Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
My tax account is the CRA’s secure online service for your personal tax file, officially called My Account. You sign in through a sign-in partner such as your bank, or with a CRA user ID and password, and the only safe place to do that is the official CRA site on canada.ca. If you’re ever unsure whether a page is real, type the address yourself and skip the link.
How do you sign in to your tax account?
There are three routes, and the CRA’s sign-in page for My Account lists them all. A sign-in partner means a participating financial institution’s own login, so if you already bank online you may have what you need. You can also register for a CRA user ID and password. People in British Columbia and Alberta have a provincial partner option on top of that.
| Route | What you use | Who can use it |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-in partner | Your bank or other participating institution login | Anyone who has one |
| CRA user ID and password | Credentials you create with the CRA | Anyone who registers |
| Provincial partner | Provincial account login | Residents of BC and Alberta |
Which one is best? Whichever you’ll actually remember at tax time. A bank login you use every week is easier to keep track of than a CRA password you set up once and forgot.
What can you actually do inside it?
The CRA’s sign-in page confirms that My Account is the service for individuals, and that it sits beside My Business Account, Represent a Client, a Registered Plan Administrator account and a non-resident withholding tax service. The CRA also says you can tell it about changes to your direct deposit or contact details, such as an address, phone number or name.
The sign-in page doesn’t list every feature, and I won’t guess at the rest. Third-party pages describe looking up returns you’ve filed and account balances, but read the CRA’s own page for the current list before you count on a particular feature.
Why does any of that matter? Because the account is where the CRA’s records of you live. If your bank details are out of date, a refund or benefit payment can go to the wrong place, and fixing that after the fact takes weeks.
Is your tax account safe?
Mostly, if you use it well. The CRA recommends multi-factor authentication, and the options it lists are a one-time passcode by text or phone call, a passcode grid if you’ve already enrolled, or an authenticator app you’ve already set up. It also warns against autofill on a shared device, and against registering with someone else’s banking information.
Never enter your credentials anywhere except the official CRA site or your bank’s own sign-in page. That means no links in texts, no forms sent by email and no phone caller who says they’ll help you log in. The CRA page doesn’t list scam warnings, so that last bit of advice is mine, not theirs.
Locked out or forgotten the password? The CRA points you to its contact information, and says it can mail you a new one.
Can someone else use your tax account?
Not by signing in as you. The CRA is clear that a person signing in for a friend or family member must use Represent a Client, from their own account, to reach that person’s information. The CRA’s page names friends and family, and an accountant would presumably go the same way.
Picture Dana in Winnipeg, whose dad doesn’t use a computer. She can’t just borrow his password. She needs to be set up to represent him through her own login, and the CRA has its own steps for that, which I haven’t confirmed here, so check them on the CRA site.
And if a preparer ever asks for your user ID and password, say no and ask how they’d use Represent a Client instead.
How to use the numbers once you have them
Say your records show you paid $7,000 of tax in the year on $52,000 of employment income in Ontario. The tax refund calculator estimates $6,625.43 of tax, so about $374.57 back. That’s a few bucks short of a nice dinner out, but it’s yours.
If you plan RRSP savings, the RRSP calculator shows how contributions grow. A $5,000 deduction on $70,000 lowers tax by $1,482.50 in the income tax calculator. For parents, the Canada child benefit calculator estimates the payment that the CRA sends to your direct deposit account.
Should you keep your own copies?
Yes. An online account is a helpful record, but you shouldn’t depend on it alone. Save a copy of each return, your notice of assessment and the slips behind them somewhere you control, such as a folder on your computer. If the account is ever locked, or you’re away from your device, you’ll still have the paperwork.
Where does this information come from?
Account and sign-in details come from the Canada Revenue Agency‘s sign-in page on canada.ca. Tax figures come from our calculators, using 2026 federal and Ontario rates. This site isn’t connected to the CRA or any government, and nothing here is official advice.
Frequently asked questions
What is my tax account?
It is the CRA's My Account service for individuals, on canada.ca. You sign in with a partner such as your bank or with a CRA user ID.
Where should I enter my password?
Only on the official CRA site or your sign-in partner's own site. Never type it into a form from an email or text.
Can my accountant use my login?
No. The CRA says anyone signing in on behalf of someone else, friends and family included, must use Represent a Client.
Can I change my direct deposit online?
The CRA page says you can tell it about direct deposit and contact changes through your account.
What if I'm locked out?
The CRA page points you to its contact information and says you can get new credentials by mail.
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