Many Canadians with a lower income are still missing out on valuable benefit and credit payments because they are not filing an annual tax return. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is working to make tax filing easier by offering a variety of services that reduce barriers to filing an income tax and benefit return. Automatic tax filing services, such as the CRA’s SimpleFile, are a free, fast and secure way for the CRA to help individuals with a lower income file their tax returns.

Consultation activities

From September to December 2025, the CRA held a public consultation to get feedback on the future of automatic tax filing in Canada. The consultation had two parts: an online questionnaire and roundtable discussions. Participants included community and Indigenous organizations, academics, members of the tax filing industry, and individuals (such as taxpayers and benefit recipients).

The CRA developed the questionnaire with the input of an advisory group of academics, community organizations, and tax industry experts. The online questionnaire was open for public input from September to October 2025, and received over 11,000 submissions.

The roundtable discussions happened in December 2025.

Participants had the opportunity to give feedback on:

• tax filing barriers and challenges
• their experience with SimpleFile
• expanding automatic tax filing services

Consultation findings

Participant feedback was consistent across roundtables and the online questionnaire. Participants made comments on similar topics, including the benefits of automatic tax filing for vulnerable communities and considerations for designing a trusted automatic tax filing program. We also received input on challenges with tax filing and using SimpleFile, particularly for low-income individuals.

Tax filing barriers

• Complexity of the tax system
• Difficulty accessing CRA services (such as long wait times)
• A lack of trust in government
• Concerns about privacy

Barriers for low-income communities

• Cost of filing
• Limited access to the internet or their CRA account
• Shortage of free tax clinics
• Lack of awareness or tax literacy

SimpleFile challenges

• Individuals are sometimes unaware they’ve been invited to use SimpleFile because they don’t use their CRA accounts, or they did not receive or open their mailed invitation
• Individuals sometimes found the invitation letter too difficult to understand
• Individuals with a lower income may require more support in-person or by phone

Expansion of automatic tax filing

Participants expressed broad conditional support for automatic tax filing services for individuals with a lower income and a simple tax situation. Support was especially high from community organizations and academics. Individuals who don’t use SimpleFile were the least supportive.

Participants described the benefits that automatic tax filing services could have for those who would be eligible, especially for vulnerable communities. They noted that the CRA already has most of the information it needs to file simple returns, such as tax slips and Canada Pension Plan information. They also said the CRA could use this information to pre-fill or automatically file the return. They said that automatic tax filing services would:

• address tax filing barriers, such as the complexity of the tax system
• increase access to benefits and credits, ensuring that individuals receive the benefits and credits they are eligible for
• reduce individuals’ reliance on and costs towards tax preparer and software services
• be an efficient tax filing option, ensuring returns are filed on time

However, they raised concerns, including:

• a risk that online, automatic tax filing services would exclude vulnerable populations, such as those who don’t file or are behind on filing, those with locked CRA accounts, newcomers, and seniors
• a risk of inaccurate or incomplete pre-filled returns, including missed credits and deductions
• lower personal autonomy and responsibility in tax filing
• conflicts of interest with the CRA both filing and assessing returns
• privacy of personal information in automated systems
• CRA service quality (for example, contact centre wait times and processing backlogs)
• impact on the private sector tax filing market

Participant recommendations

With the help of artificial intelligence, the CRA summarized participants’ feedback under the following automatic tax filing recommendations:

• pilot automatic tax filing on behalf of individuals with a lower income and a simple tax situation
• provide explicit opt-in, transparency, and clear communication
• provide modifiable pre-filled returns with enough time for individuals to ask for changes after they file the return
• offer in-person support services for individuals and work with community organizations to reach out to and build trust with various communities
• improve CRA service standards and explore simplifying the tax system

Next steps

The CRA will take the following steps based on the above recommendations:

• In 2026, pending royal assent, we will conduct a small, deemed filing pilot project for eligible individuals with a lower income and simple tax situation.
• In March 2027, we will offer a pre-filled return service for eligible individuals with a low income.
• We will provide complete, accurate, and timely information in plain language about automatic tax filing services and work with community organizations, provincial and territorial partners, and others to support automatic tax filing measures.

The CRA thanks all participants who took part in the consultation. For more information about the consultation, visit Automatic tax filing consultation report.

Related information

Offering and expanding automatic tax filing services

SimpleFile services