Free tax filing with the CRA's SimpleFile: by phone, online or on paper, who can use it, how to use it, and what the coming "automatic tax filing" is about

1. First, some terms: SimpleFile, invitation, access code, notice of assessment

Who the CRA is. CRA stands for Canada Revenue Agency. It is the federal government department that handles tax filing and pays out many benefits.

What you are filing. The form is called the income tax and benefit return. It has "benefit" in its name because many benefits (such as the Canada child benefit, the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB) and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) for seniors) are worked out from this return. That is why you need to file even if your income is very low, or even if you have no income at all.

What SimpleFile is. SimpleFile is the CRA's official free tax filing service, designed for people with "lower income and simple tax situations." You do not fill in a form or do any calculations yourself: you only answer a short series of questions, and the CRA uses your answers, plus information it already has (such as the tax slips that employers and government programs send to the CRA), to complete and process your return for you. The CRA says that in 2026 about 3 million people are eligible to use SimpleFile.

SimpleFile comes in three versions:

Invitation. The CRA picks out people it believes are eligible and sends them an "invitation package" with the information they need to use SimpleFile. The phone number for the phone version and the form for the paper version are only in the invitation package. Section 3 explains this in more detail.

Access code. An 8-character code made up of numbers and letters. You must enter it to use the online version, to prove that you are who you say you are. On the invitation letter it is called a validation code; on the notice of assessment it is called an access code. Section 4 explains where to find it.

Notice of assessment (NOA). The result the CRA gives you after you file and it has processed your return (you can see it online or get it by mail; see section 9). It shows the income, tax, refund or balance owing as assessed by the CRA. Last year's notice of assessment also shows the access code you can use this year.

CRA account. The CRA's online personal account; some CRA pages still call it My Account. Once you sign in, you can see your invitation letter, your notices of assessment and your benefit payment records.

Is SimpleFile "automatic tax filing"? Not exactly. The CRA groups several services, including SimpleFile and the free tax clinics, under the heading "Automatic tax filing," but with SimpleFile you still answer the questions and submit your return yourself. The kind where the CRA really files for you and you do not have to do anything is called "deemed filing." For now it is only a proposal and needs to be passed by Parliament; see section 12.

2. Who can use it: you must meet all of these conditions

What follows is for your 2025 taxes. The conditions may change from year to year; follow the CRA's page for that year.

First, you were a Canadian resident for tax purposes for all of 2025 (January 1 to December 31). Tax residency depends on your ties to life in Canada. The CRA says it looks at all the relevant facts together: first, "residential ties," the main examples being a home in Canada, a spouse or common-law partner in Canada, and dependants in Canada; and second, how long you have stayed in Canada, why you came and whether you intend to stay. If you only moved to Canada partway through 2025, you were not a resident for the whole year and cannot use SimpleFile.

Second, you were at least 15 years old in 2025.

Third, you are filing for yourself. SimpleFile cannot be used to file for anyone else, including an elderly family member.

Fourth, for the online and phone versions: you had no income that is tax-exempt under the Indian Act. The paper version does not have this restriction (section 7).

Fifth, you had no income, or only the kinds of income below, and it was under the threshold.

The only kinds of income allowed are these (with the name of the tax slip):

Any income that is not on this list, such as self-employment income (driving for a ride-hailing app, delivering food, running a small business, selling at a market stall), rental income, dividends from shares, gains from selling shares or property, or a pension from another country, means you cannot use SimpleFile, even if there is only one such amount and it is very small.

How the threshold works. Three things matter: which province you lived in on December 31, 2025, how old you were on that day, and whether you were eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC). When comparing, federal supplements such as the GIS, and the social assistance and workers' compensation shown on a T5007, are not counted; you only add up your other income and compare that.

B.C. thresholds (2025 taxes):

Other provinces have different thresholds; see the national table on the SimpleFile main page.

Sixth, none of the following happened in 2025:

• You sold your home (principal residence);
• You were bankrupt at any time;
• You repaid any of these: federal pandemic benefits received from 2020 to 2022, money withdrawn from your registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) under the Home Buyers' Plan (HBP), or money withdrawn from your RRSP under the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP);
• Your assets outside Canada (the CRA calls this "specified foreign property," which may include physical property outside Canada, and money and intangible property kept or held outside Canada) had a total cost of more than $100,000;
• You moved from one province to another (this is asked in the online version's eligibility questions).

