CRA Tax Filing Deadlines for 2026: Complete Calendar

Getting dates wrong is one of the most avoidable tax mistakes Canadians make. Here is a complete calendar of every significant CRA deadline for the 2025 tax year (the return you file in 2026) and the penalties for missing them.

T1 Personal Tax Return — April 30, 2026

The standard deadline for filing your 2025 T1 personal income tax return is:

Thursday, April 30, 2026

This applies to most individuals: employees, retirees, investors, and anyone whose income does not come primarily from self-employment.

If April 30 falls on a weekend or holiday, the CRA extends the deadline to the next business day. In 2026, April 30 is a Thursday, so the deadline stands.

Balance owing: Any tax you owe must also be paid by April 30, even if you qualify for a later filing deadline. Interest begins accruing on unpaid balances from May 1 onward at the CRA’s prescribed rate (currently around 7% annually, holding steady since mid-2025 — verify the current quarter’s rate on the CRA prescribed interest rates page, as it resets quarterly).

Self-Employed Filing Deadline — June 15, 2026

If you or your spouse or common-law partner carried on a business in 2025, you have until:

Monday, June 15, 2026

to file your return. This includes sole proprietors, freelancers, gig workers, and professionals with business income.

Important caveat: The extended filing deadline applies to filing only — not payment. Any balance owing must still be paid by April 30, 2026. Filing late but paying on time avoids late-filing penalties; missing the payment date triggers interest regardless of when you file.

RRSP Contribution Deadline — March 2, 2026

To claim an RRSP deduction on your 2025 tax return, contributions must be made by:

Monday, March 2, 2026

The RRSP window closes 60 days after December 31 of the tax year — the 60th day of 2026 is Sunday, March 1. The same weekend rollover that applies to the T1 deadline applies here, so the window runs to the next business day: the CRA’s own contribution-year table sets the second contribution period for the 2025 tax year as January 1, 2026 to March 2, 2026, and the CRA’s line 20800 page states that “March 2, 2026, is the deadline for contributing to your RRSP for amounts you want to deduct on your 2025 income tax and benefit return”.

Contributions made in that January-to-March window can be applied to either 2025 or 2026. You report them on Schedule 7 (RRSP, PRPP and SPP Unused Contributions, Transfers, and HBP or LLP Activities) and claim the amount you are actually deducting on line 20800 of your return — carrying the rest forward as undeducted contributions. Form T1028 is not where that choice is made: it is a statement the CRA sends you when your RRSP deduction limit changes.

Missing the March 2 deadline means the contribution counts toward 2026 instead. You do not lose the room — it carries forward — but you miss the 2025 deduction.

TFSA Contribution

There is no deadline for TFSA contributions — you can contribute at any time during the calendar year. However, re-contributing after a withdrawal must wait until January 1 of the following year (you do not get the room back in the same year). Over-contributions are penalized at 1% per month.

FHSA Contribution Deadline

First Home Savings Account contributions for the 2025 tax year must be made by:

December 31, 2025

Unlike RRSPs, FHSA contributions have no 60-day grace period into the following year. The 2025 annual limit is $8,000. Unused room from 2025 (up to $8,000) carries forward to 2026, but only if you opened your FHSA before December 31, 2025.

Tax Installment Deadlines (2026)

You have to pay tax installments for the current tax year if both of these apply: your net tax owing (federal and provincial, after withholdings and credits) for the current year is more than $3,000 ($1,800 for Quebec residents), and your net tax owing in either of the two previous years was also more than that amount. For the 2026 tax year, installments are due:

Self-employed individuals, investors with large dividend/capital gains income, and retirees drawing on RRSPs or RRIFs often need to make installments. The CRA sends installment reminders if you owed more than $3,000 in either of the two preceding years.

Missing an installment is not a crime, but you will owe installment interest on any shortfall. You can avoid interest entirely by using the “prior year” or “current year” method, paying exactly what the CRA asks in its reminder notices.

Corporate Tax Filing

Canadian-Controlled Private Corporations (CCPCs) must file a T2 corporate return within 6 months of their fiscal year-end. A corporation with a December 31, 2025 year-end has until June 30, 2026. Corporation tax is generally due 2 months after year-end (February 28 for a December 31 year-end). The balance is due 3 months after year-end (March 31) only if the corporation was a CCPC throughout the year, claimed the small business deduction in the current or previous year, and its previous-year taxable income did not exceed its business limit (with extra rules for associated corporations).

Penalties for Late Filing

Late-filing penalty

If you owe tax and file late, the penalty is:

5% of the balance owing + 1% for each additional full month late (up to 12 months)

If you were penalized for late filing in any of the three preceding years and the CRA sent you a demand to file, the rates double: 10% + 2% per month up to 20 months.

Failure to report income

If you fail to report an amount of $500 or more that you also failed to report ($500 or more) on a return for one of the three preceding years, the penalty is the lesser of 10% of the unreported amount and 50% of the difference between the understated tax (or overstated credits) and the tax withheld on that amount. A provincial or territorial penalty may also apply, except for Quebec residents, who pay only the federal penalty.

Interest on unpaid balances

The CRA’s prescribed interest rate is updated quarterly. Through 2025 and into 2026, the rate on overdue taxes has held at approximately 7% annually (compounded daily), significantly higher than savings account returns. Paying promptly is almost always financially better than letting a balance sit.

How to File

You can file your T1 via:

• NETFILE-certified software (most common — free options include Wealthsimple Tax)
• Paper return mailed to the appropriate tax centre (arrives more slowly; CRA recommends electronic filing)
• EFILE through an authorized tax preparer
• Auto-fill My Return in most software, pre-populating slips the CRA already has

Key Reminders

• File even if you owe nothing — many benefit payments (the Canada child benefit, the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit that replaced the GST/HST credit in July 2026, the Canada workers benefit) depend on having a filed return
• CRA’s “My Account” portal lets you check your RRSP room, benefit payment history, and installment obligations year-round
• Set up direct deposit to receive refunds and benefit payments faster

Sources

• CRA — Due dates for filing your return
• CRA — Income tax instalments for individuals
• CRA — Penalties and interest
• CRA — Line 20800, RRSP deduction
• CRA — Contribution year (RRSP contribution receipt return)