Policy Forum: Improving the Canada Revenue Agency's Delivery of Social Benefits—A Practitioner's Perspective

Abstract

In Canada, the tax system has become closely intertwined with the income support system; many key income support benefits are delivered through the tax system. Other authors have identified problematic elements of the use of the tax system as a benefit administration tool, and concerns about the role of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) as a social benefits agency, in addition to its essential role as a tax collector, stemming in part from issues arising from Canada's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Suggestions to enhance the tax system's ability to deliver benefits include pre-filled tax forms and real-time reporting. I suggest that, while some reforms are practical even in the short term, others require a long-term perspective, or even a shift in the philosophy of our tax system, to implement changes such as reducing the volume of deductions and credits, and accepting standard claims rather than precise calculations supported by receipts and other documentation. Additionally, given that we live in a specialized society, I suggest that these goals would be better achieved by the CRA acting in collaboration with other groups, within and outside the government, to better reach vulnerable populations and deliver the benefits that they are entitled to receive.