Personal tax deadline 2026
The date most Canadians need, plus the one exception that trips up self-employed filers every year.
Self-employed and behind? The return is a fixed fee, and the June filing date still carries interest from April.
Quick answer: Your T1 personal return and any balance owing are due April 30. If you or your spouse were self-employed during the year, you have until June 15 to file, but the balance is still due April 30. Filing late when you owe money costs 5% of the balance plus 1% per month, up to 12 months.
If you are self-employed the date is different, and so is the interest if you miss it. Self-employed returns, or ask about your own situation.
On this page
The two dates, and why the gap matters
Filing and paying are separate. The self-employed June 15 filing date does not extend the time to pay — interest runs from May 1 on anything unpaid, a common cause of CRA interest.
When April 30 falls on a weekend or public holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. The CRA treats a return as filed on time if it is received or postmarked by that date.
What late filing actually costs
| First time | Repeat within three years | |
|---|---|---|
| Base penalty | 5% of the balance | 10% |
| Each full month late | 1% | 2% |
| Capped at | 12 months | 20 months |
- If you owe nothing, there is no late-filing penalty. Filing late still delays benefits like the GST/HST credit and the Canada Child Benefit, which are calculated from your return.
- If you owe, the penalty is 5% of the balance plus 1% for each full month late, to a maximum of 12 months.
- Repeat late filing within the previous three years can double that to 10% plus 2% per month, up to 20 months.
- Interest is charged on both the unpaid tax and the penalty, compounded daily, and is not deductible.
The practical rule: file on time even when you cannot pay. The penalty is avoidable; the interest is not. Then arrange payment. See what the CRA will and will not do.
Instalments, if the CRA has asked for them
If you owe more than a threshold amount of tax two years running, the CRA will ask you to pay by quarterly instalment on March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15. Those dates are in our subscribable calendar.
If you are behind by more than one year
Several unfiled years is common and fixable. File oldest first so credits and carry-forwards flow through. For unreported income, the Voluntary Disclosures Program may give penalty relief if you come forward before the CRA contacts you. We handle catch-up personal filings at a fixed fee.
Subscribe to our Canadian tax deadline calendar — the fixed CRA dates land in your calendar every year with a reminder a week ahead.
Add the deadline calendarGeneral information current as of , not advice for your situation. Dates that fall on a weekend or public holiday move to the next business day — always confirm the current year. Please speak with a CPA about your circumstances.
When is my personal return due?
Enter the tax year and whether there was self-employment income. The date appears straight away.
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Runs in your browser; nothing you enter is sent anywhere. General information, not advice for your situation.
Add these deadlines to your calendar
Subscribe once and the fixed CRA dates appear in your calendar every year, each with a reminder a week ahead. No signup, nothing tracked.
How to add it — Google, Outlook, Apple
Google Calendar: Settings → Add calendar → From URL → paste https://www.everstonecpa.com/calendar/canadian-tax-deadlines.ics → Add calendar.
Outlook: Calendar → Add calendar → Subscribe from web → paste the same URL → name it “Tax deadlines” → Import.
Apple Calendar: File → New Calendar Subscription → paste the URL → set auto-refresh to weekly. On iPhone: Settings → Apps → Calendar → Accounts → Add Account → Other → Add Subscribed Calendar.
Covers the fixed calendar dates only. Your corporate T2 and balance-due dates depend on your fiscal year-end. Use the work out your T2 filing date for those.
