5 CRA Tax Deadlines for Small Businesses (Ottawa CPA Guide)
Ottawa CPA Majdi Ibrahim explains 5 CRA deadlines small businesses should know — and why due to file and due to pay are not always the same.
By Majdi Ibrahim, CPA | Majdi Ibrahim, CPA Professional Corporation | Ottawa, Ontario Running a small business in Ottawa means juggling a handful of recurring CRA deadlines — and missing one usually means a penalty, even if the actual tax owing is small. Here are the five that come up most often for incorporated business owners and self-employed Ottawa residents.
1. Personal Tax Filing Deadline — April 30 (June 15 if Self-Employed)
Most individuals need to file by April 30. If you're self-employed — or your spouse or common-law partner is — your filing deadline extends to June 15.
Here's the catch that trips people up: any balance owing is still due April 30, regardless of the June 15 filing extension. The extra time is for filing the return, not for paying what you owe. If you wait until June to file and you owe money, interest has been accumulating since May 1.
One small note: if any of these dates falls on a weekend or a CRA-recognized holiday, the deadline generally moves to the next business day — but the underlying dates above are the ones to plan around.
2. Corporate Tax Return (T2) — 6 Months to File, Earlier to Pay
Unlike personal taxes, corporate tax deadlines aren't tied to the calendar year — they're tied to your corporation's fiscal year-end, which you choose when you incorporate or shortly after.
The T2 corporate return is due six months after your fiscal year-end. So a corporation with a December 31 year-end has until June 30 to file.
But the balance owing is due earlier — generally two months after year-end for most corporations, though some eligible Canadian-controlled private corporations may qualify for a three-month balance-due date instead. Filing late and paying late are two different penalties, and the payment deadline comes first.
3. GST/HST Filing — Depends on Your Filing Frequency
If you're registered for GST/HST, your filing frequency — monthly, quarterly, or annual — was assigned based on your revenue, though smaller businesses can sometimes elect a more frequent schedule.
- Monthly filers: file and pay one month after the reporting period ends
- Quarterly filers: file and pay one month after the quarter ends
- Annual filers: generally file and pay three months after their fiscal year-end
There's one important exception to that last point, and it's a common source of confusion: self-employed individuals with a December 31 fiscal year-end are an exception to the "three months" rule. For this specific group, the GST/HST return is due June 15, but any amount owing is due April 30 — the same April 30 / June 15 split that applies to personal income tax.
If you're not sure which rule applies to you — the general three-month rule, or the June 15 / April 30 exception — it's worth checking. Assuming the wrong one is a common and avoidable mistake.
4. Payroll Remittances — Usually the 15th of the Following Month
If you run payroll — including paying yourself a salary through a corporation — source deductions such as income tax, CPP, and EI where applicable need to be remitted to CRA on a schedule CRA assigns to you, called your "remitter type."
Most small and new employers are regular monthly remitters, with remittances due by the 15th of the month following the pay period. Some very small employers may qualify for a less frequent quarterly schedule, while larger employers can have accelerated, more frequent remittance schedules. The correct deadline depends on which remitter type CRA has assigned to your business — it's worth confirming rather than assuming.
Beyond the deadline itself, it's worth knowing that payroll remittances are one of the few tax debts where directors can be held personally liable if they go unremitted. This is one area where falling behind has consequences beyond just penalties and interest.
5. Personal Tax Instalments — March 15, June 15, September 15, December 15
If you're self-employed, or your corporation pays you significant dividends without much tax withheld, you may be required to pay tax in quarterly instalments rather than one lump sum at filing time.
CRA generally requires instalments if your net tax owing exceeds $3,000 in the current year and in one of the two previous years. The due dates are the same four dates every year: March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15.
The most common surprise here: your first year of self-employment or significant dividend income usually doesn't trigger instalments because the prior year looked different — but the following year often does, sometimes arriving at the same time as a large balance owing from the first year. Two tax bills at once is a common — and avoidable — shock. And even if your return is filed perfectly on time, late or insufficient instalment payments can generate their own interest charges, separate from anything related to the return itself.
The Common Thread
Notice a pattern? In several of these cases, the payment deadline and the filing deadline aren't the same date. CRA is generally far more lenient about a late return, where the penalty is based on the amount owing, than about late payment, where interest accumulates daily from the original due date regardless of when you file.
If you only remember one thing from this list: when in doubt about when something is due, ask "due to file, or due to pay?" — they're not always the same answer.
Keep These Dates Off Your Mental To-Do List
A good bookkeeping and tax setup means these deadlines are tracked for you — not something you're trying to remember on top of running your business.
Majdi Ibrahim, CPA works with small business owners and self-employed individuals across Ottawa to keep these deadlines handled — so they're one less thing to think about.
👉Book a consultation at www.treehousecpa.com
This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute personalized tax advice. Deadlines and thresholds are subject to change. Please consult a CPA for advice specific to your situation.
