Telephone Survey of 1,019 Canadians Conducted March 31 to April 6, N F O C F g r o u p 1. Have you filed / Will you be filing a personal income tax return for the tax year? As of the interviewing period, March 31 to April 6,, more than half of Canadians (56%) had already filed their personal income tax returns for the tax year. Nationally, 94 per cent of Canadians have already filed or will file a return, identical to last year. Four per cent of Canadians say they will not be filing at all (similar to last year when 5 per cent of Canadians said they would not be filing a return). Eight per cent of Canadians aged between 18 and 24 will not be sending a return to the taxman. 2. Who prepared / will prepare your tax return? Over one-quarter of Canadians (28%) prepare their own tax return and 71 per cent rely on someone else to do the task. These numbers are similar to last year, when 27 per cent of Canadians prepared their own tax return and 73 per cent relied on a professional or a family member/friend. Tax Returns Prepared By Others 50 39 36 0 Professional Accountant 14 Spouse Or Other Family Member 11 Tax Preparation Service 7 7 Friend Or Business Associate 3 3 Someone Else 1 1 Don't Know
3. Why didn t you use / aren t you planning to use an accountant or tax preparation service? This question was asked of tax filers who said they are preparing their own return, or who mentioned someone else other than an accountant or tax preparation service. Main reasons mentioned by tax filers preparing their own return are shown below. 50 47 Reasons Why Tax Filers Preparing Their Own Tax Return Don't Use An Accountant / Tax Preparation Service 38 27 13 8 4 7 3 3 3 0 My Return Is Easy Don't Mind / Enjoy Doing My Own Taxes Too Expensive I Have An Accounting Background I Use Computer Software Not Convenient 4. Did you / Will you prepare your tax return by computer, either using a special tax software package or a tax preparation Web site? Tax filers preparing their own taxes were asked this question. A small majority of them, 58 per cent (up from 56 per cent last year), presumably sharpen their pencils and get out their calculators, as they do not use computers to do their taxes. Use of a computer tax software package or tax preparation Web site has not increased since last year. Four in ten (41%) have used or will use a computer to do their taxes this year, similar to when 42 per cent completed their taxes on the computer. This group was asked the next question. NFO CFgroup 2
5. Before this year, had you ever prepared your taxes using a computer? Eight in ten (82%) people who use a computer to help them prepare their tax return have used a computer previously for this purpose (83 per cent in ). The remainder (18%) has not used a computer previously. 6. Do you plan on filing your tax return before the April th deadline, on April th, or after April th? Virtually all tax filers (96%) say they will file before the April th deadline (similar to last year, when 95 per cent of tax filers claimed they would file before the taxman s deadline). Two per cent say they will file on April th (unchanged from last year). Only one per cent say they will file after April th (compared to two per cent last year). For their sake, one hopes that they don t owe money to the government! 7. Who filed / will file your return for you? While 28 per cent of tax filers prepare their own returns, 42 per cent file their own returns. This 14 percentage-point jump can be explained by some returns that were prepared by other parties, such as accountants, tax preparation services and friends, being subsequently given to the individual tax filers to file themselves. Person Responsible For Filing Tax Return 50 42 42 32 0 Self Professional Accountant 11 11 Spouse Or Other Family Member 9 9 Tax Preparation Service 3 4 Friend Or Business Associate 1 2 Someone Else NFO CFgroup 3
8. Was your / Will your income tax return (be) filed by mail, over the Internet, or over the telephone? A majority of tax filers (52%) send their returns to the taxman by mail. But the popularity of the Internet is growing, with 35 per cent of tax filers using the Internet to send their returns, up from 31% last year. Method of Filing Tax Return 60 54 52 31 35 0 By Mail Over the Internet Over the Telephone Don't Know / Refused 5 3 11 9. Before this year, had you ever filed a tax return over the Internet? This question was asked of the 35 per cent of tax filers who have already filed, or plan to file, their personal income tax return over the Internet. Almost three-quarters (73%) of this group have filed online before (compared to 65 per cent last year), while one-quarter (26%) are newcomers to NetFile / Efile (34% last year).. Why was your / Will your income tax return (be) filed over the Internet? Tax filers using the Internet to file their taxes were also asked this question. More than one volunteered reason was accepted. Getting a fast refund tops the list of reasons, as it did last year, volunteered by over one-third (34%) of respondents. See the chart on the next page. NFO CFgroup 4
