It is not unusual for many tax payers to be somewhat skeptic or defensive when dealing with the CRA. This is often a reaction to being a little nervous about dealing with such a body of Government that has a great deal of power over your finances when it comes to your tax obligations. It is a rule of the CRA that every tax payer be treated with respect, however this is expected of the tax payer as well towards the representative.
A tax payer has tax obligations but they should never feel intimidated into agreeing to something that they do not feel is right about their tax situation when conversing with a tax representative. Should this happen then the tax payer has the right to make a reprisal complaint.
Although the tax representatives have a Code of Ethics and Conduct that they must adhere to they also have to enforce the rules and regulations, however this must be done by following the ground rules pertaining to their conduct.
You have the right to know what the Code of Ethics and Conduct is and if you feel that this is not being adhered to then you can lodge your reprisal complaint. Do not assume that by doing so you are now going to become a target of the CRA meaning that every tax obligation you have going forward is going to be challenged or scrutinized.
When you file a formal complaint such as the reprisal it goes to a totally different CRA department that specializes in handling these complaints.
It has been noted that recently the Canadian Government in general has become more transparent. This is evident when you go to their section where they now reveal tax cases that have been before the courts. It doesn’t seem that as yet there is any transparency concerning the reprisal complaints that they receive or what the outcomes were.
It is important to remember that although you have tax obligations, and should follow an acceptable code of ethics on your own behalf, that you have the right to be treated with respect and fairly and there are measures in place within the tax department to ensure this.
