Canada Revenue Agency holding over $1.8 billion in uncashed cheques — some may be yours

The Canada Revenue Agency is currently sitting on more than 10.8 million uncashed cheques totalling over $1.8 billion in payments that were issued but never cashed, averaging roughly $173 per cheque.

It's easier than many think for one of these to slip through the cracks. A cheque might have gone to an old address, gotten buried in a stack of mail and tossed by accident, or ended up in a drawer that hasn't been opened in years. The CRA issues millions of payments a year for things like tax refunds, GST/HST credits, Canada Child Benefit payments and a range of provincial benefits.

Even if you're on direct deposit now, the CRA could still be holding older cheques that were issued before you signed up. Those don't get automatically converted, so they just sit there. The upside is that Government of Canada cheques never expire — whether a payment was issued last year or a decade ago, you can still claim it.

The quickest way to find out if you're owed money is through your CRA My Account. Once logged in, look for "Uncashed cheques" on the Overview page or under "Accounts and payments." The online tool covers personal payments more than six months old, including tax refunds, benefit payments and credits. If the CRA is holding anything for you, it'll be listed there, and you can download a pre-filled form to request a replacement, either by direct deposit or as a new cheque in the mail.

If you don't have a My Account set up or you're chasing down business or trust cheques, you'll need to call the CRA directly. Once the form is filled out and signed by hand, you can upload it through your online account or mail it to the Sudbury tax centre. If you go the mail route, expect up to 10 extra business days to receive a cheque.