Quick Answer
The 2027 tax deadlines for Canadian businesses depend on your business structure. Self-employed individuals and sole proprietors must file their personal T1 return by June 15, 2027, but any balance owing is due April 30, 2027. Incorporated businesses must file their T2 corporate return within six months of their fiscal year-end, with the balance owing due two or three months after year-end depending on eligibility for the small business deduction. HST filers face monthly, quarterly, or annual deadlines based on their reporting period, and employers must file T4 slips by February 28, 2027. Missing any of these deadlines generally triggers a 5% late-filing penalty plus 1% per month, so marking them early is the single best protection against unnecessary CRA charges.
Why Early Planning Beats Last-Minute Scrambling
Most Canadian business owners do not miss tax deadlines because they are careless. They miss them because the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) assigns different deadlines to different structures, and nobody sends a reminder for the one you actually owe.
The cost of getting it wrong adds up fast. A 5% late-filing penalty, plus 1% per month on any unpaid balance, plus daily compound interest at the prescribed rate, can turn a small cash-flow problem into a four-figure CRA bill. Repeat offenders face double those penalties.
Planning your 2027 calendar now, in October 2026, means you build the year around your deadlines instead of chasing them. If you have already slipped behind on a prior year, our guide to what happens if you miss a self-employed tax deadline walks through your options.
Pick Your Path: Which Deadlines Apply to You
Your 2027 tax deadlines depend on how you earn income. Salaried employees file by April 30. Self-employed sole proprietors file by June 15 but pay by April 30. Incorporated businesses file their T2 within six months of fiscal year-end. Employers file T4 slips by February 28. HST registrants and instalment payers follow their own schedules on top of these.
Use the list below to identify every category that applies to you, then read only the sections that match. Most SME owners wear two or three of these hats at once.
- →Salaried individual with no side income: your T1 personal return is due April 30, 2027.
- →Self-employed sole proprietor or partner in a partnership: your T1 is due June 15, 2027, but any balance owing is due April 30, 2027.
- →Incorporated owner-manager: your T2 corporate return is due six months after your fiscal year-end, with payment due two or three months after year-end.
- →Employer with staff on payroll: T4 and T4A slips are due to CRA and to each employee by February 28, 2027.
- →HST or GST registrant: your filing frequency is monthly, quarterly, or annual based on your taxable supplies.
- →Taxpayer required to pay instalments: quarterly dates typically fall on March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15.
If you are not sure which of these categories you fall into, our tax and advisory services page outlines how we help owner-managers identify every obligation on one page.
Personal T1 Deadlines for Self-Employed Canadians
Self-employed Canadians have until June 15, 2027 to file their 2026 personal T1 return, but any tax balance owing is still due by April 30, 2027. CRA treats these as two separate deadlines, and interest begins accruing on May 1 even if the return itself is not yet due.
The April-versus-June split catches new sole proprietors every year. The rule exists because self-employed filers often need more time to finalize their business income, but CRA does not want to extend interest-free borrowing on taxes they already owe. The practical answer is to estimate your tax owing in April, pay it, and then file the complete return by June 15.
Interest on an unpaid balance compounds daily at the CRA prescribed rate, which is updated quarterly. If you expect a balance owing, remitting a reasonable estimate on April 30 generally protects you from both the late-filing penalty and most of the interest charges. Filing on time but underpaying only avoids the penalty; the interest still applies.
Your spouse or common-law partner shares the June 15 filing deadline if you are self-employed, even if their own income is salaried. This is a quiet rule that often surprises mixed-income couples.
Corporate T2 Deadlines by Fiscal Year-End
Corporations must file a T2 return within six months of their fiscal year-end. The balance owing is due two months after year-end for most corporations, or three months for Canadian-controlled private corporations (CCPCs) claiming the small business deduction. Fiscal year-end does not have to be December 31.
