Our Commitment

Our Mission

To administer tax, benefits, and related programs and to ensure compliance on behalf of governments across Canada, thereby contributing to the ongoing economic and social well-being of Canadians.

Our Vision

The Canada Revenue Agency is the model for trusted tax and benefit administration, providing unparalleled service and value to its clients, and offering its employees outstanding career opportunities.

Our Promise

Contributing to the well-being of Canadians and efficiency of government by delivering world-class tax and benefit administration that is responsive, effective, and trusted.

Our Values

• Integrity is the foundation of our administration. It means treating people fairly and applying the law fairly.
• Professionalism is the key to success in achieving our mission. It means being committed to the highest standards of achievement.
• Respect is the basis for our dealings with employees, colleagues, taxpayers, and clients. It means being sensitive and responsive to the rights of individuals.
• Co-operation is the foundation for meeting the challenges of the future. It means building partnerships and working together toward common goals.

About the CRA

Who we are

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) administers income tax,
goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax ( GST / HST ), and other taxes, and is the principal revenue collector in the country. We also distribute benefit payments to millions of Canadians.

We strive to ensure that Canadians:

• pay their required share of taxes;
• receive their rightful share of entitlements; and
• are provided with an impartial and responsive review of contested decisions.

Our foundation of trust

Building on our foundation of trust is critical to achieving our mandate. Trust begins with the CRA values that reflect our principles and beliefs and guide our behaviour and practices.

Trust is sustained by our focus on maintaining a fair, open, and transparent tax and benefits administration that serves Canadians with a high degree of accuracy, consistency, and impartiality.

Our contribution to the social and economic well-being of Canada

A well-functioning tax and benefit system is essential to a healthy economy, a sustainable infrastructure, and a strong democracy.

Some of the tax revenue we collect is redistributed to taxpayers in the form of benefit payments or tax credits. Other tax revenue is provided to our federal, provincial, territorial, and First Nations government clients to finance their programs and services for Canadians.

2009-2010 Highlights

Notable achievements

• Canadians are increasingly embracing the electronic services we offer.
• Consistently high percentages of individuals and employers are filing their returns on time and high proportions of individuals and taxable corporations are paying taxes owing on time.
• Benefit recipients received 99.7% of their payments on time.

Our Challenges

• Reduce the number of tax filers who are claiming incorrect amounts of credits and deductions on their tax returns.
• Encourage more corporations to comply with their obligation to file their tax returns on time.
• Improve turn-around times for dealing with appeals.

The CRA identifies areas where improvements are required and addresses them through various strategies and initiatives. To improve our results, we strive to balance the requirement to maintain the integrity of current program delivery with the strategies and initiatives aimed at improving program delivery.

Date modified:

2010-11-02