π CRA Business Account Sign-In Guide
My Business Account is the Canada Revenue Agency's secure online portal for business owners. After signing in, you can manage GST/HST, payroll, corporation income tax, business correspondence, payments and other CRA program accounts from one place.
πͺ Ways to Sign In
The CRA offers three secure authentication methods:
- π CRA user ID and password
- π¦ Sign-In Partner (participating Canadian financial institutions)
- π Provincial partner (available in British Columbia and Alberta)
You only register once. The same credentials can be used to access My Account, My Business Account, Represent a Client and other CRA portals from a single Welcome page.
π’ Accessing My Business Account
- Sign in to your CRA account.
- Select + Add account.
- Choose Business account.
- Add your existing Business Number (BN) or register a new one.
- Complete identity verification if required.
- Select your business from the Welcome page.
Before first access, your Social Insurance Number (SIN) must be linked to your Business Number (BN). Once linked, your business appears alongside any other CRA accounts you manage.
β What You Can Access
Most business tax services are available directly through My Business Account without paper forms or telephone requests.
π Security Features
- π Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
- π± Backup MFA option (authenticator app or passcode grid)
- π CRA email notifications
- π‘ Secure encrypted authentication
The CRA now encourages all users to configure a backup MFA method to simplify account recovery if their primary authentication method becomes unavailable.
β Common Sign-In Problems
- β Business Number has not been added.
- β SIN is not linked to the Business Number.
- β Forgotten CRA user ID or password.
- β Multi-factor authentication issues.
- β Scheduled CRA maintenance.
If you lose access because your credentials are forgotten or revoked, the CRA now allows many users to regain access simply by completing the registration process again instead of calling support.
π‘ Best Practices
- β Enable email notifications.
- β Configure a backup MFA method.
- β Add your Business Number as soon as it is issued.
- β Review Online Mail regularly.
- β Keep your contact information up to date.
- β Avoid using autofill on shared computers.
π¬ Community Experience
Canadian business owners often recommend setting up My Business Account well before tax filing deadlines to avoid last-minute registration delays. Users also advise checking the CRA maintenance schedule if login or filing features appear unavailable, as planned outages occasionally affect business services.
π¨βπ» Expert Insight from dir.md
Your CRA sign-in credentials are shared across all CRA account types, making account management much simpler than maintaining separate logins. Once your Business Number has been linked to your CRA profile, switching between personal and business services requires only selecting the appropriate account from the Welcome page. Setting up a backup MFA method and email notifications now can save significant time if you ever need to recover access.
