Here is a link.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060302.gtcarrick02/BNStory/Technology,einsider/home

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I have only 2 cents to contribute, not a cent more, not a cent less ;-)

thanks, useful n informative article........!!

I tried to open this again after few days, it does not work. Asks to register. Why so ?

The article is from Globe and Mail which is a paid site for some content. Usually they keep the article free for some days and then lock it. Anyway one way to get around that is to file away interesting articles usign Evernote which is an application which allows you to clip articles from the web for future reference. Another way is to do a Google search for the article and look up the cached version.. I am posting the article again in case you need it. I clipped it and put it into Evernote for future reference.

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Consumers come out on top in tax software price competition

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ROB CARRICK

The growth in on-line tax filing has prompted some griping that the Canada Revenue Agency should make the necessary software available for free.

It won't happen, folks, but not to worry. With so many competitors fighting for customers in the tax software business, prices have fallen significantly for people filing their 2005 return.

The major tax software products sold in stores are as much as 25 per cent cheaper this year, and there's a wide selection of alternatives available on the Internet that cost less than $10. There's even a free downloadable program, although users are asked to make a voluntary financial contribution.

This price competition has been stoked by the growing popularity of the CRA's Netfile program, whereby you file your tax return over the Internet on a secure website. The CRA figures show the number of returns received through Netfile for the 2004 tax year totalled 3.5 million, up 14.3 per cent from the previous year and almost 50 per cent from 2001.

Netfile's growth can be explained very simply. To use Netfile you need tax software, which simplifies the completion of your return, eliminates calculation errors and, if you pick one of the more deluxe products, offers tax help as well. Also, by filing your return electronically, you get your tax refund in days rather than weeks.

A complete list of Netfile-certified software products can be found at netfile.gc.ca, but generally speaking you have three options. The first is to go to an office supply or electronics store and buy one of the three or so packaged software products, notably QuickTax, TaxWiz or UFile.

QuickTax is the king of tax software because of its simplicity and utility, and as such it's the most expensive this year at $39.95 for the standard version; $59.95 for a platinum edition that offers extra guidance on investment and retirement savings. Standard QuickTax costs the same as last year, but the platinum version is $20 cheaper.

QuickTax is a product of the Canadian division of software giant Intuit Inc., which also produces TaxWiz. Targeted at beginners, TaxWiz has fallen in price this year to $19.95 from $24.99, while the other major packaged software product, UFile, has dropped this year to $19.99 from $24.99.

Both TaxWiz and UFile are perfectly acceptable ways to do your taxes, but they lack the slickness of QuickTax. Whether that advantage is worth an extra $20 or so is a judgment call, but if you've got a comparatively simple return, you're computer literate and you know the tax form, then save your money.

According to the UFile people, use of packaged tax software by Netfilers rose 14.3 per cent last year, but use of Web-based tax-filing services jumped 31.5 per cent. The reason is that it's much cheaper to either download a tax software product off the Internet or use the software right on the website of the company offering it.

You can see the growing popularity of the on-line option in the fact that Intuit now offers a cheap Web-based product called SnapTax (snaptax.ca). Priced at $9.95, SnapTax is aimed at people with straightforward returns who used pencil and paper last year.

There are numerous comparable products to SnapTax, although none offer the comfort of dealing with a name brand such as Intuit Canada. The cheapest of these alternatives has to be StudioTax (studiotax.com), which uses a "flexible licensing model" and is free to both download and use for Netfiling. The company behind StudioTax, Ottawa-based BHOK IT Consulting, asks that you make a financial contribution to help support the product, however.

Note that some tax software providers charge nothing to users with incomes of less than $25,000, including a Web-based version of QuickTax (quicktaxweb.ca) that normally costs $19.95. For a complete list, check the listing of Netfile-certified companies on the Netfile website.

Among the choices in the sub-$10 range are myTaxExpress 2005 (mytaxexpress.com) at $6.08, CuteTax (cutetax.ca) at $8.98, TaxFreeway (taxfreeway.ca) at $9.95, T1Filer (T1filer.ca) at $8.99 and EachTax (eachtax.com) at $5.99.

Don't sign up for an on-line tax-filing service without establishing that you can try the software first. Most let you fill out your return and pay only when you Netfile. Also, make sure there is a proper level of security to protect your personal information. Security is typically provided by keeping private data stored on your computer, or through the use of the same type of encryption as the banks use.

If you use tax software every year, one way to save money in the long run would be to try GenuTax (genutax.ca), a downloadable product that charges you $34.99 when you buy and then provides free updates every year. Mac users should check out TaxTron (taxtron.ca), a downloadable product that costs $12.99.

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I have only 2 cents to contribute, not a cent more, not a cent less ;-)