One more thing to note: only some items can be claimed. SimpleFile can only handle some benefits, credits and deductions. The CRA specifically says that SimpleFile cannot handle claims such as medical expenses and tuition. If you need to claim these, use another option (section 11). Section 5 lists what can be claimed.

Some examples (the names and numbers are made up):

• Mrs. Wang is 78, lives in Victoria and lives alone. In 2025 she had only two tax slips: a T4A(OAS) showing about $8,000 of OAS pension for the year, plus the GIS; and a T4A(P) showing about $5,000 of CPP for the year. The GIS is not counted when comparing with the threshold, so $8,000 plus $5,000 is $13,000, which is below the $18,731 threshold for people 65 and over without the DTC, and all her types of income are on the list. She very likely qualifies.
• Ms. Li is 30 and does casual work in Victoria. In 2025 she had $11,500 in T4 wages and $60 in bank interest on a T5, $11,560 in total, which is below the $12,932 threshold for ages 15 to 64, so she may qualify. (If your interest for the year is less than $50, the bank may not send you a T5, but the CRA says you still have to report that interest.) But if she also drove for a ride-hailing app for a few months on the side and had self-employment income, even just a few hundred dollars, she could not use SimpleFile.
• Mr. Liu only moved to Victoria from abroad in July 2025. He was not a resident for tax purposes for all of 2025, so he cannot use SimpleFile and needs another way to file his first tax return.

If your situation changes, check again. Every SimpleFile page reminds you that if your income or personal situation changes, you may no longer be able to use it. The same applies if you received an invitation: check the conditions above again first.

Related: for what to do in your first few months in Canada, see Guide No. 2, First 90 days.

3. Invitation letters: when they come, where to find them and what to do if you did not get one

When they come. On the SimpleFile main page, the CRA says that it would send invitations in September 2026 to eligible people to use SimpleFile for their 2025 taxes. The phone version page says invitations for the phone version are sent in March and in the summer; the paper version page says invitations for the paper version are sent in the summer.

Where to find it. It depends on whether you have signed up for CRA email notifications:

• If you signed up for email notifications: when your invitation package is placed in your CRA account, you will get an email notification, and you can see it by signing in to your CRA account.
• If you did not sign up for email notifications: the invitation package is mailed to the address the CRA has on file, so check your mailbox at home; if you have a CRA account, you can also see it in your account, but no email will tell you it is there. The CRA does not say which part of the account it is in; you can try Mail first.

The phone number is only in the invitation package. The CRA states that the number for the phone version is not available online; it is only printed in the invitation package. So use only the number in your letter.

Watch out for scams pretending to be the CRA. The CRA says it only sends email notifications to people who have given it an email address, and these emails will not ask you for personal information or ask you to click a link. If you get a text or email asking you to click a link to "claim your refund" or "file with SimpleFile," do not click it; sign in to your CRA account yourself to check.

If you did not get an invitation:

• If you filed your 2024 taxes: you can go through the online version's eligibility questions yourself. If you qualify, use the access code on your 2024 notice of assessment to file online (sections 4 and 5).
• If you did not file your 2024 taxes: the CRA states that in this case you must have an invitation to use SimpleFile. Without one, use another option (section 11).
• Phone and paper versions: only for people who received an invitation; without one, you cannot use them.

4. Where to find your access code

You must have an access code for the online version. You can find it in two places; both are 8 characters long, a mix of numbers and letters:

1. Your 2025 SimpleFile invitation letter. In the "Option A: SimpleFile Digital" part of the letter, it is called a validation code; this is your access code.
2. Your 2024 notice of assessment (NOA). On the right side of the notice of assessment, it is called an access code. If you cannot find your invitation letter, you can use this one instead.

If you cannot find your notice of assessment.

• If you have a CRA account: sign in, select Individual, then Tax returns or Mail, and click your 2024 notice of assessment in the list.
• If you do not have a CRA account: you can register for one, or call the CRA at 1-800-959-8281 and ask it to mail you a paper copy. When you call, the CRA may ask for your social insurance number (SIN), full name, date of birth and full address, as well as information from a tax return you filed or a notice of assessment, to confirm that you are who you say you are.

People filing for the first time have no access code. The notice of assessment page states that people filing for the first time do not have an access code. So if you are filing for the first time and have no invitation, you cannot use the online version.

