Anyone Else Asked to Repay CERB?

Charlie said:
@Lennon
CRA should have caught that with the employer first, right?

Nope, CRA expects taxpayers to provide proof first.

@Lennon
Wouldn’t CRA have reached out to the employer if it’s their mistake?

Farrell said:
@Lennon
Wouldn’t CRA have reached out to the employer if it’s their mistake?

CRA works under a “prove you’re innocent” approach. They expect taxpayers to provide the proof first.

Skyler said:
@Lennon
Sad that we have to go through all this effort when it should be CRA’s job.

Canada’s tax system is based on self-assessment. It’s up to you to prove your case.

@Lennon
Same here. Both times, an Excel sheet worked wonders with CRA.

@Lennon
Yes, I sorted mine out with a second review too. Just took forever.

This happened to me too. They didn’t even ask, just sent a letter saying I owed $16k back. Here’s what I did:

  1. Called CRA – useless. After weeks, someone told me to get judicial help since they closed my case.

  2. Reached out to my MP, who has direct CRA contacts and got a response within 5 days. They clarified why I wasn’t eligible and told me what to upload.

  3. Submitted a 3-page doc with every detail about my work stoppage, application timeline, etc.

  4. Two weeks later, CRA said I was eligible but might be re-audited.

No issues since then.

@Maverick
Agree, CRA is pretty unhelpful. My wife was also told she wasn’t eligible, even though she was.

Bay said:
I owe about 2k in CERB repayments. I’ve been letting my credits pay it off. Is that a problem?

If you ignore the CRA, yes, they will garnish wages or freeze accounts. It’s best to work out a payment plan.

Ellis said:
@Maverick
Wait, what does MLA stand for?

MLA stands for Member of Legislative Assembly.

Maverick said:

Ellis said:
@Maverick
Wait, what does MLA stand for?

MLA stands for Member of Legislative Assembly.

In Ontario, it’s called MPP.

What specific eligibility criteria are they saying you didn’t meet?

Lennox said:
What specific eligibility criteria are they saying you didn’t meet?

They didn’t specify. Just said I wasn’t eligible for that period in 2020.

Jin said:

Lennox said:
What specific eligibility criteria are they saying you didn’t meet?

They didn’t specify. Just said I wasn’t eligible for that period in 2020.

Are you sure the letter doesn’t explain why?

@Lennox
It just says I’m not eligible for that period. I included bank statements showing no income.

Jin said:
@Lennox
It just says I’m not eligible for that period. I included bank statements showing no income.

Did you stop working due to COVID? Check if your T4 has info in boxes 57 to 60.

@Lennox
Thanks! I’ll check with my accountant.

Jo said:

Jin said:
@Lennox
It just says I’m not eligible for that period. I included bank statements showing no income.

Did you get any severance?

Nope, it was temporary.

Jin said:
@Lennox
It just says I’m not eligible for that period. I included bank statements showing no income.

Did you make at least $5000 the previous year?

Thorn said:

Jin said:
@Lennox
It just says I’m not eligible for that period. I included bank statements showing no income.

Did you make at least $5000 the previous year?

Yes, I did.