A statement from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) suggests that as of May of this year, it has 8.9 million uncashed cheques.
That equates to around $1.4 billion in cheques that have gone uncashed, and the CRA wants to “make sure this money ends up where it belongs.”
“In taxpayers’ pockets!”
- You might also like:
- You're likely eligible for free money thanks to this ODD class action lawsuit
- Class-action lawsuit launched against Rogers after "paralyzing" network outage
You might want to check what address you have on file with the CRA, as it’s quite possible that you have unclaimed money whether it’s from an old tax return, a GST cheque, or something else.
“Approximately 25,000 e-notifications will be issued in August and another 25,000 in November 2022, followed by the next 25,000 in May 2023,” reads the CRA statement.
“Since the CRA launched this initiative in February 2020, approximately two million uncashed cheques valued at $802 million were redeemed by Canadians between February 10, 2020, and May 31, 2022.”
One way to check if you’re one of the people who have money owed to them is to use the CRA My Account feature on the CRA website.
“The average amount per uncashed cheque is $158.”
The CRA notes that government cheques never expire or stale date, and it can’t void original cheques unless the taxpayer requests it. Some of the unclaimed cheques date all the way back to 1998.
“Canadians can ensure they never miss a payment from us again by registering for direct deposit. In My Account, taxpayers can sign up for direct deposit to get any payment quickly and directly into their bank account.”
Follow Channels and Categories