At the moment there are two ways to obtain authorization on a business client's Canada Revenue Agency ("CRA") online account:
- Submit a completed copy of Form RC59 by fax/mail to the Taxpayer's respective CRA tax centre; and,
- Generate an "Authorization Request" form in Represent a Client, have this executed by the client, and submit the form to the CRA through Represent a Client.
After May 15, 2017, to request online access to tax information for a business, a representative will only be able to use the second of the above options; i.e. they will have to complete the authorization request in Represent a Client as Form RC59 will no longer be used to authorize online access.
The CRA has promised access will be granted to business client's information within five (5) days or less of submission of the authorization request, instead of the approximate 15 days it takes today to process Form RC59 for online access.
Please note that representatives can still use Form RC59 to request telephone/mail access to business clients' tax information, and the above only applies to requests for online access.
For details on how to submit an authorization request through Represent a Client for online access to a business client's account, see the CRA's bulletin here.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.