From CRA’s email of today…online mail to be sent to all new BNs, exisiting MyBA registered or RAC-registered businesses. Fair enough.
BUT…
If your business clients are not ready to make the switch to online mail, they’ll need to make a request to activate paper mail using form RC681 – Request to Activate Paper Mail for Business to the CRA or through [My Business Account] starting May 2025.
Uh…if they aren’t on MyBA…how will they do this? Snail mail? Fax?
These bureaucrats are beyond useless.
That’s what you do if the business is registered for MyBA but wishes to continue receiving paper mail. The part you’ve missed is this:
" Exceptions
Existing businesses not registered for My Business Account through the CRA account of the business owner or an authorized representative will continue to receive their CRA correspondence by paper mail."
If a business is not registered for MyBA, they will not be switched over to online mail. Turns out the “useless bureaucrats” have considered the issue, and published a notification about it, and you just missed it.
This is accurate
My email reads the same – nothing about businesses that do not have MBA. I do all online stuff for 11 businesses, none of which have MBA and do not want it. For 9 of those, I am the ONLY contact.
It seems they are saying that I will have to get MBA for ALL of them.
So confusing and frustrating.
I’ve been dealing with CRA since 1980 for clients and these past few years just keep getting worse and worse.
Pat Gamborg
PAT’s OFFICE
Digby,NS B0V 1A0
I read it like that too. My clients I access thru rep a client that don’t have MBA will not have real mail because I file their hst?
This is insane.
Rachel
"This change applies to all:
- new business number and program account registrations
- existing businesses registered for My Business Account
- businesses who have a representative that accesses the CRA’s services on their behalf through Represent a Client"
"## ExceptionsExisting businesses not registered for My Business Account
Existing businesses not registered for My Business Account through the CRA account of the business owner or an authorized representative will continue to receive their CRA correspondence by paper mail."
This means, those clients without online access that have given you authorizations, will have to sign up or request paper.
Those that do not have online access and have not given anyone access will continue to get paper.
So there are TWO DIFFERENT VERSIONS of the email???
Appears so…
…it is going to be one of those years.
Rachel
some of my stuff is from CRA background info…
Ugh, this will be a nightmare. I already receive calls from the collections department about a client’s unpaid HST balance. I’d normally let the agent know to send the balance and a remittance voucher by mail. However if they’re switching business mails to only online, then they’ll constantly call my office.
I already spent last week having to calling business enquires just so they could link my client’s SIN with their Ontario corporation. Spent over 3 hours having to get that sorted out.
“One step forward, a hundred steps back” - Bob Hamilton, probably
Hst collections called on a client today… because i helped them setup I am primary contact ?? Anyways…redirected then to taxpayer.
Asked if collection letters and remittance vouchers will be going out by mail to those who owe once switch happens to the new online mail and he said yes those are still going out by mail.
Rachel
Thank you!
The CRA have also stated that any undeliverable mail will result to it be changed to online mail. Also the RC681 form needs to be sent every two years. 
Still waiting to get access to a GST account for my elderly mother-in-law that rents out farmland in a rural area and she has no email.
It’s on the website. The information was posted there before going out in an email. Viz:
Unfortunately, not only does that make their email to us incomplete, but also incorrect.
They remain #useless.
It seems we can’t even be preemptive with this. I wanted to file a bunch of RC681’s to stop the transition to online mail for those businesses who don’t have CRA access (but I have RAC access). The form isn’t even available.
The RC681 will not be available until May 12th, the date the transition to online mail kicks in.
Of course in typical government fashion they already let you know that even if you are able to file the RC681 to “activate paper mail” they likely won’t be able to process it fast enough to stop your account from being transitioned and will likely receive online mail until they can get around to processing your RC681 request. I guess everyone’s still working from home.
If you would like to receive your business correspondence by paper mail, you’ll need to make a request to activate paper mail. The request can only be made by an individual with signing authority such as an owner or their legal representative.
You must keep your mailing address up-to-date to ensure you receive all correspondence. Any undeliverable mail will result in a change back to online mail. To keep receiving paper mail you’ll need to make a request to activate paper mail every two years.
Starting May 12, 2025, paper mail can be requested in one of only two ways:
Note: If you have submitted an RC681 Request to activate paper mail for business to activate paper mail during this transition period (between May 12 and June 16, 2025), you may still receive correspondence online in My Business Account until the CRA processes your request . As such, the CRA recommends that you monitor your CRA account for new online mail or register to receive email notifications from the CRA to be notified when you have new mail to view in My Business Account.
Typical CRA move to let you opt out of their electronic stuff but make it really difficult/impossible to do.