5. Filing online (SimpleFile Digital): step by step

When it is open. From March 9, 2026 to January 29, 2027, every day from 6 a.m. to 3 a.m. the next day, Eastern Time. From 2026, B.C. no longer changes its clocks during the year, but Eastern Time still does, so the number of hours between the two changes. From now (November 2026) until it closes on January 29, 2027, in B.C. time it is: available every day from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. the next day, and not available from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. January 29 is the last day; do not leave it until the last minute.

Step 1: Answer the eligibility questions first. Open the online version page (the link is at the end of this section). The page has a set of questions (Answer interactive questions); just click your answers. If the questions do not display, you can use the text version. The questions ask, in order:

• whether you filed your 2024 taxes;
• whether you were a Canadian resident for tax purposes for all of 2025;
• whether you had income that is tax-exempt under the Indian Act;
• which province you lived in on December 31, 2025, how old you were and whether you were eligible for the DTC;
• what income you had, whether it was under the threshold and whether you had any income not on the list;
• whether all the benefits, credits and deductions you want to claim are on the list it can handle;
• whether you sold your principal residence, moved between provinces, were bankrupt or are filing for someone else;
• whether your foreign assets were over $100,000;
• whether you repaid pandemic benefits, HBP money or LLP money;
• whether you received an invitation.

When you finish, the page tells you whether you can use the online version.

Step 2: Have these ready:

• your social insurance number (SIN);
• your date of birth;
• your current mailing address;
• if you are married or have a common-law partner: their SIN and their net income for 2025. Net income is the amount on line 23600 of the tax return; you can find it on their 2025 return or notice of assessment;
• your 8-character access code (section 4).

These five items are the CRA's whole list. We suggest also keeping your 2025 tax slips at hand, so you can check your types of income and the amounts while you answer.

Step 3: Open the form and answer. On the online version page there is a part called "File using the SimpleFile Digital web form"; in that part there is a link to the "SimpleFile Digital web form." Click it and follow the prompts. The CRA says there is no form to fill in and nothing to calculate.

Step 4: Do not close the page before you submit. While you are answering you can close it and start over at any time, but if you close it, nothing is saved and your taxes are not filed; next time you have to start again from the beginning.

What gets filed, depending on your province. For residents outside Quebec, SimpleFile files your federal return and your provincial return together; if you live in Quebec, it only files your federal return, and you must file your provincial return separately with Revenu Québec.

What the online version can handle (2025 taxes):

• Benefits: the CGEB (Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit, formerly the GST/HST credit), the Canada child benefit (CCB) and the Canada workers benefit (CWB);
• Non-refundable credits: the basic personal amount, the age amount, the Canada employment amount, base CPP or QPP contributions, EI premiums and the disability amount for yourself;
• Deductions: pension adjustment, registered pension plan (RPP) deduction, union or professional dues, deduction for enhanced CPP or QPP contributions, repaid pandemic benefits, and deduction for other payments (workers' compensation, social assistance, federal supplements). Note: the list includes "repaid pandemic benefits," yet the conditions say you cannot use SimpleFile if you repaid pandemic benefits in 2025 (section 2). The same CRA page says both; go by the result of the eligibility questions;
• B.C. items: the BC family benefit, the B.C. sales tax credit, the home renovation tax credit for seniors and persons with disabilities, and the B.C. renter's tax credit.

6. Filing by phone (SimpleFile by Phone): how seniors with very low income can use it

Who can use it. Only people who received an invitation for the phone version. The number to call is printed in the invitation package and is not available online.

How you answer. Once you get through, you first give some personal information, then answer a short series of questions using the number keys on your phone. You do not fill in a form, do any calculations or speak with an agent. So use a phone that has number keys. The CRA has not published every question asked on the phone; you can have the items needed for the online version (section 5, step 2) ready in advance.

Hours. From March 9, 2026 to January 29, 2027, 7 days a week, 6 a.m. to 3 a.m. Eastern Time. In B.C. time it is the same as the online version: from now (November 2026) until it closes on January 29, 2027, every day from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. the next day. A call takes about 5 to 10 minutes.

If the call drops or you press the wrong key. If you hang up or the call drops before the call is finished, you have to call again and start over. If you think you pressed a wrong key, you can hang up, call again and start over. Your information is only saved once you finish the whole call.

