Key 2026 Tax Dates for Individuals and Businesses in Canada
Personal filing, self employed, corporate, GST/HST, and payroll deadlines for 2026, and what actually happens if you miss one.
Every deadline below applies broadly, but your exact date can differ based on your fiscal year end, your filing history, and your specific situation. This is a starting point for planning, not a substitute for confirming your own dates with us or on canada.ca.
| Date | Deadline | Who it applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2, 2026 | RRSP contribution deadline for the 2025 tax year | Individuals contributing to an RRSP |
| Mar 15, 2026 | First personal tax instalment for 2026 | Individuals who pay by instalments |
| Mar 31, 2026 | T3 trust returns (most trusts with a Dec 31 year end) | Trustees |
| Apr 30, 2026 | 2025 personal income tax return filing and any balance owing | Most individuals |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 2025 personal return filing for self employed individuals (balance owing still due Apr 30) | Self employed and their spouse or partner |
| Last day of Feb | T4, T4A, and T5 information slips to recipients and CRA | Employers and payers |
| 6 months after year end | T2 corporate income tax return filing | Incorporated businesses |
| 2 to 3 months after year end | Corporate tax balance owing (2 months, or 3 for many CCPCs) | Incorporated businesses |
| Varies | GST/HST returns and remittances (monthly, quarterly, or annual) | GST/HST registrants |
| 15th of month | Payroll source deductions (regular remitter) | Employers |
Not tax advice. This calendar is general information. Your dates can differ based on your situation. Ask us if you are unsure.
Why some of these dates are not fixed
A few deadlines above are single fixed dates, like the April 30 personal filing deadline. Others depend on your own business, like the corporate filing and balance owing dates, which are set relative to your fiscal year end, not the calendar year. And GST/HST filing frequency is assigned by the CRA based mainly on your revenue, so "varies" really does mean varies, monthly, quarterly, or annually depending on your business.
That is exactly why a generic calendar only gets you so far. Once you know your fiscal year end and your assigned GST/HST frequency, the dates that actually apply to you become fixed and predictable, which is the version of this calendar we build for every client.
What actually happens if you miss one
Two separate costs kick in, and they are not the same thing. The CRA charges daily compound interest on any balance owing starting the day after it was due, regardless of whether you filed. Separately, a late filing penalty applies if the return itself is filed late, generally 5 percent of the balance owing plus 1 percent for every additional month it stays unfiled, up to 12 months. The penalty is higher if you were also late in one of the previous three years.
The distinction matters because it changes what you should do if you are running behind. Filing on time, even if you cannot pay the full balance yet, avoids the late filing penalty entirely. Interest still accrues on what you owe, but that is a smaller cost than interest plus a penalty stacked on top of it. If you are behind on filing or payment, filing first and arranging payment after is almost always the better order.
The date that catches the most owners off guard
It is usually the corporate balance owing date, not the filing date. Most owners know they have six months after their fiscal year end to file the T2 return, so they assume payment follows the same timeline. It does not. The balance owing is generally due two months after year end, or three months for many Canadian controlled private corporations, well before the return itself has to be filed.
That gap between "when I have to pay" and "when I have to file" is where interest quietly starts accruing on businesses that thought they had more time. If your corporate year end is not December 31, it is worth marking both dates separately rather than assuming they line up.
How to actually stay ahead of these dates
Deadlines only feel stressful when the numbers behind them are not ready. If your books are reconciled and current going into a deadline, filing is a short, predictable task. If they are not, the same deadline turns into a scramble to reconstruct a year of transactions under time pressure, which is when mistakes happen.
This is the practical reason a monthly close matters more than the deadline itself. See also GST/HST registration and filing frequency and what a fixed monthly bookkeeping fee actually covers, including keeping you ready for every date above without a year end scramble.
Common Questions
Frequently asked questions
Not sure which dates apply to you?
Let's build your actual filing calendar.
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