CRA cuts risk billions in lost revenue

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada | L'Institut professionnel de la fonction publique du Canada (CNW Group/Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC))

OTTAWA, ON, March 31, 2026 /CNW/ - Workforce cuts at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will weaken the government's ability to enforce tax laws and recover billions in lost revenue, warns The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC).

"These are the people who make sure everyone pays their fair share," said PIPSC President Sean O'Reilly. "Cutting them doesn't save money. It costs money."

PIPSC represents approximately 16,000 tax professionals at the CRA, many of whom have long raised concerns about the scale of tax avoidance by large corporations and high-net-worth individuals. The Parliamentary Budget Officer has estimated that Canada loses as much as $25 billion each year due to profit-shifting and other tax avoidance strategies.

"You don't close a $25 billion gap by cutting the very people trained to find it," said O'Reilly. "If anything, this is where investment pays for itself."

These work force adjustments come as part of broader efforts to cut tens of thousands of public service positions across government. PIPSC points out that strengthening CRA capacity could help fund public services and reduce pressure for cuts elsewhere.

"The government is cutting public services in the name of savings, while leaving billions in potential revenue on the table," said O'Reilly. "At the CRA, our members are the ones who find that revenue. Resourcing them properly to do their job would strengthen public finances and help avoid deep service cuts elsewhere. Cutting them does the opposite – it makes no sense."

The employees impacted include auditors, economists, and IT professionals whose work is essential to identifying tax avoidance and ensuring compliance. Many of the affected employees are based outside the National Capital Region, with significant impacts in regional offices where audit and compliance work is carried out.

"It takes experts to see risks coming, to enforce the rules, and to improve how the system works," said O'Reilly. "When you cut that expertise, you're not streamlining. You're undermining the system."

The union is also raising concerns about cuts to cybersecurity and data expertise, at a time when the CRA is expanding its use of artificial intelligence and digital systems.

"Canadians trust the CRA with deeply personal financial information," said O'Reilly. "Reducing in-house expertise while increasing reliance on technology raises serious questions about how that data will be protected."

The announcement comes at a moment of transition for the Agency, with the Commissioner's departure scheduled for March 31, raising broader questions about oversight and direction as these changes move forward.

PIPSC is calling on the federal government to reconsider these cuts and reinvest in audit, enforcement, and IT capacity to ensure a fair and effective tax system.

PIPSC represents over 85,000 public-sector professionals across the country, most of them employed by the federal government. Follow us on Facebook, on X (formerly known as Twitter) and on Instagram.

SOURCE Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC)

For more information: Johanne Fillion, 613-883-4900 (mobile), [email protected]