To hear an estimate on the phone, set up a PIN first. A PIN is a 6-digit password you set up for the CRA's individual tax enquiries line. If you have a PIN, at the end of the call you can hear an estimate of your net income, your taxable income (the income amount used to calculate your tax) and the refund you may get; just give your PIN when you are prompted. You can file without a PIN, but you will not hear the estimate. There are two ways to set up a PIN:

• Online: sign in to your CRA account, click Security settings on the Welcome page, find Personal Identification Number (PIN), click Edit and set a 6-digit number;
• By phone: call the CRA at 1-800-959-8281 and ask an agent to set it up for you; you will need to give information from your tax records to confirm your identity.

An example: how Mrs. Wang files by phone (the name is made up).

1. In summer 2026, Mrs. Wang found a CRA envelope in her mailbox at home. Inside was her 2025 SimpleFile invitation package, with the number for the phone version.
2. She first checked the conditions in section 2 again: she lived in Victoria all year, and her only income was OAS, the GIS and CPP; her OAS and CPP together were under the threshold (the GIS does not count); she did not sell a home and has no foreign assets. She still qualified.
3. She got out her invitation letter and social insurance number, wrote down her date of birth and current address, sat by her landline at home and picked a quiet time when she would not be interrupted.
4. She called the number on the invitation letter and answered by pressing keys, step by step, following the voice prompts. She finished in about 5 to 10 minutes.
5. She had set up a PIN on an earlier call to the CRA, so at the end she gave her PIN and heard the estimate.
6. Some time later, her notice of assessment arrived by mail (section 9). She kept her invitation letter and tax slips, and will keep them for six years.

Can a family member file for her? The SimpleFile conditions state that you can only file for yourself. If you want a family member to formally handle your tax matters for you, the CRA has an "authorized representative" arrangement, which must be set up first; this guide does not go into it.

Related: for what to prepare before you call a government line and what to do if you cannot get through, see Guide No. 7, Phone directory.

7. Filing on paper (SimpleFile by Paper)

Who can use it. Only people who received an invitation for the paper version, and the form must be filled in by the person who received the invitation. Invitations for the paper version are sent in the summer, to the mailing address the CRA has on file.

Two ways it differs from the online and phone versions:

• You do not need to have filed taxes before;
• You can use it even if you have income that is tax-exempt under the Indian Act.

How it works. The invitation package contains a special paper return. Fill in your personal information, write your income clearly on the form, and mail it back to the CRA in the envelope included in the package. It takes under 25 minutes to fill in.

Is there a deadline? The paper version has no set closing date, but each form can only be used for the year printed on it. For example, if the form says 2025, you can only use it for your 2025 taxes.

What gets filed, depending on your province. The same as the online version: residents outside Quebec file federal and provincial returns together; if you live in Quebec, you file your provincial return separately with Revenu Québec.

There is also a short paper return for Indigenous peoples. The CRA also has an "Indigenous credit and benefit short return" for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people with simple tax situations, including those with no income or only tax-exempt income. This guide does not go into it; the link is at the end of this section.

8. The deadline for your 2025 taxes has passed: can you still file?

The deadline has passed. For most people, the deadline for 2025 taxes was April 30, 2026; if you or your spouse ran a business (were self-employed), it was June 15, 2026.

You can still file after the deadline, and the sooner the better. If you meet the SimpleFile conditions, the online and phone versions are open until January 29, 2027; the paper version can still be used as long as the form says 2025.

Will there be a late-filing penalty? The CRA says you are only charged a late-filing penalty if you file after the deadline and owe tax. The penalty is 5% of the tax you owe, plus 1% for each full month you are late, up to 12 months. The CRA says its automatic tax filing services are designed for people with lower income who do not owe tax.

The real cost of filing late is that benefits stop. Filing late can delay your benefits. For example, the Canada child benefit: if you do not file on time, your payments may stop; once you file and the CRA has processed your return, the amount owed to you is paid together on the next payment date. The CGEB works the same way: if you file late for earlier years and qualify, the CRA will pay what you missed, either as a separate payment or together with your next quarterly payment.

The notice of assessment will be slower if you file late. The notice of assessment page states that if you file after the deadline, your notice of assessment may take longer to arrive.

If you also did not file for earlier years. SimpleFile only handles 2025 taxes. For earlier years you need another option: file yourself through NETFILE using certified software, where returns for 2018 to 2025 can all be sent until January 29, 2027; or ask a free tax clinic whether it can file returns for earlier years (section 11).

9. After you file: how long the notice of assessment takes, how to fix mistakes and how long to keep records

How the notice of assessment arrives. Whichever way you file, the CRA gives you a notice of assessment once it has processed your return.

