Late Tax Objections Face Strict Deadlines

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A Notice of Objection (“NoO”) may be filed late – but ONLY if certain conditions and deadlines are met. Many taxpayers are unaware of the ability to apply for a late filing, and equally unaware that when THOSE deadlines are missed, it is all over!

In this Tax Appeals Series blog, we review the conditions and deadlines for filing a LATE Notice of Objection under the Excise Tax Act (“ETA”) and the Income Tax Act (“ITA”), including some recent jurisprudence where taxpayers learned a hard way that they may be able to miss the first deadline, but not the second!

Step 1: File the Objection ON TIME if you Can!

The timeframe for objecting to a Notice of Assessment begins when the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) sends the Notice of Assessment (“NoA”) to the taxpayer. Generally, the taxpayer must submit their NoO within 90 days of the NoA’s mailing date, under section 301 of the ETA and 165 of the ITA (although the ITA deadline is later for individual