A beefed up crackdown on tax cheats is apparently paying off for Revenue Canada.
The Globe and Mail reports that enforcement measures announced in the 2013 federal budget have netted almost three times what the department originally expected.
The 2013 budget estimated that about $550 million in additional revenue would be collected by 2014-15.
According to the Globe, the Canadian Revenue Agency says the measures netted $1.57 billion–at an estimated cost of $15 million over five years.
Earlier this month, Minister of National Revenue Diane Lebouthillier upped the ante, announcing that the CRA was hiring 100 more auditors to target tax cheats.
She said the strategy is aimed at rooting out high-risk wealthy Canadians and corporations that stash cash in offshore accounts to avoid taxes.
In the year’s budget, the government announced it would spend about $444 million over five years for the CRA to boost enforcement.
It forecast a revenue gain of $2.6 billion over those five years as a result of the measures.
Since January, the Canada Revenue Agency has been collecting information on all transfers of international funds over $10,000.
For reasons beyond our control, and for an undetermined period of time, our comment section is now closed. However, our social networks remain open to your contributions.