OTTAWA,zsh command not found php ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jul 2, 2013) - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced today, that over 76 per cent of Canadians filed their income tax return electronically this year, an increase of 17 per cent over last year. As of June 20, 2013, 20 million Canadians took advantage of our electronic filing services, which is up from 17 million this time last year. Electronic filing is quickly increasing in popularity as tax filers discover how convenient, easy, and secure filing online really is.

The average Canadian received a refund of $1,641 during the 2012 tax-filing season - an increase of $22 per person since the previous filing season. Several credits are available to Canadians, including the new family caregiver amount, introduced this year. This new tax credit helps those looking after a dependant with a physical or mental impairment. Eligible tax filers can claim up to an additional $2,000 in the calculation of certain non-refundable tax credits through this initiative.

The CRA's electronic services are useful to Canadians year-round, not only during peak tax season. This year, from April 2012 to March 2013, over 546,000 new users signed up for My Account and almost 425,000 new users joined Quick Access. Applications such as My Account and Quick Access allow you to track your refund, monitor your benefit and credit payments, view your registered retirement savings plan information, set up direct deposit, and much more. For more information on electronic services, go to

www.cra.gc.ca/electronicservices

.

The CRA thanks all Canadians who filed their income tax and benefit return on time. If you missed the April 30 filing deadline, it is in your best interest to file as soon as possible to receive benefit payments such as the GST/HST credit or the Canada child tax benefit, and to avoid paying more penalties and interest charges.

2012 tax-filing season statistics:

Tax-filing season statistics (in millions)

June 20, 2013

June 21, 2012

Change

Total received

26.1

25.8

Increase of 1%

Electronic

20.0

17.0

Increase of 17%

Paper

6.2

8.8

Decrease of 29.5%

Community volunteer income tax program-volunteers assisted in completing over 567,000 returns for fellow Canadians.

CRA's Individual Income Tax Enquiries Line agents answered 2,981,000 calls.

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The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced today that over 76 per cent of Canadians filed their income tax return electronically this year, an increase of 17 per cent over last year. As of June 20, 2013, 20 million Canadians took advantage of the CRA's electronic filing services, which is up from 17 million this time last year. Electronic filing is quickly increasing in popularity as tax filers discover how convenient, easy, and secure filing online really is.

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