Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
To file business taxes online in Canada, use CRA-certified software or your CRA business account. Corporations must file the T2 return electronically for tax years starting after 2023, and GST/HST registrants must file electronically for periods ending in 2024 and later. Sole proprietors report business income on their personal return.
Which business returns go online?
Your set-up decides. A corporation files a T2. A sole proprietor adds Form T2125 to a personal return. Anyone registered for GST/HST files that separately, and anyone with staff files T4 slips. The dates below are for the 2025 tax year, and we couldn’t find the 2026 dates on a CRA page yet.
| Return | Due date |
|---|---|
| T2 corporation return | Six months after the tax year ends |
| Corporation tax balance | Two months after year end, or three for a CCPC that meets the small business conditions |
| Self-employed personal return (December year end) | 15 June 2026, with any balance due 30 April 2026 |
| GST/HST, monthly or quarterly filers | One month after the reporting period ends |
| GST/HST, annual filers | Three months after the period ends |
| T4 and T4A information returns | Last day of February after the calendar year |
How does a corporation file its T2 online?
You prepare it in CRA-certified software, because other programs may not meet the CRA’s specifications. Then you send it through the corporation internet filing service, through My Business Account, or through Represent a Client if an accountant does it for you.
Two small things trip people up. Certified T2 software asks for a NAICS code that describes what the business does, and the CRA carries the first year’s code forward. Pick it with care. And if you have election forms or certificates to send, the T2 Attach-a-doc service lets you send them within 24 hours of filing.
The exceptions to mandatory e-filing are few, for example insurance corporations and non-resident corporations. The CRA says returns that miss the electronic requirement face penalties. We didn’t confirm the amount, so read the CRA page if paper is your plan.
How do you file a GST/HST return online?
Log in to My Business Account (or Represent a Client) and use the built-in GST/HST NETFILE. You don’t need the access code that way. Certified accounting software and some Canadian banks also work. Charities and selected listed financial institutions are the exceptions to the electronic rule.
What should you have ready before you log in?
- Your business number and the tax year end date for the corporation, or your SIN for a sole proprietorship.
- Financial statements or a clean set of books, with income and expenses totalled for the year.
- Your CRA business account sign-in, or the certified software you chose, set up before the deadline week.
- Payroll and GST/HST records if they apply, so the numbers on each return agree with each other.
Picture Marcus, a sole proprietor in Moncton who does renovations. He fills in the T2125 with his personal return, files his GST/HST separately, and keeps a folder of invoices for each month. When tax time arrives in April, his numbers are already totalled. For a wider look at self-employed obligations, see our guide to self-employed taxes.
What does the tax come to?
Here’s a company case. An Ontario CCPC earns $100,000 of active business income in a calendar 2026 year. The corporate tax calculator shows $9,000 of federal tax and $2,696 of Ontario tax, so $11,696 or 11.7%, and $88,304 stays in the company. Ontario cut its small business rate on 1 July 2026, so that provincial figure is a blend and not a published rate. Treat it as an estimate.
The 9% federal figure matches the CRA’s corporation tax rates page, which gives 9% as the net rate for a CCPC claiming the small business deduction.
A sole proprietor is a different picture. On $50,000 of net business income in Ontario, the self-employed tax calculator gives $5,961.64 of income tax plus $5,533.50 of CPP, both halves. That’s $11,495.14, and $38,504.86 left. EI, GST/HST and instalments aren’t in that number.
If you pay staff, the payroll remittance calculator shows what to hold back and what you add on top.
What mistakes cost the most?
Mixing up filing and payment dates is the classic. A December self-employed year end gives you until 15 June to file, but 30 April to pay, so interest starts early. The same gap exists for a corporation: six months to file, two or three to pay.
A wrong NAICS code is a quiet one, since it follows you into later years. And keep your supporting documents for at least six years, because the CRA may ask for them.
Does an accountant have to do all this? No. Plenty of owners file their own T2 in certified software. But if the company has more than a simple year, that’s where paying for help earns its fee, and we can’t say what that fee is, because we couldn’t confirm any professional rates.
Sources, and how we checked them
The filing rules and due dates are from Canada Revenue Agency pages on T2 filing, GST/HST and 2026 tax deadlines, read in September 2026. The tax figures come from this site’s calculators, which use 2026 data. No government body has reviewed or endorsed what you read here.
Frequently asked questions
Do corporations have to file the T2 online?
For tax years starting after 2023, yes, with a few exceptions such as insurance and non-resident corporations.
Can I file my GST/HST return online?
Yes. Most registrants must. Use My Business Account, Represent a Client, GST/HST NETFILE, certified accounting software or a participating bank.
What software do I need for a T2?
CRA-certified tax software. Other programs may not meet the CRA's specifications.
How does a sole proprietor file business taxes?
You report business income and expenses on Form T2125 with your personal return. The filing date is 15 June for a December year end, but any balance is due 30 April.
Do I need an accountant to file online?
No. You can file yourself in certified software, or authorize a representative through Represent a Client.
- Self-employed taxes in Canada: income, CPP and GST
How tax works when you are self-employed in Canada: reporting income and expenses, paying both halves of CPP, instalments and when to register for GST