Mr. Chair, we have no evidence that suggests corporations were placing amounts on deposit for any reason other than anticipation of a future reassessment.
With that said, though, we have enhanced the framework. We are training our staff on the new procedures and guidelines, and we are strengthening our annual review process so there is an additional challenge function to make sure there is a valid reason for those funds being on deposit and we have an opportunity to have a discussion. As I said, if we determine after those discussions that the funds do no appear to be on deposit for a valid reason, then we would refund those amounts or make adjustments to the amount on deposit.
As well, we've updated our corporate instalment guide to include more details on what information is required, including, for example, the applicable tax year. If the corporation does not provide us with a tax year for new deposits, we will not accept those deposits. On existing deposits, we would enter into a discussion to take a look at that particular year. So our review process is being strengthened.
We also need to make sure we're respectful of the Income Tax Act as well as the legitimate interests of Canadian businesses.