Every Canadian business owner who's opened a CRA My Business Account has encountered them: 15-character codes like 716924436RP0001 or 123456789RT0001. Most people stare at them blankly. The CRA never explains what the letters mean—they just appear in emails, reminder notices, and account dashboards.

Here's the key insight: those two letters in the middle tell you exactly which tax obligation is involved. Once you learn the 4 most common program identifiers—RC, RP, RT, and RZ—you'll never be confused by a CRA notice again.

How a CRA Program Account Number is Structured

Every CRA business tax account number has exactly 15 characters split into 3 parts:

123456789  RC  0001
└────────┘ └─┘ └──┘
    BN      ID   Ref

Part	Characters	Meaning
Business Number (BN)	9 digits	Your company's unique identifier — think of it as the corporation's social insurance number. All tax accounts under the same company share these first 9 digits
Program Identifier	2 letters	Indicates which tax program this account belongs to (RC, RP, RT, RZ, etc.)
Reference Number

Code	Account Name	When You Need It	Key Form
RC	Corporate Tax	Incorporated company filing income tax	T2
RP	Payroll	Paying employees or owner-salary	T4
RT	GST/HST	Revenue > $30k, or claiming ITCs from day one	GST34
RZ	Information Returns	Partnership reporting, subcontractor payments	T5013, T5018

CRA Business Accounts Decoded: What RC, RP, RT, RZ Actually Mean

How a CRA Program Account Number is Structured

Hoan Do

The 4 Most Common Program Accounts

💼 RC — Corporation Income Tax

👥 RP — Payroll Deductions

🛒 RT — GST/HST (Goods and Services / Harmonized Sales Tax)

📊 RZ — Information Returns

Quick Reference Summary

Practical Advice