Check that you can register
A CRA account is the single sign-in that opens My Account, My Business Account and Represent a Client. To register, the CRA says you need a social insurance number (SIN) and a filed and assessed income tax and benefit return from the current or previous tax year. The registration page also refers to your most recent assessed return within the last 2 years, so if you have not filed for a while, file first and wait for the notice of assessment before you try.
If you have never filed, or have not filed in the last 2 years or more, the CRA says you cannot register until you do. The exception is for residents of Alberta and British Columbia, who can register with a provincial partner even without a recent return. If you already registered years ago, you do not need a new account: try signing in with your existing credential first.
Gather what you need before you start
The registration session ends after 18 minutes of inactivity and your progress is not saved, so collect everything first. You will need your date of birth and your SIN. If you do not have a SIN, the CRA also accepts a temporary tax number or an individual tax number.
You will also be asked for an amount from your most recent assessed return. Use the figure you originally reported, even if the CRA later reassessed the return and the numbers changed. Keep your notice of assessment or your filing software copy beside you. Last, decide how you will receive one-time passcodes, and if you want immediate access, have a mobile phone with a camera and an accepted piece of photo ID within reach.
Choose how you will sign in
There are three options, and the one you register with is the one you use every time you sign in. A CRA user ID and password is a credential you create just for the CRA. A Sign-In Partner lets you use your online banking sign-in, and it requires an existing online banking account with a participating institution. A provincial partner, either an Alberta.ca Account or a BC Services Card, is available only in those provinces. GC Key cannot be used for a CRA account.
If you choose a CRA user ID and password, the CRA says the user ID must be 8 to 16 characters with no spaces, and the password must be 8 to 64 characters with at least one upper-case letter, one lower-case letter and one number. You will also choose 5 security questions, so pick answers that will not change over time. If you use a Sign-In Partner on a shared device, turn off autofill: the CRA warns that linking your SIN to someone else’s banking credentials by mistake gives that person access to your tax information.
Set up multi-factor authentication
Multi-factor authentication is mandatory. You will be prompted to enrol in two options, although the CRA says only one is currently required. The choices are a third-party authenticator app, a passcode grid, or a phone that receives a text or call. An authenticator app generates a new 6-digit code every 30 seconds. The passcode grid is a table you save or print, and it expires every 18 months.
Enrol in a backup option even if you could skip it. If you lose your phone or your grid and have only one method, you may have to contact the CRA to get back in. Download any authenticator app only from an official app store, and never from a link in a text or email.
Verify your identity
The CRA offers two ways to complete verification. The document verification service gives immediate and full access: you use a mobile device to take a live photo of yourself and of an accepted original document. You must be 16 or older. Accepted documents include a Canadian driver’s licence, a Canadian passport, a permanent resident card and a provincial or territorial photo ID card; provincial health cards, expired documents and photocopies are not accepted.
The alternative is a CRA security code, which the CRA mails to the address it has on file within 10 business days. The code expires, so sign in and enter it promptly. While you wait, you have limited access, such as viewing the status of your return, your notice of assessment, and your RRSP deduction limit and TFSA contribution room. If your address on file is out of date, update it before you request a code. If the code never arrives, you can switch to the document verification service.
After you are in: add accounts and handle problems
Once registered, you can add a business account or a representative account from your Welcome page using the same sign-in. If you are acting for someone else, including a family member, the CRA says to use Represent a Client rather than their credentials. Setting up your accountant is a separate step covered in our guide to authorizing an accountant with the CRA.
If you forget your user ID, the recovery process asks for your SIN, date of birth, the amount on line 15000 of a return from one of the previous 2 years, and your security answers. If you lose access altogether, going through registration again may restore it, provided you can still use an existing multi-factor method. An account the CRA has locked for security reasons cannot be recovered by re-registering. Be careful with anything that arrives by text or email urging you to sign in: type the address yourself, as described in our guide to spotting a CRA scam.
Your conversation checklist
- File your return and wait for the notice of assessment
- Have your SIN and date of birth ready
- Find an amount from your latest assessed return, as originally reported
- Pick one sign-in option: CRA user ID, Sign-In Partner or provincial partner
- Choose a security-question set you will remember, if using a CRA user ID
- Enrol in two multi-factor options, including a backup
- Have a phone and accepted photo ID for immediate identity verification
- Confirm your mailing address if you will request a CRA security code
- Add any business or representative accounts after you sign in
- Save your credentials in a password manager, not an email
Further reading & sources
- CRA: Register for a CRA account
- CRA: About My Account
- CRA: Verify your identity
- CRA: Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
- CRA: About CRA user ID and password
Tax rules and administrative requirements can change. Check the applicable official guidance and confirm your circumstances with a qualified adviser. This guide is not an assessment of your filing, payment or legal obligations.