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Online glitch extends tax deadline to May 6
ROB CARRICK

Globe and Mail update

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April 30, 2008 at 11:27 AM EDT

OTTAWA — The Canada Revenue Agency has extended the deadline for online tax filing to May 6 as a result of heavy traffic that has bogged down its Netfile website.

The deadline for filing taxes and paying any outstanding amounts to CRA is midnight Wednesday. However, the agency posted an online notice yesterday announcing an extension for submitting returns “If you have difficulty sending or correcting your Netfile return, you have until midnight (local time) on Tuesday, May 6, 2008 to transmit it,” the notice says. “Your tax return will be considered as filed on time.” CRA stressed that if you owe money on your taxes, the usual filing deadline applies.

A software glitch took Netfile offline for nine days in March 2007, but CRA spokesman Jacqueline Couture said the site has not crashed this time. “It's busy, it's overload,” she said. “For some people it seems to be working fine, for others it isn't.”

With Netfile, you complete your tax return using software you either buy or access online, and then file it to CRA over the Internet. The lack of paper speeds the processing of your return and results in a refund being sent in a week or so instead of the usual six or so weeks.