Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
“IT return” isn’t an official term, so we’ve taken it to mean an income tax return, the T1 that most people file each spring. For 2025 income the deadline was April 30, 2026, and self-employed people had until June 15, 2026 to file (though any tax owing was still due April 30). For 2026 income, the usual dates are April 30, 2027 and June 15, 2027 for self-employed filers.
What is an IT return, and who has to file one?
It’s the yearly report of what you earned and what tax you’ve already paid. Employers send the CRA a T4 slip with your pay and deductions, and the return reconciles that against your real tax bill. Too much withheld means a refund. Too little means a balance to pay.
You may also want to file when you owe nothing. Benefits such as the Canada child benefit and the GST/HST credit are worked out from the return, and the CRA says it uses your net income for them. Skip the return and those payments can stall. That’s the quiet cost.
We didn’t find a single list of who must file on the pages we read, so check the CRA’s rules for your year before you decide to skip.
When is the deadline for an IT return?
| Item | Date for 2025 income |
|---|---|
| Earliest day to file online | February 23, 2026 |
| Filing deadline | April 30, 2026 |
| Filing deadline if you or your spouse were self-employed | June 15, 2026 |
| Payment deadline for everyone | April 30, 2026 |
The payment date is the one people miss. A June 15 filing date doesn’t push back when you pay. The CRA’s page lists April 30 as the payment deadline for all returns.
These are last season’s dates. Next year’s will be posted on the CRA’s get-ready page, so look there before you plan around them.
How much refund can you expect?
Here’s a plain case. You earn $60,000 from one job in Ontario, and your employer withheld $9,000 in income tax over the year. The tax refund calculator puts your income tax at $8,320.50, so you’d get back $679.50.
Flip it around. If only $8,000 had been withheld, the same return would leave $320.50 to pay by April 30. Same job, same pay, and the only thing that changed is how much the employer sent in during the year. That’s why a refund isn’t a bonus, and a balance owing isn’t a penalty. It’s just the true-up.
Notice the taxable income it shows, $59,435, is lower than $60,000. The $565 gap is the deduction the CRA allows for the added CPP contributions. It’s a real deduction, and the calculator applies it for you.
The same tax comes out of the income tax calculator, which also shows CPP and EI, $4,339.75 combined, and what’s left for you, $47,339.75. Credits that the tools don’t list, such as tuition or medical claims, can push your refund higher.
What should you gather before you file?
Start with documents that report income and deductions. The CRA tells filers to collect these first, then pick a way to file: tax software, SimpleFile, a paper return, a preparer or a community tax clinic.
- T4 slips from each employer
- Receipts for RRSP contributions, childcare, tuition and medical costs
- Last year’s notice of assessment, which carries figures you’ll reuse
- Your spouse’s net income, if you have one
Free help exists. The CRA runs a community volunteer income tax program, and it lists the eligibility rules itself. We left out income limits because the CRA’s own pages don’t agree with each other on the figures.
If you go the software route, pick a product from the CRA’s own list. The CRA’s tax software page explains how certified programs send a return electronically.
What if you miss the deadline?
File anyway, and file as soon as you can. The CRA’s first-time late-filing penalty is 5% of the balance owing plus 1% for each full month late, up to 12 months. Say you owe $1,000 and file three full months late: that’s 5% plus 3%, so 8%, or $80, before interest. If you were owed a refund, there’s no balance and so no penalty, but benefits can still stall until the return arrives.
Mistakes that slow an IT return down
Typing a slip box wrong is common, and so is forgetting a second T4 from a short job. Missing the RRSP slip costs you the deduction, which can be large. On $60,000 of pay in Ontario, a $5,000 RRSP contribution cuts tax by about $1,217 by our take-home pay calculator.
And if you work for yourself, don’t treat June 15 as a payment extension. If you have to pay in instalments, the tax installments calculator estimates them.
Our calculators cover the basic personal amount, CPP, EI and a few common credits. They won’t replace your return, and they can’t see your slips. At tax time, that last part is on you.
Our sources
Dates and the list of ways to file come from the CRA‘s get-ready-to-file page for the 2025 return. Tax figures come from the 2026 federal and Ontario data we checked on 29 September 2026. No government body has reviewed or endorsed what you read here.
Frequently asked questions
What is an IT return?
It isn't an official term. In Canada it usually means your yearly income tax return, the T1, which reports your income and settles your tax.
When was the deadline for the 2025 IT return?
April 30, 2026 for most people, and June 15, 2026 if you or your spouse were self-employed. Any tax owing was still due April 30.
When can I file online?
For 2025 income, the earliest online date was February 23, 2026. The CRA hasn't published 2026 dates yet.
Do I need to file if I owe nothing?
Often yes, because benefits like the Canada child benefit are based on your return. Check the CRA's rules for your year.
Where can I get free help?
The CRA runs community volunteer tax clinics. Check its page for who qualifies.
- 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