A sign outside the Canada Revenue Agency is seen on Monday May 10, 2021 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - The federal official charged with investigating taxpayers' complaints says he wants to become better known so he can more quickly identify systemic issues within the Canada Revenue Agency.

Taxpayers ombudsperson François Boileau says gaining a larger profile would also help him reach the more than 800,000 people who don't file returns and are often from vulnerable populations that don't usually file complaints.

Part of the drive comes after a year where Boileau's office received its highest number of complaints and urgent pleas for help because of the pandemic.

Boileau's annual report notes the office received more than 3,500 complaints during the 12-month period that ended March 31, higher than the combined total of the preceding two fiscal years.

Complaints were largely focused on the billions in emergency aid that the CRA quickly doled out since the onset of the pandemic as millions of jobs were lost over March and April of 2020 — a loss the country recently recouped.

But the pandemic benefits are not gone: Parliament is poised to approve a new round of aid for workers subject to lockdowns, and extend benefits for workers who have to stay home to care for a sick child or because they are ill themselves.

Boileau said he would like to see those new and extended benefits start on the right foot, and has already sought briefings with CRA officials to make sure there aren't long delays in approving benefit requests.

"It has been really big over the last few months, even though those benefit programs are winding down," he said.

"We still have issues, we still receive complaints, not as many as, say, last summer, but rest assured there will be a chapter dedicated to the validation delays in our next annual report."

In his annual report released Thursday, Boileau recommends the CRA publicly post information provided to call-centre agents to help save time and energy for all involved, which could help address a perennial complaint about long waits on hold.

He noted that the CRA gave information to agents to help them in calls, but didn't post the same information online.

"Maybe there won't be a reason to call in and receive the same basic answer," Boileau said. "So Canadians can make up their mind with the information that they have at hand. But they need to have this information at hand."

Information was similarly needed for victims of domestic abuse looking to receive the Canada Child Benefit. The agency added more online details after an investigation by Boileau's office noted that the CRA sometimes requires beneficiaries to get signatures or documents from their abuser to continue receiving payments.

He also says the CRA must come up with a better way for taxpayers to securely submit documents electronically without the need to access their online accounts after thousands of taxpayers in February were digitally locked out over security concerns.

Later Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office released mandate letters for his cabinet ministers, including for Revenue Minister Diane Lebouthillier.

Her marching orders included making the CRA a more "empathetic and client-centric experience" by making information easier to find, and speed up the use of "digital tools."

Trudeau has also asked Lebouthillier to give Boileau what he needs to finish a review of concerns raised by Muslim-led charities that they have been unfairly targeted by the CRA.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 16, 2021.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2021