Oversight Body Opens Inquiry Into CRA Treatment of Taxpayer Complaints

Canada’s taxpayers’ ombudsperson is opening an investigation into the complaint management practices of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)  due to concerns about fairness and efficiency.

Ombudsperson François Boileau announced on June 2 that preliminary research conducted by his office revealed a lack of clarity for taxpayers about where to seek help when they encounter a problem, potentially leading to delays in resolving their issues.

“At the end of the day, the CRA is a federal agency. It is meant to serve the public, and the public expects good service,” Boileau said in a press release. “It is not always possible to prevent issues before they happen, so it is important that the CRA’s complaint and recourse processes be efficient, effective, fair and timely. This will be top of mind as we conduct this examination.”

Boileau’s office said taxpayers have several options to address an issue with the CRA, but those avenues differ depending on whether it is related to a tax dispute or a quality of service complaint.

This lack of clarity can lead to “inefficiencies, varying timelines for resolutions, and perceived unfairness, particularly for taxpayers who need urgent action,” the ombudsperson said. 

Boileau’s inquiry follows the release of a report by the federal auditor general that heavily criticized the tax agency for failing to respond to calls promptly.

Auditor General Karen Hogan presented a report last fall indicating that the agency was missing its targets for response times. The audit highlighted a major dip in service standards, noting that, during the 2024–2025 fiscal year, only 18 percent of callers were able to connect with an agent within the CRA’s 15-minute timeframe, falling short of the agency’s internal goal of 65 percent.

Performance bottomed out in June 2025, with only 5 percent of incoming calls meeting the 15-minute standard.

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne directed the CRA to implement a 100-day action plan to address its call centres’ service delays the month before Hogan’s report was filed.

The request came after visits to CRA call centres and meetings with the agency’s leadership and workers, Champagne said in a letter last September to the parliamentary finance committee. He said he asked the agency to take “concrete” steps to improve its service by reallocating and adding personnel, implementing a new call-scheduling system, and expanding digital services.

CRA Secretary of State Wayne Long told the House of Commons public accounts committee in December the 100-day plan, which was focused on addressing call centre delays, was a “Band-Aid.” He said he wanted to keep working on improving services once it wrapped up.

He told the committee the government was working on a three-to-five-year plan for the agency and he believes it is on the right track.

CRA assistant commissioner Melanie Serjak told MPs after the release of Hogan’s report the agency is looking at rolling out a more “senior and standardized” level of training and to deploy artificial intelligence to improve the accuracy of CRA agents’ advice to the public.

The Epoch Times requested an update on the new plan from the CRA but did not receive a response before publication.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.