• If you have a CRA account: you can see it in your account once your return is processed; the CRA says that in most cases it is there right away.
• If you have given the CRA an email address and have not chosen paper mail: the CRA sends it as online mail in your account and emails you to let you know; no paper copy is mailed.
• If you chose paper mail, or have never given the CRA an email address: it is mailed to the address the CRA has on file.

How long it takes. The CRA's service standard: for individual returns filed online, a notice of assessment within 2 weeks of receiving the return and any supporting documents requested; for paper returns, within 12 weeks. The SimpleFile pages do not give a separate time. It takes longer if you filed late, if the CRA reviews your return or if you have to send more information. In your CRA account, you can use the progress tracker to see how far along your return is.

What to check when you get it. Check the income, the tax assessed and the refund or balance owing on it against the tax slips you have.

If something is wrong or missing, how to change it.

1. Wait until your notice of assessment arrives first; the CRA requires you to have received it before you ask for a change.
2. Online: sign in to your CRA account, select Individual, select Tax returns, click Change my return, choose the year you want to change and follow the steps; when you finish, save the confirmation number and the summary of changes. Another online method, ReFILE, is only for returns originally filed with certified software.
3. On paper: fill in Form T1-ADJ (T1 Adjustment Request), attach supporting documents and mail it to your tax centre.

How long it takes: the change-your-return page says about 2 weeks online and 20 weeks on paper; the October 2026 figures on the CRA processing times page say within 5 weeks online and within 20 weeks on paper or by phone. The two pages do not match; before you make a change, check the processing times page for the latest figure.

Note: changing your return cannot be used to apply for benefits, or to change your address, bank account, marital status or name; you need to update your personal information separately.

How long to keep records. Every SimpleFile page says to keep supporting documents such as tax slips and receipts for 6 years, in case the CRA asks to see them. Generally, you keep them for 6 years from the end of that year, so 2025 records are kept until the end of 2031; if you filed late, you keep them for 6 years from the day you actually filed.

If you disagree with the assessment. If your information is all correct but you disagree with what the CRA assessed, you can formally file an objection within 90 days of the date on your notice of assessment (for personal income tax, the deadline is the later of two dates; see section 5 of Guide No. 36).

Related: if you disagree with the CRA's assessment and want to object, for how the objection deadline is worked out and how to file an objection, see sections 5 and 7 of Guide No. 36, Disagreeing with a CRA assessment.

10. What money you can miss out on if you do not file

The CRA says many people with low income have missed out on benefits and credits they were entitled to because they did not file. Some money the CRA works out for you automatically as long as you file, such as the CGEB; some you need to apply for once and then file every year to keep getting, such as the Canada child benefit; and some you need to apply for separately, with filing being one of the conditions, such as the Canada Disability Benefit. You need to file even if you have no income.

• CGEB (Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit). From July 2026 it replaced the former GST/HST credit; who qualifies and how it is calculated are the same as before. It is paid once a quarter, is tax-free and goes to individuals and families with low and modest incomes; you may get it even if you have no income. From July 2026 the amount went up by 25%, and the CRA says this increase will last 5 years (2026 to 2031). You generally need to be 19 or older; if you are under 19, you can also qualify if you have a spouse or common-law partner, or are a parent who lives with your child. When you file, the CRA reviews your eligibility automatically, including for related provincial benefits.
• Canada child benefit (CCB). Paid monthly and tax-free to families raising children under 18. Once you get it, you must file every year, and if you have a spouse, your spouse must also file on time; you need to file even if you have no income or your income is tax-exempt. If you do not file, the payments will stop.
• BC family benefit. A monthly payment from B.C. for families with children under 18, paid by the CRA on the province's behalf. If your children are registered for the Canada child benefit, they are registered for it automatically; but you and your spouse need to file to receive it.
• Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS). Paid monthly and tax-free to seniors 65 and over who receive Old Age Security (OAS) and have low income. You need to file by April 30 each year to avoid an interruption. Service Canada reviews your eligibility each year using your tax return and sends you a letter in July with the result. The GIS page currently says: if you have not yet filed your 2025 taxes, your GIS may stop or be reduced, so please file as soon as possible; you can also report your income directly to Service Canada to keep getting it.
• Canada Disability Benefit. For people aged 18 to 64 whose DTC has been approved; you need to apply separately to Service Canada. One of the conditions is that you and your spouse must both have filed your 2025 federal taxes before any money is paid.
• B.C. renter's tax credit. If you rented a home in B.C. for at least 6 full months of the year, and on December 31 of that year lived in B.C. and were 19 or older (or were a parent, or lived with your spouse), you can get up to $400 a year; you claim it when you file (Form BC479). For 2025 taxes: it starts to go down when your "adjusted income" (your net income plus your spouse's, with a few adjustments) is over $64,764, and reaches zero at $84,764. You can also claim it with the SimpleFile online version.
• Canada workers benefit (CWB). A refundable tax credit for working individuals and families with low income (meaning that if it works out to more than the tax you owe, the extra is paid to you); you can claim it with the SimpleFile online version.

