Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
The Voluntary Disclosure Program, which the CRA calls the Voluntary Disclosures Program, lets you correct old tax mistakes and keep most of the cost down. You still pay every dollar of tax owing. What you can get back is relief on penalties and interest, and the amount depends on whether the CRA has contacted you first.
What does the program actually forgive?
Penalties and interest. Never the tax.
The VDP provides relief on penalties and interest, not on the tax itself.
CRA tax tip, The Voluntary Disclosures Program: Your second chance to set things right, canada.ca
Since 1 October 2025 there are two tiers. If the CRA hasn’t contacted you about the issue, your application is unprompted. If you apply after the CRA has sent a compliance communication, it’s prompted.
| Type of application | Penalty relief | Interest relief |
|---|---|---|
| Unprompted (no CRA contact first) | 100% | 75% |
| Prompted (after CRA contact) | Up to 100% | 25% |
The CRA also says disclosures of this kind don’t get referred for criminal prosecution. Read the wording on the current CRA page before you rely on that for a serious case, because it rests on your facts being complete and true.
Who can apply?
It’s wider than it used to be.
The 2025 changes widened the door. People who received a CRA educational letter about a possible problem can now qualify, as prompted applicants. The CRA still restricts the program for anyone under audit or investigation, and for anyone who was egregiously or intentionally non-compliant.
The application has to be voluntary and complete. It needs to include every error or omission you know about, plus payment or a request for a payment arrangement. The CRA also says the information should be at least one year past its filing due date. If you can’t tell if your case fits, the CRA offers a free, informal call-back request before you commit to anything. A professional is optional.
What does it look like in dollars?
Say you earned $8,000 of freelance income last year on top of a $60,000 job and never reported it. With Ontario selected, our self-employed tax calculator puts the extra income tax and CPP at about $2,772. That’s the tax part, and the program won’t touch it.
Now the interest. Suppose it had grown to $400 by the time you applied (a made-up figure, to show the arithmetic). Unprompted, you’d pay $100 of it and the CRA relieves the other $300. Prompted, you’d pay $300 and be relieved of $100. So the order in which things happen is worth more than any other detail here.
For a sold investment that wasn’t reported, the capital gains tax calculator gives the tax side. We assume 50% of a gain is taxable, because the two-thirds rate that was proposed was cancelled in the Prime Minister’s announcement of 21 March 2025. The 2026 rate isn’t on a CRA page we could find, so confirm it.
What should you gather before you apply?
Start with a simple list of every year and every source of income or claim you think is wrong. Then pull the paper: slips you never entered, bank statements, invoices, receipts for expenses you over-claimed. If it’s income, work out the tax for each year, one year at a time, because a single lump figure is hard to check.
It helps to write a short plain explanation of how the mistake happened. You don’t need a legal speech. “I thought the side work was too small to report” is a perfectly honest sentence, and it’s the sort of thing the CRA reads every day.
Is it worth it, or should you just amend the return?
If the mistake is small and recent, you might be able to fix it through a normal adjustment. The CRA’s own page is the place to check which route fits. Where penalties are likely and the amounts are real, the program is the better route, because penalty relief can be total.
Waiting never helps. Interest keeps running while you think it over. And if a CRA letter lands first, you move from unprompted to prompted overnight, which cuts your interest relief from 75% to 25%, a loss no amount of careful paperwork will win back.
You can also run your numbers through the income tax calculator for each year you need to correct. Do it before you contact anyone, so you know the size of the bill.
Mistakes and limits
An incomplete application is the classic failure. If you disclose the $8,000 and leave out the rental income, the application may not qualify. Gather everything first.
Don’t assume the program covers every tax. We haven’t checked each type of tax or credit here, so read the CRA page for yours. And we can’t say how long the CRA takes to reply.
The relief periods also have limits. The CRA’s 2026 page says relief applies to information going back up to 10 years, and that reduced relief may apply beyond that. Check how far back your problem goes.
Where we got these figures
Relief percentages and eligibility come from the Canada Revenue Agency tax tips on the Voluntary Disclosures Program, dated 2025 and 2026. The tax figures come from this site’s calculators, which use 2026 rates. This site is not part of any government.
Frequently asked questions
Does the program cancel the tax I owe?
No. You must pay the tax. The relief covers penalties and interest only.
What is the difference between prompted and unprompted?
Unprompted means the CRA hasn't contacted you about the issue. Prompted means you apply after a compliance communication.
Can I apply if I'm being audited?
The CRA says it still restricts eligibility for people under audit or investigation.
Do I need an accountant to apply?
The CRA says professional help is optional. It also offers a free, informal call-back before you apply.
How far back can I go?
The CRA's 2026 page says relief applies to information going back up to 10 years, with reduced relief possible beyond that.
- Dealing with the CRA: letters, audits and payments
Dealing with the CRA: what to do when a letter arrives, how a review differs from an audit, how My Account helps, and what to do if you can't pay