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Canada tax day for the 2025 return was April 30, 2026. That was the last day for most people to file and to pay any tax owing. The CRA hasn’t published 2026 return dates yet, as far as we found.
What were the tax day dates for 2025?
April 30, 2026 was the date that mattered for nearly everyone. If you or your spouse ran a business in 2025, you had until June 15, 2026 to file, but the CRA still wanted your payment on April 30. The filing window opened on February 23, 2026, when NETFILE started taking returns.
| Who | File by | Pay by |
|---|---|---|
| Most individuals | April 30, 2026 | April 30, 2026 |
| Self-employed, or spouse self-employed | June 15, 2026 | April 30, 2026 |
| Self-employed with tax shelter investments | April 30, 2026 | April 30, 2026 |
Those are the 2025 dates on the CRA’s due dates page, and they matter now mostly as a guide to what the next round is likely to look like, since nothing for 2026 has been published. If a date falls on a weekend or a holiday, the CRA counts your payment as on time on the first business day after it.
When is canada tax day for the 2026 return?
We don’t know yet, and the CRA hasn’t said. The pattern has held for years, so April 30, 2027 is a reasonable guess, and that day is a Friday. June 15, 2027 would fall on a Tuesday for business owners. But treat both as guesses until the CRA prints its own calendar.
Instalments have their own rhythm. If you’re on them, the payments fall on March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15, and the next one is December 15. Our tax instalments calculator puts $9,000 of expected tax into four payments of $2,250.00.
What does missing tax day cost?
Only a balance owing triggers the penalty. The CRA charges 5% of it, plus 1% for each full month you’re late, up to 12 months. If you were penalized in one of the last three years, the repeat rate is 10% plus 2% a month, up to 20 months. Interest compounds daily from the day after the due date.
Here’s a real-sized case. Say you have $80,000 of employment income in Ontario and $12,000 of tax withheld. The tax refund calculator shows $2,127.85 owing. File two full months late and the penalty is 7%, which is $148.95, before interest. File on time but pay late, and interest still runs from the day after the due date. We didn’t confirm any other charge for that case, so read your notice.
Don’t sit on it. The penalty keeps growing every month you wait, so it’s rarely worth the delay. File anyway, since a missing return can also hold up benefit payments such as the GST/HST credit.
How do you get ready before tax day?
Start with the slips. Gather your T4 and any bank or investment slips, and check your CRA account for copies before you file. Then estimate the bill so the payment doesn’t come as a surprise, and set money aside if you’re self-employed, because nobody withholds tax on your behalf during the year.
Mistakes around tax day
Thinking June 15 moves the payment. It doesn’t, and that catches self-employed people every year.
Waiting for a slip that never arrives. File with what you have, then amend.
Counting on a weekend date to move. The rule helps if it does, but pay early.
Guessing your balance. Run the numbers first: the income tax calculator gives an estimate in a minute, and the self-employed tax calculator adds CPP for business owners (but not EI or expenses).
Where do these dates come from?
The 2025 filing and payment dates, the weekend rule and the penalty rates come from Canada Revenue Agency pages, read in September 2026. The 2027 dates are our own weekday check, not an announcement. This site has no link with the CRA or any government body.
Frequently asked questions
When was tax day in Canada for 2025?
April 30, 2026 for most people, to file and to pay.
When is the deadline for self-employed people?
They had until June 15, 2026 to file the 2025 return, but any tax owing was still due April 30, 2026.
When is tax day for the 2026 return?
The CRA hasn't published it as far as we found. April 30, 2027 is the usual date and a Friday, but that's our guess.
What if the date is a weekend?
Your payment counts as on time if it arrives on the first business day after the due date.
What is the late-filing penalty?
5% of the balance owing plus 1% for each full month, up to 12 months, plus daily compound interest.
- How Canadian income tax works: brackets and credits
How federal and provincial Canadian income tax stack up, what marginal and average rates mean, and how credits and deductions change your bill
Information only. This page is general information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Tax-Services.ca is an independent publisher: we don't prepare or file tax returns or offer tax services, and we have no connection with the CRA, Revenu Québec, any government or any company named on this page. Check the figures that matter with an official source or a qualified professional.