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T2 deadline · 2026

T2 corporate tax deadline 2026

Reviewed by EverStone CPA · July 2026

Corporate deadlines are not calendar dates — they run from your fiscal year-end. Here is how to find yours, and the payment date that comes first.

Quick answer: Your T2 return is due six months after your fiscal year-end. The tax owing is due earlier — three months after year-end for a CCPC claiming the small business deduction, two months for other corporations. A December 31 year-end means the balance is due March 31 and the return June 30.

A corporation’s deadlines are durations measured from its own fiscal year end rather than fixed calendar dates — the balance owing falls due two or three months after it and the return six months after it — which is why the expensive deadline arrives first and interest can be running months before the return is even due
Both corporate deadlines are measured from your own year end.

Your dates depend entirely on your year-end.

Calculate my exact T2 dates

Two deadlines, and the expensive one comes first

This is the single most common corporate tax mistake we see: the owner marks the six-month filing date on the calendar and pays then. But interest on the balance started running months earlier, at the CRA's prescribed rate, compounded daily and not deductible. Filing on time and paying late still costs money. Knowing the number early helps: the Estimate your corporate tax gives a working figure well before the balance is due.

Fiscal year-endBalance due (CCPC w/ SBD)T2 filing due
December 31March 31June 30
March 31June 30September 30
June 30September 30December 31
September 30December 31March 31

What late filing costs a corporation

The late-filing penalty is 5% of the unpaid balance plus 1% for every complete month the return is late, to a maximum of 12 months — so 17% at the one-year mark. For a corporation the CRA has already demanded a return from, and which filed late in any of the three preceding years, it doubles to 10% plus 2% per month for up to 20 months. Interest applies on top of both.

Filing a nil or loss-year return still matters: the CRA expects a T2 from every Canadian corporation every year, whether or not it earned anything.

Instalments run alongside all of this

If your net federal tax owing exceeded $3,000 in the current year or either of the two prior years, monthly or quarterly instalments are generally required. A corporation is exempt in its first tax year — which is exactly why year two feels like a cash-flow shock. Check whether instalments apply to you

Related

The full penalty breakdown · Choosing your fiscal year-end · We file T2 returns at a fixed fee

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General information current as of July 2026, 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.

Common questions

T2 corporate deadline FAQ

When is the T2 corporate tax return due?+
Six months after the corporation’s fiscal year-end. For a December 31 year-end, the T2 is due June 30 of the following year.
When is corporate tax actually due?+
Two or three months after year-end, depending on the corporation. A Canadian-controlled private corporation claiming the small business deduction generally gets three months; other corporations get two. This is earlier than the filing deadline.
What is the penalty for filing a T2 late?+
5% of the unpaid balance plus 1% for each complete month late, up to 12 months. For a repeat late filer that the CRA has demanded a return from, it doubles to 10% plus 2% per month for up to 20 months.
Do I have to file a T2 if the corporation had no income?+
Yes. Every Canadian corporation must file a T2 for every tax year, including nil and loss years. Not filing starts the penalty and compliance clock even when no tax is owing.
What happens if my corporation has a short fiscal year?+
The deadlines run from your actual year-end date, not from a full twelve months, so a corporation that incorporates mid-year and picks an early first year-end can have a T2 due much sooner than expected. Amalgamations and wind-ups create short years too. Confirm the year-end CRA has on file before you diarise anything, because an assumed December 31 is a common and costly error.
Can I file the T2 late if I have already paid what I owe?+
You can, but you should not. The late-filing penalty is calculated on the tax unpaid at the due date, so paying in full first does reduce it — often to nothing. What paying does not protect is everything else that depends on filing on time, including certain elections and claims. Treat the filing date and the payment date as two separate obligations.
Do I still file if the corporation was dormant all year?+
Yes. A T2 is required for every fiscal year a corporation exists, whether or not it earned a dollar, and the return remains due on the normal schedule. Owners who let a dormant company go unfiled accumulate years of outstanding returns that all have to be caught up before the corporation can be cleanly dissolved. Filing a nil return each year is far simpler.

Filing on time still leaves the balance owing. If the corporation cannot cover it, arranging payment terms with CRA costs considerably less than letting arrears interest run.

Related reading

Guides that go deeper on what this page covers.

The 2026 CPP, CPP2 and EI figuresFor 2026 the year’s maximum pensionable earnings is $74,600 and the CPP contribution rate is 5.95%, giving a maximum contribution of $4,230.45 each for… How much does an accountant cost in BC? (2026 fee guide)What does an accountant cost in BC in 2026? Real fee ranges for T2, T1, bookkeeping and monthly packages — plus fixed-fee vs hourly explained. Corporate tax accountant for Aldergrove corporationsFirst and subsequent T2 returns for newly incorporated Aldergrove businesses — opening balances, year-end choice and shareholder accounts, at a fixed fee. Brackets and credits were indexed by 2.0% federally, 2.2% in BCThe federal indexing factor for 1 January 2026 is 2.0%. How much does a virtual accountant cost in Canada? (2026)What does a small-business accountant cost in Canada in 2026? Honest fixed-fee ranges for corporate tax, bookkeeping and personal tax. Amalgamation vs wind-up: which ends the tax yearRelated reading

Behind, or cutting it close?

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Covers the fixed calendar dates only. Your corporate T2 and balance-due dates depend on your fiscal year-end — use the our T2 deadline tool for those.

The deadline is the last step of a longer process — the corporate year end hub covers what to decide before the year closes and what happens after.