Two that have already ended, so do not wait for them:

• Canada Carbon Rebate (formerly the Climate action incentive payment). People living in B.C. were never covered by this payment: the CRA states that it did not apply in B.C. (B.C. had its own climate action tax credit; see the next item). It only matters if you used to live in another province and did not get payments you were entitled to in those years. The April 2025 payment was the last one. To claim for earlier years, under legislative proposals released in November 2025 (now part of Bill C-31, which has not yet passed), you had to file your 2018 to 2024 returns or send a request to change them by October 30, 2026, and that date has now passed.
• BC climate action tax credit. It has ended; the April 2025 payment was the last one. The Province of B.C. says that if you have not filed for 2023 or earlier years, you may still get the credit for those years after you file.

Related: for how to apply for and receive OAS, the GIS, the Canada child benefit and similar payments, see Guide No. 9, Pensions & benefits. For what the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) is and who may qualify, see sections 1 to 3 of Guide No. 39, Disability tax credit (DTC); for how to apply for the Canada Disability Benefit once your DTC is approved, see section 11 of the same guide.

11. If you cannot use SimpleFile: other free or reliable options

Free tax clinics (CVITP)

What they are. The Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP), run jointly by the CRA and community organizations. Volunteers file taxes for free for people with modest income and simple tax situations. The volunteers are not CRA employees.

About how much income you can have. The CRA's guideline is "total family income" of no more than the amounts below:

"Family size" counts you, or you and your spouse, plus your dependants. Each organization can adjust this guideline to local conditions; go by what the clinic tells you.

Your tax situation must be simple. Your income comes only from employment, pensions, various benefits (CPP, OAS, disability insurance, EI, social assistance), RRSPs, scholarships and bursaries, or interest ($1,200 or less), or you have no income.

What volunteers do not do: returns for people who have died; returns with self-employment income or employment expenses, a business, rental income, interest over $1,200, capital gains or losses from selling shares or property, a bankruptcy in the year (or a bankruptcy in the previous year when that year's return has not been filed yet), foreign property that must be reported (Form T1135), or foreign income. Two exceptions: self-employment income in box 048 of a T4A that is under $1,000, with no expenses claimed and no GST/HST registration (and no need to register), may be accepted; and U.S. Social Security is accepted, but other foreign income (including foreign pensions) is not.

What to bring. Valid government-issued photo ID, your SIN (or a valid temporary SIN), all your tax slips, receipts, and past notices of assessment (if you have them). Newcomers filing for the first time should also bring the SIN confirmation letter from Service Canada.

Three kinds of clinics. Walk-in; drop-off (you leave your documents and come back for them later, and you must prove your identity when you pick them up); and by appointment, which can be in person or by video or phone (virtual). Some organizations hold clinics in private homes; call first to confirm the location before you go.

How to find one in Victoria. Use the CRA's "Find a tax clinic" search page (the link is at the end of this section):

1. For Province, choose British Columbia;
2. For City, choose the city you live in, such as Victoria or Saanich, depending on what is in the list;
3. For Clinic type, choose whichever suits you;
4. If you need to file for several years, for Returns prepared choose Current and prior years;
5. For Language, you can choose Mandarin or Cantonese to see whether there are Chinese-speaking volunteers;
6. Click Search, write down the clinic's phone number and call before you go.

The CRA says most clinics are open in March and April; there are some at other times of the year, but fewer. If you find nothing now (in November), check again later.

Certified tax software (NETFILE)

NETFILE is the CRA's online system for receiving tax returns: you use tax software certified by the CRA and send your return directly to the CRA yourself. The CRA's list of certified software includes products that are completely free and some that are free depending on your situation; the CRA says that if your income is modest, most software can prepare a basic return for free. Software prepares a complete return, so you can enter items that SimpleFile cannot handle, such as medical expenses and tuition.

