Slip Filing

Hi All,

As mentioned in a prior thread there were significant changes to the slips upload process on the CRA’s end, which is requiring our slips update that went out last week to undergo changes to account for the new CRA process.

The CRA has added a hyperlink on the 503 error page, which brings you to the disclaimer page linked HERE. This will require manual entry on the subsequent screen but is a workaround for now.

We will of course be issuing a subsequent slips release, and when we know the timing of this release, I will provide the community with an update.

Thank you all!
Aaron

Thanks for the update @aaron.doucet.cpa

Do you know if one of the significant changes is the inability to process special characters in an XML file?

For instance; if my Transmitter name is

Snoplowgal & Snoplowguy Inc

the CRA system no longer seems to accept my transmitter name when it parses the XML file when using the manual method that was suggested on this site yesterday.

The & character parses as “& amp;” in the XML file. The upload gets rejected as an invalid character.

This has never happened while using TaxCycle to slips for the last 8 years. I’m trying to figure out if this is an issue that only happens with the manual uploading process, or whether this is some type of change made by CRA this year, and my uploads will still fail once the TaxCycle update is released.

I guess my question is; will I need to change my business name in order to file T-slips…or if I sit tight until the update will things work out?

We haven’t been made aware of any changes to the CRA accepting special characters or not, we will keep our eyes of course as we work through the update, this could be an issue related to the manual upload process.

Thanks for bringing this to our attention!

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My guess is that when they read the XML to then display the transmitter information on the next page, that piece of code doesn’t know what to do with the ampersand.
The ampersand is a restricted character for XML and has to be converted to what you referred to above which their programmers may have forgotten when they built this year’s application.
I sent the slip filing section at CRA a note asking if they were aware of the issue and, if they were, when it might be fixed.

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CRA rep replied that they will get this fixed soon and thanked us (you) for bringing it to their attention.

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That’s great @Allen and thanks for figuring this out.

I was hoping I didn’t have to change my name just to file slips. :slight_smile:

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I just wanted to give you an update, and confirm the CRA doesn’t work terribly quickly. I updated TaxCycle over the weekend and confirm that as of this morning they have not fixed the issue. I get essentially the same error when I file through TaxCycle now as when I tried to file manually.

@snoplowguy
Are you specifically referring to the ampersand issue? I had no problem filing slips last week (through TaxCycle), other than having a few more steps to click through. And, prior to the last TaxCycle update, having to manually copy and paste my Slip Transmitter number and password (i.e. account number and WAC).

Yes, that is the issue I am referring to. @Allen has indicated it is a CRA problem and they will “get this fixed soon”. Soon is a relative word if you are describing a period of time… and if the CRA is involved I’d say it would be a distant relative. :grimacing:

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I tried again just now through TaxCycle, CRA sent me submission receipt saying “thank you for submission” and then the report shows “rejected”, when I clicked on the error report, it says “no actions required, CRA may contact you”. When I log into Business Account, there’s no record of submission, so I tried to submit it in Business Account, the error message is “the representative ID on T619 does not match the ID you use to log in to the account.”. I’ve got only one rep ID and I have been submitting using TaxCycle/Business Account no issues. Hopefully they get this sorted soon!

Are you filing slips for your own company or a client?

You can use your CRA Business Account only to submit slips for your own business.

If you use RAC, it gives you choice to use “Web Forms” or “Internet File Transfer” both of which can be accessed outside of RAC, and both of which now require a WAC. The “TRANSMITTER” is the business for whom the slips are being prepared. If you’re filing for a client, the Transmitter is the CLIENT, and you must specify that you are the FILER, not the Transmitter. Then, you must enter your CRA account number and WAC as the FILER. Otherwise it will expect that the WAC you entered is registered to the Transmitter. That’s usually what the error message means - you’ve either entered your own BN as the Transmitter, or you’ve entered your WAC without specifying your details as the Filer.

If you use TaxCycle, it will handle all those details and put the right answers in the appropriate XML fields.

I’m not sure why you’re getting an error through TaxCycle or why it shows rejected.

Thank you. Where do I enter my CRA account number and WAC as a filer in TaxCycle? In TaxCycle, my firm’s info is listed under “Preparer/Firm Representative”. Transmitter is the client’s RZ account number.

I’m filing for my client. Initially I used the client RZ account and WAC to log in to file, I was able to upload the file. It gave me a submission number and says it’s rejected, error message says “no action required”. Then in the receipt email there are options to log into Business Account to see submission history and download error report. There’s no submission history in my client’s business account, so I file it using RAC (internet file transfer), this time the error message saying the Rep ID doesn’t match. I don’t think I ever entered/changed my rep ID in TaxCycle in the past few years… I would probably call CRA to see what the issue is. I do think it’s a CRA problem, I’ve been filing T5 using TaxCycle in the last 3 years…

In Options, under “Transmission” → “Slips Accounts”:

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Ah, so I updated this with my own firm’s RZ number (also updated under transmitter) and WAC, same result-- Submission received, rejected. Error says “No actions required, CRA may contact you”. And it’s impossible to reach the electronic processing unit through their phone number. Will wait till next week to see what happens…

Sorry, I got this backwards - the TRANSMITTER is you (the person or firm that is submitting the slips). The FILER is the client.

Good thing I use TaxCycle. I’d have loused it up a few times already…
:woozy_face: :face_with_spiral_eyes:

Just got a note from CRA informing us that the ampersand issue has been resolved.
You should now be able to transmit with one in your transmitter name.

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Thanks @Allen

I appreciate you staying on this.

I confirm that I am able to file T4 slips and T5018 slips using my name that contains the ampersand & sign now, so the CRA has fixed this.

For some reason the software is no longer automatically recording the Submission Number; I am having to copy and paste that from the Confirmation of Receipt. I watched @Elizabeth’s video on slip filing and she indicated the software may not always pick up the submission number. Today is the first time I have experienced that issue with the submission number not being recorded automatically.

Never had that happen before, but at least I’m able to file slips under my actual transmitter name. I filed a couple last week using “and” instead of “&” for my transmitter name and they seemed to all get processed ok. The slips all appear in the client’s CRA account.

For the last couple days I have been having to mannually enter the submission number as well.

CRA likely tweeked things a bit more. :grimacing:

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