The small business deduction (SBD) lets Canadian-controlled private corporations pay a reduced federal tax rate of 9% on the first $500,000 of active business income earned in Canada. Qualifying CCPCs get an extra month to pay (three months after year-end instead of two) which can meaningfully help cash flow in the first quarter after books close.
Three worked examples make this concrete:
- →December 31, 2026 fiscal year-end: payment due February 28 or March 31, 2027 (depending on SBD eligibility); return due June 30, 2027.
- →March 31, 2027 fiscal year-end: payment due May 31 or June 30, 2027; return due September 30, 2027.
- →June 30, 2027 fiscal year-end: payment due August 31 or September 30, 2027; return due December 31, 2027.
A full breakdown of filing scenarios and penalty exposure sits in our T2 corporate tax return deadline guide, which Ontario SMEs often use as a yearly reference.
Sole Proprietor vs Corporation: Deadlines Side-by-Side
Owner-managers thinking about incorporation, or sole proprietors curious whether to move to a corporation in 2027, often ask the same question: how do the deadlines actually compare? The table below lines every obligation up side by side so you can see exactly where the two structures diverge.
| Obligation | Sole Proprietor | Incorporated (CCPC) |
|---|---|---|
| Personal T1 filing | June 15, 2027 | April 30, 2027 (owner) |
| Personal tax payment | April 30, 2027 | April 30, 2027 (owner) |
| T2 corporate return | N/A | 6 months after year-end |
| T2 balance owing | N/A | 2 or 3 months after year-end |
| HST / GST filing | If registered (annual / Q / M) | If registered (annual / Q / M) |
| T4 / T4A slips | If has employees, Feb 28 2027 | Feb 28, 2027 (always for owner) |
| Payroll remittance | If has employees | Monthly / quarterly / accelerated |
| Instalments | Quarterly if over $3,000 threshold | Monthly (quarterly if SBD-eligible) |
Two things stand out from the comparison. Corporations face more deadlines overall because they have both a corporate return and separate rules for owner-manager pay. Sole proprietors have fewer deadlines but tighter payment timing, since their business income flows through to their personal return with its April 30 payment date. Provincial tax rates also affect the math, which our overview of small business tax rates by province walks through.
HST / GST Filing Deadlines: Monthly, Quarterly & Annual
Your HST or GST filing frequency depends on your annual taxable supplies. Businesses under $1.5 million file annually by default, those between $1.5 million and $6 million file quarterly, and those over $6 million file monthly. Returns and any balance owing are generally due one month after the end of a monthly or quarterly reporting period, and three months after the end of an annual period.
You can voluntarily file more often than your default. Many small businesses on annual filing choose to switch to quarterly to smooth out their cash flow and avoid a single large HST payment at year-end. Freelancers crossing the $30,000 small-supplier threshold for the first time should also understand when freelancers must register for GST/HST before deciding on a reporting period.
| Annual Taxable Supplies | Default Reporting Period | Filing & Payment Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Up to $1.5 million | Annual (quarterly or monthly optional) | 3 months after fiscal year-end |
| $1.5 million to $6 million | Quarterly (monthly optional) | 1 month after quarter-end |
| Over $6 million | Monthly (mandatory) | 1 month after month-end |
Late HST filing triggers the same 5% plus 1% per month penalty structure as income tax, calculated on the net tax owing. One often-missed detail: a nil HST return is still required if you are registered, even if you had no taxable supplies in the period.
Payroll Remittance & T4 Deadlines for Employers
Employers must remit CPP, EI, and income tax source deductions to CRA based on their assigned remitter type. Regular remitters pay by the 15th of the following month. T4 and T4A slips are due to employees and to CRA by February 28, 2027. A Record of Employment (ROE) is generally due within five calendar days of an interruption in earnings.
CRA assigns one of four remitter types based on your average monthly withholding amount (AMWA) from two calendar years prior. New employers start as regular remitters and move up or down from there.
- →Quarterly remitters: pay by the 15th day of the month after each quarter.
- →Regular remitters: pay by the 15th of the following month.
