CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) is the Canadian federal government service which oversees the collection of tax and governs law and policy related to tax.
Every year a business or individual is required to file for an income tax return which has been made easy by using the online CRA service where you need to create a CRA account.
You can also use NETFILE which is an electronic tax filing service to do taxes online and send them to CRA. To authenticate the service you will receive a unique access code.
But can you use the same access code to file your tax return every year? If you are also wondering if the NETFILE access code same every year then read this article.
What Is A NETFILE Access Code?
NETFILE access code is a unique 8-digit code that is a mix of numbers and alphabets which is available on the Notice of Assessment or your CRA MyAccount.
After the 2020 tax year, every individual is required to enter NETFILE Access Code to use the information of tax return information from the year 2022. The access code is required to confirm your identity.
NETFILE makes tax filing easy and has the following benefits:
- You can file your taxes with NETFILE-certified tax software which reduces your chance of error.
- You get immediate confirmation about receiving your tax return.
- You don’t have to send in receipts and can be sent at a later date when asked for them.
- Your refund gets processed faster through direct deposits and you may get it in two weeks.
This is an optional authentication process to confirm your identity. If you don’t have a NETFILE access code then you can enter your other tax return information to confirm the identity verification when you are in contact with the CRA.
Is The NETFILE Access Code Same Every Year?
No, the NETFILE access code is not the same every year and it changes annually after you file a tax return and receive a Notice of Assessment.
The access code used to be the same before but after the year 2022, the randomly generated unique code is set to change annually.
The access code will change annually which means you will receive a new code every year that you can use when you NETFILE tax return to access the previous year’s information to confirm your identity.
The access code is a very important step of identity verification when you file your tax return using the NETFILE.
Although it is not mandatory to enter the code, you will be unable to access any information from the previous tax return to confirm your identity if you do not enter the code.
Where Is NETFILE Access Code?
You can get your CRA access code either from CRA MyAccount or your Notice of Assessment from previous years.
You can get your NETFILE access code from CRA MyAccount by going through the Notice of Assessments from previous years.
If you receive Notice of Assessments in paper through mail then you can see the NETFILE Access Code on the right side below date.
The NETFILE hours of service are available for 21 hours a day but remain closed for three hours daily from 3 am to 6 am due to maintenance activities.
