA can make the process of   
   filing for deductions easier.   
   >   
   > "The same rates of reviews existed under the Conservatives, and they did   
   absolutely nothing to improve the situation," added Khera.   
   >   
   > "Rather, they made it much worse by cutting services and resources from the   
   CRA to help individuals in the North."   
   >   
   > McLeod rejected that statement from the minister's office, saying it is   
   "nonsensical."   
   >   
   > "Reassessments mean increased [numbers of] people, doing increased work. It   
   doesn't mean cuts in service … That's a very crazy stint to be quite   
   honest," McLeod said.   
   >   
   > She added the Liberals had already been in power for two years when these   
   reassessments were done.   
   >   
   > McLeod said she wrote the letter because reassessments can be    
   extraordinarily challenging."   
   >   
   > "Northerners have busy, busy lives and they have other costs," said McLeod.   
   "So when you're spending time dealing with the Canada Revenue Agency, it's   
   taking away from your ability to focus in on the business you run, the jobs   
   you're doing."   
   >   
   > Rankin Inlet resident Bernadette Tutanuak said she's learned a lot about   
   reassessments in the last few years.   
   >   
   > She's lived in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, her whole life, and has filed taxes   
   for about 30 years without trouble.   
   >   
   > But over the last five years, she said she kept getting reassessed and she   
   doesn't know why. This year was the first in five that her taxes haven't been   
   reassessed.   
   >   
   > "I didn't do anything different," said Tutanuak, who added it's a lot of   
   work getting reassessed. She said she needs to prove that she still lives in   
   Rankin Inlet.   
   >   
   > "What can we do to make them trust us?" said Tutanuak. "Give them a photo?   
   ... Show [them] pictures every year that ... this house is mine and I'm going   
   to be there for a while?"   
   >   
   > She said she was shocked that the territories are reassessed more often than   
   the rest of Canada.   
   >   
   > "I feel like we're being targeted," said Tutanuak. "They have to fix the   
   system. They have to trust us."   
   >   
   > In May, N.W.T. MP Michael McLeod vowed to keep an eye on northern tax   
   reviews. He was not available for comment.   
   >   
   > -----------------------------------------------------------   
   > Miss a Tax Tale Miss a lot!   
   > Pop the link below into your browser to view the entire CRA SOTW   
   > Library!   
   > http://canada.revenue.agency.angelfire.com   
   > ------------------------------------------------------------   
   > Alan Baggett - http://www.taxcollectorsbible.com/ - Tax Collector's Bible   
      
   More Northeners are being re-assessed because there is a LOT of   
   scamming, attempting to falsely claim the Northern Allowance. It is NOT   
   meanr for people who have a PRIMARY residence outside of the designated   
      
   areas. I spent years doing personal income tax and it was all too common   
   for me to have to refuse to do such false claims.   The clients would   
   claim that everyone else was doing it.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)