Guides · Written by a Canadian CPA · Not legal or tax advice
How long does a CRA objection take — and do you have to pay while you wait?
Two questions come up in almost every objection: how long will this take, and what happens to the amount owing in the meantime? Here is what the CRA itself reports, and what the law says about collections and interest.
What happens after you file
Once your objection is filed, the CRA acknowledges it and assigns it to an appeals officer, who reviews the assessment, your facts and reasons, and any supporting documents, and may contact you for more information before deciding. The CRA publishes processing times by complexity level — covering both how long it takes on average for an appeals officer to be assigned and for the objection to be resolved — and updates them monthly. The figures below are CRA-reported averages, not promises: an individual objection can move faster or slower.
The CRA’s three complexity levels
For objections resolved in August 2026, the CRA reported these average resolution times:
- Income tax — low complexity (for example, individual tax credits, personal deductions, the Canada child benefit, the disability tax credit): an average of 145 days.
- Income tax — medium complexity (for example, business expenses, partnerships, more complex individual issues, small and medium corporate files): an average of 403 days.
- Income tax — high complexity (large corporations, complex transactions, international transfer pricing, the general anti-avoidance rule, tax avoidance schemes): it may take over 690 days. These files are a small share of the workload — about 2% to 3%.
- GST/HST — low complexity: an average of 148 days.
- GST/HST — medium complexity (for example, new housing rebates and input tax credits): an average of 388 days.
- GST/HST — high complexity: it may take over 500 days.
These averages exclude time you take to provide additional information the CRA asks for, so slow responses on your side extend your own timeline. See the CRA’s processing times and complexity levels page for the current figures — they change month to month.
Collections while you wait: income tax
For income tax, ITA s.225.1(2) generally restricts the CRA from taking specified collection action on a disputed amount until 90 days after the objection decision is sent. In the CRA’s words, if you file an objection, it normally postpones collection action on amounts in dispute until 90 days after its decision is sent to you.
There are exceptions. The restriction does not cover everything — withholding and remittance amounts are excepted, large corporations face a rule allowing collection of one-half of the disputed amount, and tax-shelter donation claims and jeopardy collection are treated differently. Do not assume every debt is protected; check your situation against the rules.
Collections while you wait: GST/HST
GST/HST is different. The CRA can continue collecting amounts owing while a GST/HST objection is reviewed — filing the objection does not pause collection. If you are objecting to a GST/HST assessment, plan for the balance to remain collectible while you wait.
Interest runs either way
Interest continues to accrue on amounts owing while an objection is in dispute, for both income tax and GST/HST. Paying all or part of a disputed balance can reduce further interest if the objection does not succeed; paying does not concede the dispute or give up your objection. Whether paying makes sense depends on your circumstances — the size of the balance, the interest cost over a wait that may run a year or more, and your cash position.
If the wait stretches on
Waiting is not your only option if the CRA simply does not decide. Once 90 days have passed after you served your income-tax objection with no decision notified — or 180 days after filing a GST/HST objection — you may appeal to the Tax Court of Canada even without a confirmation in hand. That step is covered in our guide to the Notice of Confirmation and the Tax Court. Most objections do get decided at the CRA level; the point is that silence alone does not leave you stuck indefinitely.
Still deciding whether to object?
The wait is long, but the deadline to start is not: objections are generally due within 90 days, or the later-of period for individuals. Use the deadline calculator to find your date, and see how to file a notice of objection for what the process involves.
Check the official sources
Reviewed October 11, 2026. General information only; check the current instructions and your notice before filing.