Before you use software, note the CRA's warnings: software companies are not part of the CRA, and the CRA does not review their privacy policies; you do not need to send your personal information directly to a software company; and sending personal information by email is not safe and can lead to identity theft.

The list is on a CRA web page, in random order, and you can filter for "free." CanDo Studio does not recommend any particular product.

Paying a professional

If your taxes are complicated (you run a business, have rental income, have foreign income or assets, or sold your home), you can pay an accountant. You can look up B.C. chartered professional accountants (CPAs) in CPA BC's member and firm directories to see whether they are registered and in good standing.

Related: for the basics of saving tax and investing, see Guide No. 15, Saving tax & investing; to formally file taxes for family members or friends using software, see Guide No. 26, Filing taxes for others: CRA EFILE.

12. What is coming: the pre-filled tax return and the "file for you" pilot

Pre-filled tax return (for your 2026 taxes, starting in March 2027)

What it is. The CRA uses information it already has to fill in your 2026 return in advance and puts it in your CRA account. You look it over, correct anything that is wrong, add anything that is missing, and submit it once you have confirmed it. It is free.

How many people. The CRA says that in 2027 about 1 million people will get an email notification inviting them to use a pre-filled return for their 2026 taxes; by 2029 this will expand to 5.5 million people (for their 2028 taxes).

Who may be invited. The CRA's new pre-filled tax return page, posted on November 2, 2026, says you must meet all of the following:

• you have registered for a CRA account and can sign in;
• the correspondence preference in your CRA account is set to "electronic mail";
• you have filed your 2025 taxes;
• you were a Canadian resident for tax purposes for all of 2026 (January 1 to December 31); you are filing for yourself; you were at least 15 in 2026; you had no income that is tax-exempt under the Indian Act;
• you had no income, or only the seven kinds in section 2, and it was under the 2026 threshold (federal supplements such as the GIS, and social assistance and workers' compensation on a T5007, are still not counted);
• in 2026 you did not sell your principal residence, were not bankrupt and did not repay pandemic benefits, HBP money or LLP money, and the total cost of your foreign assets was not over $100,000.

B.C. thresholds on the pre-filled tax return page (2026 taxes, based on your age on December 31, 2026):

Two CRA pages say different things. The "easier tax filing" page, updated on September 17, says "filed your 2025 taxes by October 31, 2026," and also asked people to register for an account, update their information and change their correspondence preference to electronic mail by October 31. The new page of November 2 only says "have filed your 2025 taxes," with no date. The CRA has not said which page applies. If you have not yet filed your 2025 taxes or changed your correspondence preference to electronic mail, do both as soon as you can.

How to use it. From March 2027, it is only available in your CRA account. Invitations will be sent to CRA accounts in March, and eligible people will get an email notification. There are two ways to open it: click the link in the invitation; or sign in to your CRA account and click Tax returns on the Overview page. After you submit, you will still get a notice of assessment, and you keep supporting documents for 6 years; to make changes, follow section 9.

The "file for you" pilot: once the bill passes, it may apply to taxes from 2025 onward

What it is. In English this is called "deemed filing." The CRA would file directly for eligible people who do not owe tax, without them having to do anything. It was proposed in the 2025 federal budget and requires changes to the Income Tax Act.

Which years it covers. The bill states that it applies starting with 2025 taxes; it does not wait until 2026 taxes.

Where it stands now. The CRA's infographic says the plan is to start in fall 2026 with a small pilot, subject to Royal Assent (the last step in passing a bill). This is in Bill C-31 (the second bill to implement the 2025 budget). According to Parliament's website, as of November 3, 2026, C-31 was at "report stage" in the House of Commons, the step where a committee has finished studying a bill and the whole House debates and amends it: the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance presented its report on October 30, and third reading has not been reached yet. The Senate is doing a "pre-study," which means the Senate starts studying a bill before it has formally been sent to the Senate. So it is not yet law.

Conditions in the draft bill (first reading text, which may still change): you were resident in Canada for the whole year; you have not told the CRA not to file for you; you did not file for at least one of the previous three years; you have still not filed 45 days after the deadline; all your income has already been reported to the CRA by whoever issued your tax slips; your taxable income is no more than the total of the basic personal amount, the age amount and the disability amount (worked out once federally and once provincially, with the lower one used); the CRA first tells you the information it has, and within 90 days you have neither filed yourself nor told the CRA that something needs to change; you were not bankrupt that year; and any other conditions the CRA sets (if any).

