# Haven't filed income tax return in over 10 yrs



## theitani (Nov 19, 2018)

Hello,

I have not filed a Canadian income tax return in about 12 years. I have had a few different jobs over the time but do not get paid a lot. Over this time I have never been contacted by CRA. I have no idea where to begin and any advice would be very much appreciated. I am afraid if I phone them they are going to hit be with a huge bill but I want to take care of it as well because it is begining to weigh on my mind heavily.

Thank you for your time.


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## Danny (Oct 17, 2012)

Do you have your t4 slips for these times?


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

Calling makes no difference on whether you get a big bill or not. CRA knowing where you live makes no difference on whether you get a big bill or not. The person you would talk to has no personal interest in your situation. They just get paid to help. They are not a collection agency on commission.


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## Just a Guy (Mar 27, 2012)

Personally, I’d talk to an accountant and start getting things sorted out. If you don’t file, CRA just makes a “guess” at how much you owe (and they generally don’t guess low). By filing, you prove them wrong and you make the payment you’re supposed to.

If you generally didn’t make a lot of money, you may actually be entitled to money back from a number of programs where the government gives money to low income people...instead of a big bill, you may get a sizeable cheque.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

What I don't understand is why CRA does not implement a fine for late filing. I know they do when a tax filer owes money but when they don't the impression is that it is OK not to file. I think a $100 fine for any returns received after May 5 would go a long way in reducing the procrastination that causes this type of thing. The longer the citizen goes without filing the more procrastination seems like a better approach.

Just my opinion of course.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

theitani said:


> ... I have had a few different jobs over the time but do not get paid a lot. Over this time I have never been contacted by CRA. I have no idea where to begin and any advice would be very much appreciated ...


Where to begin is to collect all the info you can that proves what income you were paid as well as any deductions or credits.

If you are comfortable with computers, StudioTax has free tax software you can install/use going from tax year 2004 to present.
https://www.studiotax.com/en/?page=2

If you don't have a lot of income, deductions and credits - the tax software should make it a relatively simple process to complete each tax year. As the next tax return is started, the needed parts can be pulled from the last tax return file, likely speeding up the process.


Cheers


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## 319905 (Mar 7, 2016)

Register here ... https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-ag...services-individuals/account-individuals.html ... all your T4s etc back to 2008 are available if that's of interest ... start filing, method of your choice. If you register e.g. Studio Tax will (ok, should) download all from the CRA site for you ... or if you're registered, have one of those tax services do it for you.


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## AltaRed (Jun 8, 2009)

The OP has not provided enough information to go on. Firstly, what is meant by 'not paid a lot'. Is it $10k per year, or $40k per year? At the low end, there will not be any tax due anyway and as JAG says, there could actually be tax credits, e.g. GST or HST tax credits.

Secondly, as already mentioned, did the OP not get T4 tax slips from the companies s/he worked for? If so, there was likely income tax withheld, and that may be more than what was already owing, meaning a refund.

If the OP would clarify the situation more, responses could be more definitive.


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## ian (Jun 18, 2016)

If you are serious about it then try to collect as many financial and banking records as possible. Start with the most recent and then go back a few years. 

Call CRA and have a chat with them. Far better for you to contact them than the opposite. I have a colleague who did not file for several years. He reached out to Revenue Canada (as it was called at that time), discussed his issue, and eventually filed and got up to date. He was surprised and If your income was low I doubt that you need bother with the expense of an accountant.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

Call CRA


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## twa2w (Mar 5, 2016)

The OP has gotten some good pointers above. Just to reinforce the advantages of on time filing...one problem with not filing for a long time, if you are truly low income, is that you may have missed out on benefits like GST rebate. AFAIK, these are not fully retroactive. I believe the feds will only go 1 or 2 years. They do however go back on tax refunds at least 7 years if not the full number of years of missed filing.

Not income tax but, I had a client a few years back who came to me about his fathers income and tight budget. I noticed his father was not getting old age pension even though he was well past the age. He applied and began to receive the penion which solved his cash flow problem. However he only received 1 year retroactive even though he was entitled to 3. Not sure if still the case or not.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Maximum 1 year is still nominally the rule. However, since they introduced voluntary deferrals of up to 5 years in 2013, it's possible you might not be penalized quite so much now. But I don't know for certain. One would think that if you had "missed" only 3 years, they could classify the first 2 years as a voluntary deferral, and entitle you to a larger monthly payment.


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## Nononymous (Jun 10, 2015)

Yes, presumably if the OP worked as an employee at relatively low wages and had tax withheld from paycheques, then not filing has probably cost him or her money by missing out on benefits and refunds. I'd think a relatively small chance of monies owing in this situation. So it's more a case of feeling bad for missing out on refunds than feeling worried that a bill is due.


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## Rusty O'Toole (Feb 1, 2012)

I was told years ago by a CRA auditor that if you don't have much income and don't owe any taxes you are not obliged to file a tax return. You might want to start filing just for the hell of it. You might have some benefits coming.


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## twa2w (Mar 5, 2016)

Here are the rules for filing a return

https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-ag...t-your-tax-return/you-have-file-a-return.html


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## MrMatt (Dec 21, 2011)

Talk to a tax professional about how to address this.

If you owe money, a voluntary disclosure is a good idea.
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-ag...a/voluntary-disclosures-program-overview.html

You could do it yourself, or you could hire a professional to help, it really matters how financially literate you are, your time, and how much you can pay someone.


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## Onagoth (May 12, 2017)

Rusty O'Toole said:


> I was told years ago by a CRA auditor that if you don't have much income and don't owe any taxes you are not obliged to file a tax return. You might want to start filing just for the hell of it. You might have some benefits coming.


If you don't owe taxes, there are really only two reasons to file a tax return.

1) To obtain tax credits that you might be entitled to
2) To start the clock on the statute barring of your returns (the CRA cannot normally reassess a return beyond 3 years from the date of the assessment, but you have to file a return to start the clock).


If you have income and likely owe tax consider a voluntary disclosure.

If you have income, but it was under $10k or so in each of the prior years, it is very unlikely you'll have any substantial tax owing. but still consider the voluntary disclosure.


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