- →Accelerated threshold 1: pay by the 25th of the same month and the 10th of the following month.
- →Accelerated threshold 2: pay within three business days of each pay date.
Our deep dive on CRA payroll remittance due dates explains how to confirm your current remitter type and what to do if CRA reclassifies you mid-year.
Instalment Payments: Do You Owe Them in 2027?
You generally owe personal tax instalments in 2027 if your net tax owing was more than $3,000 ($1,800 for Quebec residents) in both 2026 and either 2024 or 2025. Quarterly dates fall on March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15, 2027. Corporations typically pay monthly, with CCPCs claiming the SBD often eligible for quarterly instalments.
Many first-time self-employed filers receive an instalment reminder from CRA and assume it is optional. It is not. Skipping instalments triggers instalment interest charged at the prescribed rate, and in some cases a separate penalty if the shortfall is large. Our breakdown of CRA tax instalment dates covers how to calculate what you owe using the no-calculation, prior-year, or current-year option.
Your 2027 Deadline-Readiness Roadmap
Build your 2027 compliance calendar in six steps, starting now.
- 1October to November 2026Review your year-to-date books and estimate taxable income so you can plan year-end moves.
- 2December 2026Finalize bookkeeping, run a payroll reconciliation, and confirm your HST reporting period.
- 3January 2027Issue T4 and T4A slips in draft, review for errors, and process any year-end bonuses.
- 4February 2027File T4 and T4A slips by February 28; verify Q4 payroll remittance was received.
- 5March to April 2027Finalize personal T1 inputs, calculate first personal instalment, and pay any balance owing by April 30.
- 6May to June 2027File the self-employed T1 by June 15, review HST filings year-to-date, and schedule a mid-year sign-off meeting.
Walking through these steps with a qualified accountant means every deadline is on your calendar before it becomes urgent. Our tax and advisory services are built around this exact rhythm.
Common Mistakes That Trigger CRA Penalties
- →Confusing the April 30 payment deadline with the June 15 filing deadline for self-employed filers, and paying late as a result.
- →Meeting the six-month T2 filing deadline but missing the two-month or three-month payment deadline, which triggers interest from day one.
- →Ignoring instalment reminders and facing instalment interest the following spring.
- →Filing HST returns one month late because the one-month post-period rule is less familiar than the T1 schedule.
- →Missing the February 28 T4 slip deadline, which carries its own penalty of $10 per day per slip, up to a maximum.
- →Assuming no tax owing means no return is required; the CRA still charges a late-filing penalty on a nil balance in many cases.
- →Forgetting that spouses of self-employed Canadians share the June 15 filing deadline but not the April 30 payment deadline.
For the slip-specific penalty breakdown, see our note on T4 and T5 late filing penalties.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main 2027 tax deadlines for Canadian businesses?
If I'm self-employed, do I have to file by April 30 or June 15?
When is my corporate tax return due if my fiscal year ends December 31, 2026?
Do I need to pay tax instalments in 2027, and when are they due?
What is the deadline to file T4 and T4A slips for my employees?
How often do I have to file HST, monthly, quarterly, or annually?
What happens if I miss the deadline to file my corporate T2 return?
Is the deadline the same across Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec?
For more deadline guides, calculators, and planning articles, visit our tax insights library.
Plan Ahead with ClearWealth
Deadlines are planning milestones, not threats. Map your 2027 obligations with a specialist who builds every date into one calendar, so nothing surprises you.
Book a ConsultationSources & References
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Important dates for individuals and businesses
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Corporation income tax return (T2) filing
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Penalties and interest on corporate payments
- →Canada Revenue Agency, GST/HST reporting period assignment
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Payroll remitter types
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Tax instalments
- →Canada Revenue Agency, Small business deduction and corporation tax rates
- →Government of Canada, Income Tax Act
- →Government of Canada, Excise Tax Act
- →Revenu Quebec, Corporate income tax (CO-17) deadlines
