Do you file your own taxes? I used to, before I had my retail store. Since my accountant handled my corporate taxes, it just seemed easier to have her do our personal taxes too. However, after closing up shop, I took back the task of preparing my taxes.
A national survey commissioned by Thomson Reuters, the makers of UFile ONLINE and UFile for Windows, has found that 41 per cent of Canadians actually enjoy filing their tax returns . The survey, which targeted Canadians 18 and older, also found that Canadians cited confusion, time restrictions, and too many receipts to keep track of as the top three reasons why they do not enjoy tax time.
The survey revealed that 20 per cent of respondents plan to file their tax return via mail (i.e. through boxed/online software and by hand) rather than use NETFILE, while 56 per cent of respondents are not aware of the Canadian Revenue Agency’s long-term goal of moving Canadians towards electronic filing.
Want to win one of two online copies of UFile? Simply comment on this post and let me know if you expect to receive a refund or if you think you’ll owe this year. Content closes Friday, April 5, 2013. Open to Canadian residents only.
Some interesting findings from their survey:
In an effort to reduce waste, the Canadian Revenue Agency will no longer be sending Canadians paper tax filing packages. In 2014, paper packages will also be removed from Canadian post offices in hopes of moving Canadians toward electronic filing (NETFILE).
Were you aware of the CRA’s new process?
- 43 per cent of respondents are aware of the CRA’s move to online tax return filing
- This number is lowest in Ontario and the Prairies (41 per cent) and highest in Vancouver (48 per cent)
| Question 1: Were you aware of the CRA’s new process? | |||||||||||
| Answer | Total | Gender | Location | ||||||||
| M | F | ATL | QC | ON | Prairies | BC | Tor | Mtl | Van | ||
| Yes | 43 | 43 | 44 | 46 | 45 | 41 | 41 | 46 | 44 | 47 | 48 |
| No | 56 | 56 | 55 | 56 | 54 | 58 | 56 | 53 | 56 | 53 | 49 |
| Don’t know/refused | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | – | 1 | 3 | 2 | – | – | 3 |
How do you plan to file your taxes this year?
- 49 per cent of respondents plan to use an accountant or professional service to file their tax return this year
- This presents a four per cent decrease from 2012 results
- 20 per cent of respondents plan to file their tax return via mail (through boxed/online software and by hand) rather than use NETFILE
- This number is highest in the Atlantic provinces (30 per cent) and lowest in the Prairies (17 per cent)
| Question 2: How do you plan to file your taxes this year? | |||||||||||
| Answer | Total | Gender | Location | ||||||||
| M | F | ATL | QC | ON | Prairies | BC | Tor | Mtl | Van | ||
| Accountant/professional services | 49 | 45 | 52 | 43 | 45 | 49 | 51 | 56 | 47 | 48 | 52 |
| By hand and via mail | 14 | 14 | 14 | 20 | 19 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 17 | 13 |
| Software installed on my computer and | 13 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 19 | 13 | 10 |
| Online software and NETFILE | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 16 |
| Online software and via mail | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 4 | – | 7 | 6 | – |
| Software installed on my computer and via mail | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| I do not plan to file a return this year | – | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – |
| Don’t know / N/A | 5 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 |
Do you like filing your taxes?
- 41 per cent of respondents like filing their taxes
- This number is highest in Toronto (46 per cent) and lowest in the Atlantic and Prairie provinces (40 per cent)
| Question 4: Do you like filing your taxes? | |||||||||||
| Answer | Total | Gender | Location | ||||||||
| M | F | ATL | QC | ON | Prairies | BC | Tor | Mtl | Van | ||
| Yes | 41 | 41 | 42 | 40 | 42 | 42 | 40 | 43 | 46 | 42 | 44 |
| No | 54 | 56 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 54 | 53 | 54 | 50 | 56 | 55 |
| Don’t know/refused | 5 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
If answered no, which response best describes your sentiment?
- Of respondents who noted not liking filing their taxes, 32 per cent mention that it is “confusing” as the reason. Additional reasons include:
- Takes too much time: 25 per cent
- Too many receipts to keep track of: 17 per cent
- It’s expensive: 16 per cent
Question 5: If answered no, which response best describes your sentiment? Answer Total Gender Location M F ATL QC ON Prairies BC Tor Mtl Van It’s confusing 32 27 37 41 33 31 34 25 27 33 29 Takes too much time 25 31 20 24 26 27 20 27 28 27 24 Too many receipts to keep track of 17 21 13 17 20 17 13 17 16 19 16 It’s expensive 16 13 18 11 14 16 18 19 22 12 17 Don’t know/refused 10 8 11 7 8 8 15 13 7 9 14 About the Survey
This report presents the findings of a Research House National telephone survey conducted among a national random sample of 1,009 adults comprising 506 males and 503 females 18 years of age and older, living in Canada. The margin of error for a sample of this size is +/- 3.10%, 19 times out of 20.