Garry Marr: If you’re crazy enough to want to donate money to the CRA, here’s how to do it

You can donate all or a portion of your refund to help pay down the debt in Canada’s largest province, which, as of the latest budget, is poised to exceed $485 billion. Photo by Getty Images

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Every time someone tells me they are “willing to pay more taxes,” it usually means they are happy to have someone else pay more.

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But here’s what those people can do. Put up or shut up. How many people preparing their taxes and getting a refund are willing to hand that cheque back to the government, or cut an even larger “donation” to the government? It turns out not that many.

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Strangely enough, it does happen. Ottawa doesn’t make it that easy, but Canada’s largest province is ready and willing to take your money and has something called the Ontario Opportunities Fund.

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Apparently, it is on page four of your return. You can donate all or a portion of your refund to help pay down the debt in Canada’s largest province, which, as of the latest budget, is poised to exceed $485 billion.

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The average refund cheque was about $2,000 last year, so 16 million of us in Ontario pulling together could wipe out … well, way less than 10 per cent of that debt once you factor in that we are only talking about adults in the province.

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Jamie Golombek, managing director of tax and estate planning at CIBC, said that, in theory, you could make a donation to the government and receive a tax receipt like any other donation.

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“Nobody does this,” said Golombek.

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Well, not quite nobody.

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A Public Services and Procurement Canada spokesman said all funds received by the federal government ultimately flow through the Receiver General, but donations, requests and gifts may be accepted by individual government departments and agencies.

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There is no central agency tracking all donations, as donations are handled by departments and agencies. However, Public Services and Procurement Canada recorded total donations to the Crown of $346,073 for fiscal year 2024-25 and $134,985 for 2025-26.

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If you made that donation and you are out there, maybe you can track how that money was spent.

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Strangely enough, Ottawa doesn’t make it easy to give the government extra money, Yannick Lemay, a tax expert with H&R Block Canada, said. If you just send in a cheque, they are likely to just apply a credit to your account.

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“The presumption is the cheque you are sending is not a donation,” said Lemay.

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Mike Dolson, a partner in law firm McCarthy Tétrault’s national tax group, said there are circumstances where a client might pay more than they think they owe because they are in disagreement with what is owed and plan to challenge it, but want to avoid any penalties or arrears interest if they lose a decision.

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But he’s never encountered a client voluntarily giving more to the Crown than is necessary.

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“I will say the Crown is a qualified donee,” said Dolson, noting that applies to the provinces and the federal government. “There are cases where someone might make a donation, like if you owned land adjacent to a national park and the Crown is interested, you could donate it.”