EFILE Association of Canada
Formed in 1993, the EAC/ATC is a federally registered non-profit corporation, representing tax practitioners from all regions of Canada to senior management of the Canada Revenue Agency, Federal and Provincial Ministries of Revenue, as well as tax software providers.
Our membership consists of professionals and fully represents the Efile industry: from sole proprietors to large nationwide firms. EAC/ATC members account for over one-third of all EFILED T1s in Canada.
What we do
One of the core functions of the EAC/ATC is to communicate directly with senior management of the CRA on behalf of members. As your conduit to the CRA, we meet regularly with senior managers of the CRA to discuss tax policy and administrative issues that affect all tax practitioners.
Over the years, the EAC/ATC has been successful in requesting changes to the EFILE system to facilitate the operation of a tax practice. Tax practitioners are the front line administrators of Canadian tax policy, and we are recognized as the professional association that senior management of the CRA turns to for industry comment and feedback.
We also produce and distribute our IMPACT Newsletter (published 3 times a year), providing important updates on developments within the tax and EFile service industry. View a sample IMPACT Newsletter in the Library section of our website. Previous editions of the IMPACT Newsletter are archived in the Library section and are available to EAC/ATC members. Members also receive a copy of the annual EFiler’s Resource Guide.
The EAC/ATC is governed by a national 15 member Board of Directors elected by the membership of the EAC/ATC at the Annual General Meeting. Members of the Board of Directors serve renewable 3-year terms.
News
Upcoming changes to protocols for Authorizing a Representative
July 14, 2025
Beginning July 15, 2025, the method to Authorize a Representative to obtain access to client data via RAC will change.
EFilers will no longer be able to obtain online access to individual clients’ tax information by using the Authorize a Representative function via tax software and the EFILE service. Instead, clients who want to provide you with access to their CRA account must take additional steps to authenticate you.
This is a significant change as it adds steps and greater client interaction to the authorization process. However, the new protocols are driven by privacy and security concerns. It’s a by-product of our time. As tax preparers we play an important role in ensuring client information is protected, and CRA is obliged to obtain informed consent from the taxpayer before granting a representative access to their tax information.
Note that your current authorizations will not change. The new process applies only to new T1 authorization requests.
Listed below is an overview of the new protocols for authorization requests through RAC. The full CRA script of authorization options will be posted in the library section of our website.
Step 1 – Log into RAC.
Step 2 – Select “Authorization request” from menu on left hand side.
Then select “Representative identifier” and then “Add authorization request” and follow the prompts to add the taxpayer’s name and SIN. The name you enter must exactly match what CRA has on file for the client. If you are unable to correct a name mismatch, you will need to contact CRA via the General Enquiries line.
You will also be prompted to “Select authorization level” and to enter an “Authorization expiry date”.
Step 3 – Taxpayer validation enhancement (client validation of the request)
Options available for your client to confirm and finalize the authorization process are listed below.
Option A: Client will confirm in My Account
Select “Client will confirm in My Account” and follow prompts to “Review and submit”.
Then ask your client to confirm your pending authorization request in their My Account to complete the authorization process.
In the “Authorized representative(s)” section in My Account your client will see “Confirm pending authorizations” and they should follow the prompts. Once confirmed by your client, you will be given instant access to the account.
Note: your client has 10 business days to complete this process, or the request will be cancelled.
Your client will receive an email advising them that the representative has been successfully authorized. Unfortunately, the tax preparer is not advised that the client has completed the process. Your client will need to advise you, or you will need to check if you have authorization in RAC. This is highly inefficient, and we have asked CRA to develop a protocol to notify the tax preparer that the authorization has been processed.
Option B: Representative to provide tax information
Select “Representative to provide tax information”. This process has a few additional steps.
You will be required to enter a dollar value from a previous NOA, for a specific tax field (e.g. line 15000). For security reasons, the information must be from a NOA that was sent to the client at least six months ago.
A signature page will be displayed on your screen, select “Proceed to signature page” (at the bottom of the page) to print a copy of the document for your client to sign.
Submit the signed copy of this page in Authorization request using the Submit button, in your Pending authorization requests table, within 30 business days. Once submitted, you will be given instant access to the account.