May 4, 2026

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Summary:

Data on the results from delivering CVITP service to clients indicate that:

1. The numbers of individuals assisted and returns filed once again reached new peaks in the 2025 filing season.  The growth rates have declined each year since the 2021 season, but the trends remain above the pre-COVID period.  The pilot grant project may have played a role in stimulating these higher trend growth rates.
2. Consistently for the past three years, the number of returns filed represent 15% more than the number of clients assisted.
3. The real value of the benefits, credits and refunds generated declined every year since 2019.  As this phenomenon pre-figures the end of the Canada Carbon Rebate in 2025, it can be attributed to federal and provincial benefits not keeping pace with inflation.

Data on the infrastructure which supports CVITP service delivery indicate that:

1. The number of host organizations grew by 2% in 2025 but remained below the peak reached in 2020, at the onset of COVID.  This was the final year of the pilot grant project which was designed but failed to increase the number of host organizations by 5% annually.
2. The number of volunteers grew by 10% in 2025 and, for the first time, the peak previously reached in 2019 was surpassed.  Nevertheless, it represents a decline in growth from 2024, which experienced a 13% increase in the number of volunteers.
3. While the average number of volunteers per host organizations has risen steadily since 2022, at 4.5 it remains below the peak of 4.7 reached in 2017.

Analyzing these data using some measures of productivity for CVITP service delivery suggest that:

1. Volunteer productivity declined for the second year in a row but remained well above levels seen prior to COVID.
2. Host organization productivity has trended consistently upward since COVID and reached a new peak in 2025.

Looking ahead to 2026:

1. The growth rates in the numbers of individuals assisted and of returns filed will likely remain above those seen in the 2016-2019 period prior to COVID but will decline below the growth rates seen in 2025 due to increasing capacity constraints within existing host organizations.
2. Given the late announcement of CRA grant funding for the 2026 season together with a very conservative financing formula, it is unlikely that the number of host organizations will increase significantly more in the 2026 season.
3. The growth rate in the number of volunteers in 2026 may further decline given that the main source of volunteers is host organizations whose numbers are expected to experience weak growth in 2026, and that the broader national trends in volunteerism remain unfavourable to strong growth within the CVITP.
4. Given that the growth rate of host organizations is unlikely to match that of volunteers in 2026, the average number of volunteers per host organization is likely to grow further, albeit modestly.
5. Volunteer productivity will continue to remain well above the pre-COVID period but may decline modestly in 2026 if the volunteer growth rate continues to outpace the growth in the numbers of individuals assisted and of returns filed as it has these last two years.
6. Host organization productivity may continue to rise further but at a slower rate than has been the case throughout the 2021-2025 period.