CRA Direct Deposit with online banking

Direct deposit is a secure electronic transfer of funds deposited directly into your bank account at a financial institution of your choice. Direct deposit replaces the need to issue payments by paper cheque.

Direct deposit allows you to access your money faster and is more convenient as your payment will not be delayed due to unforeseen circumstances such as bad weather. It is reliable and your payment will always be deposited on time in the bank account that you supply at the time of your enrolment in direct deposit.

For those eligible for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, we encourage you to sign up for direct deposit as soon as possible to receive your benefit payments on time.

Once you are signed up for direct deposit, you will receive Government of Canada payments such as benefits, credits, and refunds directly to your bank account, and will no longer receive cheques for those payments.

Receiving your payments from the Government of Canada by direct deposit offers many advantages. Not only can you receive your income tax refund, but also receive Government of Canada benefits and credits such as the Canada child benefit (CCB), the goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) credit, Canada workers benefit (CWB), and provincial and territorial payments such as the Ontario Trillium Benefit (OTB).

If you are eligible to receive it, you can also receive your Canada Emergency Response Benefit payments directly to your bank account.

If your payment method is direct deposit, you can expect to receive payments within five business days of the scheduled payment date. If your payment method is cheque, you can expect the cheque in the mail within 10 business days. Please allow this time before contacting the CRA about your payment.

The Government of Canada considers privacy and security of utmost importance in the issuance of payments. Any information you provide to the Government of Canada when you enrol for direct deposit is protected under the Government of Canada Privacy Act and as described in Receiver General Payments (Personal Information Bank PWGSC PCU 712).

The Receiver General will use and disclose personal information for direct deposit purposes only to the federal institutions from which you are receiving payments and to your financial institution in order to issue direct deposit payments. Personal information such as your Social Insurance Number (SIN) will not be disclosed to your financial institution.

Access to your bank account is governed by your account agreement with your financial institution. Please consult with your financial institution for more information regarding their privacy and security measures.

Yes. The Canada Revenue Agency will use all the account information that is on file for you. Please log into My Account to tell us which account you want us to use for payments to which you may become entitled.

The CRA aims to process your direct deposit enrolment or information updates in one or two business days. Given the current environment, you may experience longer than usual processing times once your financial institution has sent your information to the CRA.

Your Social Insurance Number (SIN) will be needed by your financial institution to sign up for direct deposit with the CRA.

If you are fully registered for CRA’s My Account, you can verify your direct deposit information through this online self-service portal.

You can verify that the payment has been received by checking your banking statement on the account you used to sign up for direct deposit. Your payment amount will be deposited directly into the account.

You can also confirm that the payment was sent by the CRA by logging into CRA’s My Account.

The CRA will never send you an email, text or Interac e-transfer to a link asking for your personal information to receive your benefit payment or refund. These are scams and taxpayers should never respond to these fraudulent communications or click on any of the links provided. If you submit multiple requests to update your direct deposit information, the most recent enrolment you complete will become the account on file with the Canada Revenue Agency. Direct deposits will only be made into one account, at one financial institution.

You only need to enrol once. If you submit multiple requests to update your direct deposit information, the most recent enrolment you complete will become the account on file with the CRA. Direct deposits will only be made into one account, at one financial institution.