How To Negotiate A Payment Plan With The Canada Revenue Agency (cra)
If you owe money to the CRA do not take this lightly
. The more time that passes the more the interest and penalties accumulate and the higher the likelihood that the CRA is going to come after you.
Sometimes time may pass and the CRA may not be aggressively pursuing you. This may give you a false sense of confidence that you have time and can negotiate with them. This is a dangerous assumption.
When the CRA decides that they want you to pay in full, they will be un-relentless in pursuing the money. They will even go as far as to freeze your bank account, garnish your wages or place a lien on your home. This is precisely the reason that time is of the essence and it is better to craft a plan to deal with your tax debt before its too late.
Its always best to try to pay off the CRA in full (even if you dont believe you owe the money) because then you wont pay potential enforcement action. If you own your home, this is likely the best resource to use to pay off your tax debt.
If you owe a large tax debt, you may determine that refinancing your first mortgage is the best way to deal with the debt while others who owe less may reap greater benefit from using their home to obtain a home equity loan or home equity line of credit.
If you choose to try to negotiate a repayment plan with the CRA here is what you need to consider. Could you reasonably afford to repay the CRA in 24 months with their exorbitant interest rates? If the answer to this question is no, the CRA will not likely accept a repayment plan longer than 24 months and you will have to come up with a lump sum or payment in full if you plan on contacting them.
If you would like more information about how to negotiate a payment plan with the Canada Revenue Agency or how to raise the money to pay off your tax debt please visit www.gtamortgagematters.com.