Every incorporated business in Canada has to file a T2 return, whether or not it made money and whether or not it traded at all. We prepare the return, the schedules that go with it and the financial statements behind it, file it with the CRA, and tell you what is payable and when.
If you are behind — one year, or several — that is ordinary work here and the first thing to say is that it is fixable. Tell us the year end and the state of the books and we will tell you plainly what it involves.
What this includes
- The T2 return and its schedules, prepared from your books
- Year-end financial statements and the GIFI schedules the CRA wants with them
- Capital cost allowance, the small business deduction and the other claims your company is entitled to
- Returns for earlier years that were never filed, dealt with in order
- A clear note of what is payable, and the date the interest starts running from
- Filing by the CRA's own channels, and a copy of everything for your records
The two dates that matter, and they are not the same
The filing deadline and the payment deadline are different, and the one people miss is the payment one. A corporation's return is due six months after its year end. The tax itself is generally due two months after the year end — three for some Canadian-controlled private corporations that meet the conditions — so interest can be running for months on a return that is not even late yet.
We work the numbers early enough for you to know what is payable before that date, rather than finding out when the return is filed.
If your books are not ready
Most T2 work starts with bookkeeping that needs finishing. We can take that on as well — see bookkeeping — or work from whatever your bookkeeper gives us. Either way we reconcile before we file, because a return built on books that do not balance is a reassessment waiting to happen.
Who this is for
Owner-managed Canadian corporations: trades and construction, professional practices, consultants who have incorporated, real estate holding companies, retail and food service, transport. Most of our clients are the only person in the company, or one of two or three.
Questions we are asked about this
When is a T2 corporate tax return due in Canada?
A T2 return is generally due six months after the end of the corporation's fiscal year. The tax owing is due earlier — usually two months after the year end, or three months for some Canadian-controlled private corporations that meet the conditions. Interest runs from the payment date, not the filing date.
Do I have to file a T2 if the company had no income?
Yes. A Canadian corporation generally has to file a T2 for every tax year, including years with no activity and no income. A dormant company that never files still builds up filing obligations, and the CRA can assess penalties for the missed returns.
Can you file corporate returns that are years late?
Yes, and it is one of the commonest reasons a business calls us. We work through the outstanding years in order, file them, and deal with the penalty and interest position. Where there is a case to make for relief, we make it.
Do you need my books in a particular software?
No. We work from whatever you have, whether that is accounting software, spreadsheets or a box of paperwork. If the books need finishing before the return can be prepared, we will tell you that at the start rather than at the end.
Worth reading
- How to get a web access code for a T2 return
- T2 corporate tax return deadlines
- Canadian corporate tax rates explained
Where we work
We are based in Scarborough and act for clients across Toronto and the GTA in person — see accountant in Scarborough and small business accountant in Toronto — and everywhere else in Canada by email and video call.
Our other services
Personal Tax Returns (T1) · Trust Returns (T3) · HST and GST Filing · Bookkeeping · Payroll · CRA Audits and Disputes · Financial Statements · Tax Planning · Incorporation and Business Setup · Estate and Succession Planning · Cross-Border Tax
Our office
ClearWealth Accounting Advisors
1457 McCowan Rd, Suite 202
Toronto, Ontario M1S 5K7
Get directions
Open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Phone: (437) 290-5117
Email: info@clearwealth.tax
