Auditor General’s report reveals major service and accuracy issues at the CRA

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has come under renewed scrutiny following a critical 2025 report from the Auditor General of Canada. While taxpayers have long been aware of service challenges at the CRA, this report confirms systemic issues that affect every taxpayer who release on CRA contact centres or online tools for guidance.

For individuals and businesses, the message is clear to you: you remain fully responsible to getting your taxes right, even when CRA information is wrong or delayed.

Key findings from the Audit General’s report

The 2025 performance audit reviewed whether CRA contact centres provided accurate and timely information about individual taxes, benefits, and business taxes. The results were troubling.

Accuracy of information

For general (non-account specific) questions, the Auditor General found:

• Only 17% of responses to personal tax questions were accurate;
• Only 54% of responses to business tax / benefits questions were accurate;
• The CRA’s AI chatbot answered correctly only about one-third of the time.

In other words, taxpayers seeking general guidance from the CRA contact centres face a high-risk of receiving incomplete or incorrect information.

Service delays

The audit also highlighted serious service problems:

• Average wait time to speak with an agent: 31 minutes;
• Only 18% of calls were answered within CRA’s own 15 minute standard;
• In some months, as few as 5% of calls met the target.

On top of that, the audit found that CRA’s internal quality monitoring significantly overstated accuracy, and that agent performance evaluations focused far more on schedule adherence and call length than on accuracy and completeness of the information provided.

Why this matters

Canada’s tax system is self-reporting: you, not the CRA, are ultimately responsible for correctly assessing and reporting your tax obligations.

The Auditor General’s report underscores a hard reality:

• Acting in good faith on incorrect CRA advice does not automatically protect you from tax, penalties or interest;
• Errors based on base information can still lead to reassessments, audits, missed deadlines and additional costs.

This risk is amplified when taxpayers rely on quick answers from call centres or chatbots for complex or high-value decisions.

Recommendations for taxpayers

1. Use CRA for only routine, low-stakes questions

For basic account information or generic frequently asked questions, CRA tools can still be helpful.

2. Get professional advice for significant or complex matters

Major transactions, such as corporate reorganizations, cross-border issues, changes in residency, real estate, and subsidy claims should be reviewed by your qualified tax professional.

3. Document any CRA guidance you receive

If you do speak with the CRA, note the date, time, agent ID (if provided, or ask for it), and a summary of the advice. This can help to support your position later, even if it doesn’t eliminate liability.

4. Keep your supporting records organized and complete

Good documentation reduces the time and cost of responding if the CRA reviews or audits your return.

5. Plan ahead for potential audit activity

With audit and review activity increasing, consider in advance how you would handle a CRA enquiry, including who would represent you and how their fees would be covered.

How we can help

Our role is to help you get it right the first time, and to represent you if the CRA asks questions later, we help:

• Interpret and apply the rules to your specific situation;
• Help you weigh options and consequences before you act; and
• Represent you in dealing with CRA enquires, reviews and audits.

If you have recently received a CRA guidance that you are unsure about, are planning a significant transaction, or simply want peace of mind about your current tax position, we encourage you to contact our office.