# Corporate filing and payment dates (T2)

> When a corporation's T2 return is due, when its tax has to be paid, how instalments work, and what happens if you're late.

- Web page: https://taxnotes.ca/guides/corporate-filing-dates/
- For: Corporations · Topic: Running a corporation
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-10

A corporation files its T2 return within six months after the end of its tax year, but the tax is due sooner: the balance is generally due two months after year-end (three months for many small Canadian-controlled private corporations), and most corporations also pay instalments during the year.

A corporation's tax year is its fiscal period, so every date below counts from your corporation's own year-end, not from December 31. The [T2 dates tool on the business hub](https://taxnotes.ca/business/) works them out for any year-end.

## Filing the return: six months after year-end

Every corporation resident in Canada has to file a T2 return for every tax year, even if it has no tax to pay or was inactive. The only exceptions are tax-exempt Crown corporations, Hutterite colonies and corporations that were registered charities all year.

- If the tax year ends on the last day of a month, the return is due by the last day of the sixth month after year-end. A March 31 year-end is due September 30; an August 31 year-end is due February 28.
- If the year ends on another day, the return is due on the same day of the sixth month after. A September 23 year-end is due March 23.
- If the due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday the CRA recognizes, the return is on time if the CRA receives it, or it's postmarked, by the next business day.

Most corporations, including every CCPC, have to file electronically or face a penalty. If you're owed a refund, you have to file within three years after the end of the tax year to get it.

## Paying the balance: two or three months after year-end

The balance of tax owing for the year is generally due two months after the end of the tax year. A corporation gets three months instead if all of these apply:

- it was a CCPC throughout the tax year,
- it's claiming the [small business deduction](https://taxnotes.ca/guides/small-business-deduction/) this year, or was allowed it the previous year, and
- its taxable income for the previous year was no more than its business limit for that year. If it's associated with other corporations, the group's combined taxable income for the previous year has to be within their combined business limits.

Filing later doesn't move the payment date: interest and penalties apply to late payments. A payment counts as made when the CRA receives it, not when you send it. If a payment due date falls on a weekend or holiday, you're on time if the CRA receives it by the next business day.

## Instalments during the year

Most corporations pay tax in monthly instalments. The first is due one month less a day after the tax year starts, and the rest on the same day of each following month.

An eligible small CCPC can pay quarterly instead. It must be a CCPC with a perfect compliance history, and, together with any associated corporations, its taxable income and its taxable capital employed in Canada must be within set limits for the current or previous year.

You don't have to pay instalments:

- for the first tax year after incorporation (any tax is still due on the balance-due day),
- if the tax payable for the current or the previous year is $3,000 or less, or
- for a tax year shorter than one month (one quarter for an eligible small CCPC).

Provincial and territorial corporate tax is included in the instalments, except Alberta and Quebec tax.

The CRA charges interest on late or short instalments, and a penalty can apply when that interest is large. If you base your instalments on a previous year's tax and pay the right amounts on time, you won't be charged instalment interest even if you owe a balance at year-end.

## If you file late

The late-filing penalty is 5% of the tax unpaid at the filing deadline, plus 1% of that unpaid tax for each complete month the return is late, up to 12 months. If the CRA demanded the return and also charged a late-filing penalty in any of the three previous years, it's 10% plus 2% a month, up to 20 months. The CRA can cancel or waive penalties and interest in some cases when circumstances beyond your control prevented you from meeting your obligations.

## After you file

- **Reassessments:** the CRA can usually reassess within three years of the original notice of assessment for a corporation that was a CCPC at year-end, or four years otherwise.
- **Objections:** you have 90 days from the date of a notice of assessment or reassessment to file a formal objection.
- **Records:** keep your business records for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to.

## Quick reference

| Tax year-end | T2 return due | Balance due (2 months / 3 months) |
|---|---|---|
| March 31 | September 30 | May 31 / June 30 |
| June 30 | December 31 | August 31 / September 30 |
| September 30 | March 31 | November 30 / December 31 |
| December 31 | June 30 | End of February / March 31 |

## What to do

- Put the balance-due day, not just the filing deadline, in your calendar.
- File on time even when you can't pay in full: the penalty grows each month the return is late.

## Sources

1. [When to file your corporation income tax return](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/corporations/corporation-income-tax-return/when-file-your-corporation-income-tax-return.html) (canada.ca)
2. [Due dates for payments – Corporate income tax payments](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/corporations/corporation-payments/paying-instalments/instalment-dates.html) (canada.ca)
3. [Who has to pay in instalments – Corporate income tax payments](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/corporations/corporation-payments/paying-instalments/instalment-requirements.html) (canada.ca)
4. [T4012 T2 Corporation – Income Tax Guide: Before you start](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/t4012/t2-corporation-income-tax-guide-before-you-start.html) (canada.ca)
5. [Important dates for corporations](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/important-dates-businesses/important-dates-corporations.html) (canada.ca)

Tax figures in this guide come from the TaxNotes.ca rates tables (https://taxnotes.ca/rates/), which cite the Canada Revenue Agency and, for Quebec, Revenu Québec.

Last reviewed: October 10, 2026

How to cite: "Corporate filing and payment dates (T2)", TaxNotes.ca, last reviewed 2026-10-10, https://taxnotes.ca/guides/corporate-filing-dates/. For a figure or rule, also cite the official source listed above.

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