What this means for you. This service does not exist yet. If you later get this kind of notice from the CRA, read it carefully, and if the information is wrong, tell the CRA within the time limit; if you do not want the CRA to file for you, you can tell it that too. If you have not filed your 2025 taxes, do not wait for this; file using the options in sections 5 to 7 and section 11.

13. Checklist before you start

• Check the conditions first: a Canadian resident for tax purposes for all of 2025, at least 15, filing for yourself, income only of the kinds on the list and under the B.C. threshold (the GIS, social assistance and workers' compensation do not count), and none of these: selling your principal residence, bankruptcy, moving between provinces, foreign assets over $100,000, or repaying HBP, LLP or pandemic benefit money.
• Find your invitation: look in your CRA account and your mailbox at home for your 2025 SimpleFile invitation package.
• No invitation: if you filed your 2024 taxes, go through the online version's eligibility questions; if you did not, go to a free clinic or use certified software instead.
• Find your access code: the validation code in the Option A part of your invitation letter, or the access code on the right side of your 2024 notice of assessment.
• Have your information ready: your SIN, date of birth and mailing address; if you have a spouse, their SIN and their 2025 net income (line 23600).
• Check the hours: the online and phone versions are open until January 29, 2027; from now until they close, they are available every day from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. the next day, B.C. time.
• To hear an estimate on the phone, set up your 6-digit PIN first.
• After you file, wait for your notice of assessment: usually 2 weeks online and 12 weeks on paper, longer if you filed late; if something is wrong, wait until the notice arrives before changing it.
• Keep tax slips and receipts for 6 years: generally counted from the end of that year; if you filed late, from the day you filed.
• To use the pre-filled return in future: register for a CRA account, set your correspondence preference to electronic mail, and file your 2025 taxes first.
• If you need help: a free tax clinic (when you search, you can filter by Mandarin or Cantonese); if your taxes are complicated, pay an accountant you can find in the CPA BC directory.
• If you have questions, call the CRA's individual tax enquiries line at 1-800-959-8281: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time; in B.C. time: from the first Sunday in November to the second Sunday in March, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; the rest of the year, 5 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Related guides

• → No. 36 · Disagreeing with a CRA assessment
  If you get a letter from the CRA and disagree with the result: which kind of letter it is, how the objection deadline is worked out (for personal income tax, the later of two dates) and how to file an objection.
• → No. 39 · Disability tax credit (DTC)
  What the DTC is, who can apply and how, and the other payments it can open up once approved, such as the Canada Disability Benefit.
• → No. 9 · Pensions & benefits
  How to apply for and receive Old Age Security (OAS), the GIS and the CPP, and benefits to check at other ages, such as the Canada child benefit and the CGEB.
• → No. 26 · Filing taxes for others: CRA EFILE
  If you want to formally file taxes for family or friends using software, you first need to apply for the CRA's EFILE; volunteering at a free tax clinic is covered too.
• → No. 15 · Saving tax & investing
  How accounts such as the TFSA and RRSP work, and the five things to ask when someone presents a financial product to you.
• → No. 7 · Phone directory
  How to find the phone numbers for the CRA and other government departments, what to prepare before you call, and what to do if you cannot get through.
• → No. 2 · First 90 days
  Your first three months in Canada: your SIN, a bank account, a CRA account and benefit applications in order, and the records to start keeping now for your first tax return.
• → No. 58 · Using the public library
  For free help with your taxes during tax season: the Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) website does not currently list any tax clinics, so use the CRA's search page to find one near you; and how to use the library's free computers, black-and-white printing and Wi-Fi.

Main official links in this guide

These are the official pages used most in this guide. The pages of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), Service Canada, the Province of B.C. and the Parliament of Canada used in this guide were all opened and read on November 3, 2026. There are a few things the official sites do not say, or that we could not read: the CRA has not published which questions are asked in the SimpleFile phone version; the official sites do not say which part of your CRA account the invitation package is in; the SimpleFile pages do not give a separate time for the notice of assessment after you file, so this guide uses the CRA's service standard for individual returns; the official sites do not say specifically whether a return filed with SimpleFile can be changed with Change my return in your CRA account; the clinic search page only shows results after a search is submitted, and we did not submit one this time, so this guide only explains how to search for free tax clinics in Victoria; and the SimpleFile pages have not yet said when SimpleFile opens for 2026 taxes or what the thresholds will be. Other links are at the end of each section.