Lesson plan: Using My Account – Learn about your taxes

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https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/educational-programs/lesson-plans/lp-using-my-account.html

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Learn about your taxes

Lesson plan: Using My Account

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Overview

Help students learn what to expect when they register for a CRA account and how to access My Account, the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) online portal for individuals. The lesson will also explain how students can manage their online account. Students will be able to test their knowledge through quizzes and practical examples.

The core question are:

  • What do you need to register for a CRA account?
  • How can you access My Account?

Learning objective: Students will develop an understanding of what a CRA account is, how they can register for it, how they can access My Account, and what they can do in this online portal.

Skills to develop

  • Explain what a CRA account is
  • Outline the available services in My Account
  • Identify the different sign-in options
  • Describe the security measures in place

Background information

Students can register for a CRA account after doing their taxes for the first time. Once they have signed into their CRA account, they have access to three portals:

  • My Account
    • To access your personal information
  • My Business Account
    • To access your business’s information
  • Represent a Client
    • For authorized access to someone else’s individual or business information

My Account is the portal your students will likely use most often. They can use this portal to quickly, conveniently, and securely view and manage their personal income tax and benefit information online.

Learning and activities

Required materials step 1

Warm-up exercises step 2

First exercise

Step 1: Ask students what kind of online accounts they have.

Suggested answers could be:

  • email
  • online banking
  • cell phone
  • social media
  • educational profiles
  • online shopping

Step 2: Have students describe what services they like in an online account.

Suggested answers could be:

  • straightforward registration process
  • security measures in place
  • ability to make changes easily
  • simple and appealing layout

Second exercise

Step 1: Explain to students that the CRA is the federal government agency that collects taxes and administers various benefits and credits. In Canada, the CRA manages income tax and benefit accounts for individuals and corporation income tax accounts for businesses.

Step 2: Inform students that the CRA has created a single sign-in for individuals and businesses to access and manage their CRA accounts themselves.

Activity

Ask students to write down what services they would like to see in an online portal from the CRA. Ask them to keep these in mind as they review the lesson pages.

Walk through the lessons step 3

Read through the lesson pages with the additional guidance provided below. Students can review material individually, in groups, or as a class.

Lesson A: Registering for a CRA account

Before starting the lesson

Advise students that they need to register for a CRA account to access the available services in 3 portals:

  • My Account
  • My Business Account
  • Represent a Client

There are 3 sign-in options to sign in to a CRA account:

  • Using a Sign-In Partner
  • Using a CRA user ID and password
  • Using a provincial partner (residents of Alberta and British Columbia)

They must enroll in multi-factor authentication and choose a verification option. This ensures their income tax and benefit information is secure.

After finishing the lesson

Talk about the different sign-in options with students. Ask them which one they think is the easiest to use.

Point out that they need to register for a CRA account before they can access the available services in the online portals. This saves time if they need information quickly, such as a copy of their notice of assessment or proof of income statement to apply for a loan.

Remind them that the CRA has verification options to validate their identity and protect their information.

Activity

Take another look at the list of services available in My Account and compare the list of limited services versus the list of full services. Ask students if they think completing the registration is worth it and whether they will register for a CRA account after they have done their taxes for the first time.

Lesson B: Making the most of My Account

After finishing the lesson

Ask students how the list they wrote in the warm-up exercise compares to the actual list of available services.

Bring it all together step 4

Direct students to complete the quiz to assess their understanding.

Discuss the advantages of registering for a CRA account to manage their own tax information.

Using My Account will allow them to:

  • access their income tax and benefit information in real time
  • update personal information, like their address
  • simplify doing their taxes in the future
  • save time, by avoiding the need to call the CRA or order paper copies of their documents

Reconfirm that students can register for a CRA account after doing their taxes for the first time. Students only need to register once, and they can keep using the same sign-in information to manage their My Account.


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2025-06-06