Reasons Why Tax Filers File Over the Internet 35 36 34 25 27 26 24 25 23 19 5 4 1 0 Fast(er) Refund My Accountant / Tax Preparer Does it That Way Easier More Convenient Inexpensive 11. Why didn t you file / aren t you planning to file your tax return over the Internet? Tax filers filing by mail (52%) or by telephone (3%) were asked this question. More than one volunteered response was accepted. One-third (33%) of this group cite a lack of computer or Internet access for their decision. Almost two in ten (17%) have concerns about using a computer or the Internet to file their taxes, such as security/privacy worries. Twelve per cent either were not aware that one could file over the Internet or do not know how to submit their returns electronically. See the chart on the next page. NFO CFgroup 5
Reasons Why Tax Filers Do Not File Over The Internet No Computer Access 16 21 No Internet Access 17 19 Lack of Access (Net) 33 38 Not Comfortable Using Computers 7 Security/Privacy Concerns 6 9 Not Reliable/Do Not Trust 2 3 Computer/Internet Concerns (Net) 17 Did Not Know You Could 3 7 Don't Know How 5 4 Lack of Knowledge (Net) 12 12 Prefer Other Ways 7 8 Not Convenient 6 6 Too Difficult 5 5 More Likely To Get Audited 0.4 1 0 5 25 35 NFO CFgroup 6
12. For the tax year, are you expecting to get a refund or to owe money for taxes? Over half of tax filers (55%) think that they will be getting a refund this year, up slightly from last year (52%). Refund Expectation of Tax Filers 60 50 52 55 19 18 17 13 13 0 To Get A Tax Refund To Owe Money For Taxes Neither Don't Know / Refused NFO CFgroup 7
13. Agree/Disagree Attitudinal Statements It would be worth the money to use a professional tax preparer if they could save you more in taxes than what it costs to use them. Nationally, almost three-quarters (72%) of tax filers agree with this statement, unchanged from last year (73%). But among those who prepare and file their own returns, only 56 per cent agree. Not surprisingly, there is a high level of agreement among tax filers who use an accountant or tax preparation service to prepare their returns (85%). Worth The Money To Use A Professional Tax Preparer If They Save You More In Taxes Than Cost Of Using Them Total BC 73 72 74 72 Prairies 77 83 Ontario 71 71 Quebec 65 70 Atlantic 70 85 Prepare & File Own Return 58 56 Use Accnt. / Tax Service To Prepare 83 85 0 % Who Agree 0 NFO CFgroup 8
I dread having to prepare my tax return each year. Almost half of Canadian tax filers (46%) dread doing their taxes. Quebecers, in particular, do not welcome tax time (59% agree with the statement), although fewer Quebecers dread the deed this year than did last year (in, more than two-thirds (68%) dreaded having to prepare a tax return). Perhaps it s because they have two sets of returns to prepare. Maybe it s because they live in one of Canada s most heavily taxed provinces. Or it could simply be that their definition of joie de vivre doesn t include doing taxes. Just over a third (37%) of those who prepare and file their own taxes dread the task, similar to last year. However, slightly more than half (52%) of those who use the services of an accountant or tax preparation service dread it, which may be why they turn to professionals for help in the first place. Dread Having To Prepare Tax Return Each Year Total 48 46 BC 42 44 Prairies 36 43 Ontario 44 Quebec 59 68 Atlantic 42 46 Prepare & File Own Return 35 37 Use Accnt. / Tax Service To Prepare 53 52 0 50 60 70 80 NFO CFgroup 9
I find the tax return forms are complicated to fill out. Nationally, about half of all tax filers (51%) agree with this statement, down from 55% last year. As in, Quebecers continue to find the tax return forms complicated (61% versus 66% last year), which may be another reason why they dread doing their taxes. As with the previous statement, there is a notable difference in the opinions of those who fill out their own return and those who use an accountant or tax preparation service. Tax Return Forms Are Complicated To Fill Out Total 51 55 BC 46 51 Prairies 49 48 Ontario Quebec 47 54 61 66 Atlantic 45 56 Prepare & File Own Return 39 41 Use Accnt. / Tax Service To Prepare 55 62 0 % Who Agree 0 NFO CFgroup
I usually wait until the last minute to file my tax return. It appears that there are more procrastinators this year than last year. Whereas 24 per cent of tax filers agreed with this statement last year, almost three-in-ten (29%) agree in. Regionally, results are similar across the country; tax filers across the country are more likely to wait until the last minute this than in, particularly those in the Prairies and in Atlantic Canada. Usually Wait Until The Last Minute To File Total 24 29 BC 24 27 Prairies 27 Ontario 25 26 Quebec 34 Atlantic Prepare & File Own Return Use Accnt. / Tax Service To Prepare 23 25 24 27 33 33 0 0 % Who Agree NFO CFgroup 11
I worry that my tax return might get audited. Nationally, just 17 per cent of tax filers are worried that their tax return might get audited, with those in the Atlantic provinces (26%) more worried than their counterparts elsewhere in the country. Worry About Getting Audited Total 16 17 BC 11 Prairies 11 Ontario 18 Quebec 17 19 Atlantic 22 26 Prepare & File Own Return 9 14 Use Accnt. / Tax Service To Prepare 17 18 0 % Who Agree 0 NFO CFgroup 12