How Do I Do My Taxes?

This article originally appeared on the SimpleTax blog. SimpleTax has joined Wealthsimple to become Wealthsimple Tax. Now you can invest, trade, save, and do your taxes all in one place.

How to do your taxes in Canada

Whether you’re a first-time filer or someone who’s been going to a tax preparer for years, you might be wondering if you can (or should) do your own taxes. You can, and it’s easier than you think.

1. Gather your tax documents

Grab your slips and receipts. If you aren’t sure what you need, you can use our handy checklist to collect all the documents that you’ll need to file your tax return.

2. Enter your personal information

When you use an online filing system like Wealthsimple Tax, we first need to get a bit of information from you so we can tailor the experience to you.

3. Report your 'stuff'

After you’ve filled out your personal details, you’ll see our Add tax forms + search box. You’ll use this box to add the stuff you gathered in step 1 to your tax return. For example, if you have a T4 slip from your job, search for “T4” or “job” to add a T4 section to your return.

If you aren’t sure where to begin, you can filter the list based on your life situation and select the sections you need.

Once you add something to your tax return, it’s as easy as transcribing data from your slips and receipts and answering a few simple questions. If you need help along the way, our help site is chock-full of articles to get you unstuck. You can also send us an email and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

4. Review your return

When you’re done entering all your stuff, click on the Review & Optimize button. We’ll run thousands of calculations to help optimize your return. We’ll even make suggestions or give you warnings if we think you might have missed something.

5. File your return and get your refund

Once your return is error-free, you can file it online with the Canada Revenue Agency with a couple of clicks. If you’ve set up a direct deposit, you can get your refund in as few as eight days.

If you still aren’t sure if you can do your own taxes, why not give it a try? Spend 10 or 15 minutes and see how far you get. You might even finish your tax return.