CRA has said that they will no longer accept the RC59 Business Consent for Offline Access and now as of today one will need to use the new Form AUT-01 Authorize a Representative for Access by Phone and Mail.
The new form is quite important because it allows a non-profit or charity to authorize someone to communicate on behalf of the charity with CRA. If you are not on the CRA system and/or authorized then CRA will not be able to discuss the charity’s affairs with you.
CRA notes under “Your responsibilities”:
You should have a list of people with proper authority for you or your business. If your list changes, you need to let us know right away. Send us official documents about the change so our records on you or your business are up to date. Other responsibilities include:
- making sure that the list of people with proper authority to sign this form is up to date in our files
- keeping representative information up to date
- monitoring and understanding what your representative is doing on your behalf for you or your business
- reviewing services to which your representative has access
- deciding if your representative should continue to represent you or your business
To see the type of access your representative has, go to canada.ca/cra-login-services. We may add new services that your representative can access with your consent.
CRA provides a list of program identifiers:
You can use only the following program identifiers on this form:
- CT fuel charge
- RC corporation income tax
- RD excise duty
- RE excise tax
- RG air travellers security charge
- RM import/export (no online access available)
- RN excise tax on insurance premiums
- RP payroll deductions
- RR registered charities
- RT goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST)
- RZ information returns: T5, T5007, T5008, T5013, T5018, TFSA, Shelter Allowance for Elderly Renters (SAFER), T2202 – Tuition and Enrolment Certificate, RRSP contribution receipts, RRSP and RRIF non-qualified investments, Pooled Registered Pension Plan (PRPP), Part XVIII – International Exchange of Information on Financial Accounts, Part XIX – International Exchange of Information on Financial Accounts
- SL softwood lumber products export charge
Please note that the Form is valid within 6 months of the date it was signed or it will not be processed thereafter. Non-profits and charities will need to determine whether the representative will have access to only one account, selected accounts or all accounts.
You can cancel an authorization online. Or you can use the Cancel Authorization for a Representative form to cancel an authorization.
By Mark Blumberg, Blumbergs
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- Globe and Mail article “CRA typo causes a multimillion-dollar mistake for the Hewitt Foundation” focuses on the importance of T3010 - June 26, 2023
