CMBA-BC advocates for CRA income verification tool

As part of our continued advocacy, CMBA-BC and CMBA-Atlantic recently participated in a Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) national roundtable, providing input on a potential digital income verification tool to directly verify borrower income. This secure tool would empower mortgage professionals to verify this information in real time and, in turn, reduce instances of mortgage fraud.  

Rebecca Casey (President), Marci Deane (Past-President), and Carla Giles (CEO) represented CMBA-BC at the roundtable session.  

CMBA-BC’s focus going into the roundtable: 

  • Recommending the tool replace insecure email exchanges with a CRA-hosted secure web portal. 
  • Emphasizing that the tool needs to access information from the full T1 General return, plus the CRA statement of account and benefit notices (e.g. Canada Child Benefit), as this would allow brokers and lenders to validate employment, self-employment, rental, investment, and government-benefit incomes against specific lender guidelines. 
  • Encouraging the integration of user-friendly and secure tools with identity and income verification through standardized API endpoints (as previously existed, but no longer available). This would allow more accessible options for Canadian borrowers to pass information from CRA directly to mortgage brokers and our lender partners.

The CRA has published a report, detailing its findings from exploratory roundtable sessions with representatives from banks, credit unions, mortgage and title insurers, mortgage brokers, mortgage finance companies, and alternative mortgage associations. What follows are highlights from CRA’s post-roundtable report: 

Industry concerns 

Participants flagged several current issues: 

  • Fake or altered income documents used to inflate borrower qualifications
  • Money laundering through mortgage transactions 
  • Fraud within the industry, including misrepresentation by professionals

Current verification practices 

Mortgage professionals currently rely on: 

  • CRA-issued documents like (e.g. T4 slips, NOAs) and proof-of-income statements 
  • Employment letters and bank statements 
  • Direct employer verification 

These methods are time-consuming, prone to manipulation, and inconsistent across lenders. 

Proposed tool features 

Industry feedback emphasized the need for: 

  • Real-time access to verified CRA data via a secure portal or application programming interface (API) 
  • Borrower consent as a prerequisite for data sharing 
  • Detailed income breakdowns (beyond yes/no responses) 
  • At least two years of income history (note: some suggested up to five) 
  • Inclusion of key data points: total income (Line 15000), net income (Line 23600), taxable income (Line 26000), and CRA debt status

Security & accessibility 

Participants stressed: 

  • Two-factor authentication 
  • Borrower notifications when data is accessed 
  • Audit trails to detect unauthorized use 
  • Accessibility for borrowers without CRA online accounts or in rural areas 
  • Options for smaller lenders with limited tech infrastructure

CRA’s next steps 

The agency is reviewing feedback to design a tool that balances industry needs, borrower privacy, and security. The CRA has also been consulting with international tax administration partners and IT, privacy, security, and legal experts to identify options that would help financial institutions detect and deter fraud risk in a manner that is secure, user-friendly, and compatible with the CRA’s systems.  

CMBA-BC was pleased to champion its members and the broader mortgage brokering community by pushing for federal measures that combat mortgage fraud. We will continue to engage with the CRA on important matters affecting our membership and industry. 

Additionally, as always, we will keep you informed on any significant updates. 

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to excellence in B.C.’s mortgage brokerage industry! 

To learn more, check out this report from the CRA.