Authorize an Accountant with the CRA Without Sharing Your Login

You can authorize an accountant with the CRA without sharing your password. The CRA has a service for tax advisers. First, agree on the work and the access needed. Check the name of the person or firm. A tax return and account access are two different tasks. Ask which accounts and years the work will cover before you agree.

What access does your accountant need?

Ask if the accountant will only prepare a return or also speak with the CRA about notices and reviews. Next, confirm which years and accounts the work covers. A personal tax engagement should not quietly become permission to manage unrelated business matters. Record the agreed services and fees separately from the online permission.

The CRA adviser overview explains the access available through its system. Choose the permission that matches the job. Also discuss an expiry date when the work has a clear end. An permission can otherwise remain active beyond the date the accountant finishes preparing a return.

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How do you check the request?

A adviser may send an electronic permission request through the CRA's system. Before accepting it, check the name and business details against the firm you hired. If the request is unexpected, contact the accountant through a number or address you already know. Do not approve it simply because an email says a refund depends on it.

Keep your own login details private. A professional can work through the adviser service without impersonating you. In specific, do not send a one-time security code in a text message. That code protects your sign-in; it is not the same as confirming a adviser inside your own account.

How do you approve access?

1. Sign in to your CRA account through the official government route.
2. Choose your individual account and open the profile area.
3. Find the authorized representatives section and the pending permission service.
4. Read the adviser details and requested access.
5. Confirm or deny the request, then complete the submission.

The CRA's confirmation instructions set a ten-business-day window for a pending request. If it expires, the adviser needs to send a new request. Therefore, do not assume that agreeing by email has completed the CRA step. Check the account record itself.

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What if the request is missing?

First, compare the firm name and the account type with the accountant's instructions. Then ask the firm if it submitted the request for the correct client. If you are helping a parent, do not confirm a request inside your own account when the work concerns theirs. Each person's tax record has its own permission.

Likewise, avoid sending repeated requests to solve a sign-in problem. A new request can replace an earlier pending one. If you cannot enter your account, resolve access through the CRA's own recovery process. The accountant's request does not remove the need for your identity to be checked.

How do you end access?

Once the engagement is complete, return to the authorized adviser list. Check if access should continue for future correspondence or end now. If you change accountants, review the old firm's permission as well as adding the new one. Hiring a replacement does not automatically cancel every earlier permission.

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Finally, keep the engagement letter and permission details together. If a notice later arrives, you can see who was responsible for the work and what access remains active. You still need to review returns, notices and payment obligations. Granting account access does not transfer your entire responsibility for tax details to someone else.

If the adviser will discuss a specific review, send them the full request letter through the secure channel agreed with the firm. Its reference number connects their response to the correct case.

Ask who at the firm will do the work. Ask who will read your CRA mail.

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