1. Prepare your request

If you think that the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) made the wrong decision, you can ask for a second review. In a second review, the CRA looks again at whether you qualify for the COVID-19 benefit.

The deadline to ask for a second review is in the letter from the CRA. It's often 30 days. But you should call the CRA to make sure.

You can ask the CRA for more time if you need it. They often give people more time to ask for a second review.

Write a letter to the CRA

There's no formal process to ask for a second review. Write a letter to the CRA and explain how you met the eligibility criteria for the COVID-19 benefit.

Look at the letter you got from the CRA to see why they said you were not eligible. They should say which eligibility criteria they thought you did not meet. If the letter is not clear about this, call the CRA and ask them to explain.

Be as detailed and organized as possible. Describe what happened with your financial and personal situation before, during, and after you applied for the benefit.

Write everything in the order it happened. Use exact dates when you can. For example, describe:

• when you started working at your job and how much you made,
• when you were laid off and why,
• how being laid off affected your income, and
• when you applied for the benefit.

You should also write about any contact you had with the CRA about the COVID-19 benefit. If you had a phone call with them, say when this happened and what you talked about.

You can also give details about yourself. For example, mention if you have a disability or if you had to take care of family members. This gives the CRA a better idea of what was happening in your life.

Gather your documents

Gather all the documents that prove that you did qualify for the COVID-19 benefit. Include these with the letter you send to the CRA asking for a second review.

You could include:

• pay stubs, a record of employment, or a termination letter
• bank statements with important deposits highlighted
• contracts, invoices, work logs, emails, and text messages from clients
• credit card statements and receipts that show your expenses

Be as thorough as possible when you gather your proof. Include everything that could help show that you qualified for the benefit.