Canada’s deadline structure has a recurring theme: payment dates arrive before filing dates. Self-employed individuals can file in June but owe in April; corporations can file six months after year end but owe in two or three. Treating the filing date as the real deadline is the most common (and most expensive) calendar mistake in Canadian small business, because CRA interest runs from the payment date. The dates below are verified against the CRA sources in the Sources section.
Personal income tax (T1)
| Who | Filing deadline | Payment deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Most individuals | April 30 | April 30 |
| Self-employed (and spouse/common-law partner) | June 15 | April 30 [1] |
The June 15 filing extension does not move the money: a sole proprietor who waits until June to compute their balance owing has been accruing interest since April 30 [1] . Individuals who owe instalments pay them on March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15 [1] .
GST/HST
Deadlines depend on the reporting period [2] :
| Reporting period | File | Pay |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | 1 month after period end | Same date |
| Quarterly | 1 month after period end | Same date |
| Annual (most registrants) | 3 months after fiscal year end | Same date |
| Annual, self-employed with December 31 year end | June 15 | April 30 [2] |
Annual filers with net tax of $3,000 or more in both the previous and current year also make quarterly instalments, due one month after each fiscal quarter: April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31 on a calendar year [2] . When a due date lands on a weekend or holiday, the next business day counts as on time [2] .
Corporations (T2)
| What | Deadline |
|---|---|
| File the T2 return | 6 months after tax year end [2] |
| Pay the balance of tax | 2 months after year end (3 months for eligible CCPCs) [2] |
| Corporate instalments | Monthly or quarterly when total tax exceeds $3,000 [2] |
A corporation with a December 31 year end files by June 30 but pays by the end of February (or March for an eligible Canadian-controlled private corporation). As with the T1, the return has to be substantially prepared months before its official deadline simply to know what to pay.
Employers: remittances and slips
Remitting frequency follows remitter type, set by average monthly withholding from two calendar years ago [3] :
| Remitter type | Frequency | Due |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly (eligible small employers, perfect compliance) | Quarterly | April 15, July 15, October 15, January 15 |
| Regular (AMWA under $25,000) | Monthly | 15th of the following month |
| Accelerated (AMWA $25,000 and above) | Up to twice monthly or faster | Per half-month period; see CRA remitter schedule |
T4 and T4A information returns for a calendar year are due by the last day of February following it [2] .
If a deadline slips
The CRA’s structure makes the consequences asymmetric. Filing late when you owe triggers a late-filing penalty calculated as a percentage of the unpaid balance plus a monthly add-on, so the same lateness costs more the bigger the bill. Paying late, even with an on-time return, accrues arrears interest compounded daily at the prescribed rate, which the CRA resets quarterly. Payroll remittances carry their own graduated penalty scale and are treated severely because the amounts are deducted from employees. The standing advice mirrors the other side of the border: when a date is going to slip, contact the CRA and arrange terms before it does. And remember the weekend rule works in your favour: a due date on a Saturday, Sunday, or CRA-recognised holiday rolls to the next business day [2] .
One calendar, one set of books
A Canadian small business with employees and quarterly GST/HST faces monthly remittances, four GST/HST events, February slips, and the April/June personal or two-stage corporate sequence. All of it reads off the same ledger, and the ledger is only as good as its slowest receipt. ExpenseFlow shortens that path: expenses and supplier bills are captured at the moment they exist, coded with the correct sales tax treatment (including the recoverable/non-recoverable split that provincial taxes create), and synced into QuickBooks Online or Xero with the document attached. The returns still get filed from the accounting platform; they just stop waiting on data entry.
References
Sources and references
Every figure, threshold, deadline, and regulatory rule cited in this guide is traceable to an official government publication. URLs are reproduced in full so any reader can verify the claim at source. Numbers are subject to change at each fiscal event; we re-check this list at every quarterly refresh of this guide.
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[1]
CRA · Due dates and payment dates: personal income tax
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/important-dates-individuals.htmlApril 30 / June 15 filing, April 30 payment, instalment dates.
Retrieved 2026-06-11
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[2]
CRA · Businesses have different filing and payment deadlines: a quick reference
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/news/newsroom/tax-tips/tax-tips-2025/businesses-have-different-filing-payment-deadlines-quick-reference.htmlGST/HST by reporting period, instalments, T2 filing and payment, T4/T4A dates.
Retrieved 2026-06-11
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[3]
CRA · When to remit (pay) payroll deductions
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/payroll/remitting-source-deductions/how-when-remit-due-dates.htmlRemitter types: quarterly 15ths, regular 15th of next month, accelerated half-month dates.
Retrieved 2026-06-11