CRA reports surge in number of victims of tax return fraud

Although fraud is an ongoing issue for Canadians, tax return season sees an increase in the number of people falling victim to scams.

The Canadian revenue agency and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre are warning residents to be on the lookout for false emails, text messages and phone calls.

Officials said the CRA will never ask for personal banking information via email or text messages. Anyone unsure whether the call is from the CRA team should verify it with the agency before calling back.

“If you are getting a call from someone saying they’re calling from the Canada Revenue Agency using threatening language, saying they are going to come after you to arrest you, demanding payment in forms that are not conventional, such as Bitcoin, prepaid gift cards, it’s safe to assume that likely it is not the Canadian Revenue Agency,” said the CRA’s Daria Askerko.

“If you are not sure, look up the legitimate phone number for the CRA, or Service Canada or whoever the message claims to be from, and confirm the legitimacy that way,” said Jeff Horncastle.

In 2022, the centre said $530 million was lost to scams.