Notice to media

FARMERS REMINDED OF CAIS DEADLINES

WINNIPEG, Manitoba, November 29, 2006 – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is reminding producers of an important date for the Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) Program administration. Producers have until December 31st to:

file their 2005 CAIS Harmonized forms (including late-filing penalty)
pay their CAIS fee for the 2006 program without penalty

More flexible deadlines and the replacement of the deposit with a fee are both improvements made by federal, provincial and territorial governments in response to producer feedback.

2005 CAIS Harmonized form
The deadline to file the 2005 CAIS Harmonized form was September 30, but the administration is still accepting applications until December 31. A late-filing penalty will be applied to the producer’s CAIS payment. Participants must submit their forms by December 31 to be eligible for any benefit. Producers are encouraged to file their form so that the administration has their information on file for future reference.

Producers must send the completed form to:

Winnipeg Tax Centre
66 Stapon Road
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3M3

Status Indians farming on a reserve do not need to send their information to the Canada Revenue Agency. They must send the completed form to:

Winnipeg CAIS Administration
P.O. Box 3200
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 5R7

Late-filing penalty

Any payment a producer is entitled to will be reduced by $500 for each month (or each part of the month) late.
A producer will not be charged a late-filing penalty exceeding their payment.
A producer who does not receive a payment will not be charged a late-filing penalty.

2006 Fee
The fee, if paid by December 31, 2006, is $4.50 for every $1000 of reference margin covered. Fees paid between January 1, 2007 and April 30, 2007 will have a 20% penalty added. To be eligible for a payment for 2006 CAIS producers must pay their fee, along with any outstanding penalties, by April 30, 2007.

The CAIS program is delivered by the Government of Canada's CAIS Administration in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Yukon, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Producers in these provinces and this territory can contact the CAIS administration toll free at 1-866-367-8506 or visit the CAIS program Web site (www.agr.gc.ca/caisprogram).

In Alberta, producers can call Agriculture Financial Services Corporation at 1-877-744-7900. In Ontario, producers can call AGRICORP at 1-877-838-5144. In Québec, producers can call La Financière agricole du Québec at 1-800-749-3646. On Prince Edward Island, producers can call 902-368-4842.

Media Relations
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
613-759-7972
1-866-345-7972