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If you work in Quebec, you fill in two forms for your employer: the federal TD1 and Revenu Québec’s TP-1015.3-V. The CRA’s page says a Quebec resident completes the federal TD1 and the provincial form when claiming more than the basic personal amount. Skip them and your employer withholds tax using the basic amount only.
Why does a Quebec job need two forms?
Quebec collects its own income tax, so your pay stub has two tax lines to get right. The federal form tells your employer which federal credits you claim. The Quebec form does the same job for Revenu Québec. Your employer needs both to work out source deductions, and neither one replaces the other.
The forms don’t file your return. They only steer how much tax comes off each paycheque. Your real tax is settled when you file, so a wrong TD1 costs you a refund or a bill, not a penalty on the spot.
| Form | Issued by | What it does | When you hand it in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal TD1 | CRA | Sets federal credits for withholding | New job, or when your credits change |
| TP-1015.3-V, Source Deductions Return | Revenu Québec | Sets Quebec credits and deductions for withholding | Before your first pay, and within 15 days of a change that lowers your amounts |
When do you need to redo your TD1 in Quebec?
Not every year. The CRA says you don’t need a new TD1 each January unless your credit amounts change. Revenu Québec says the same about its form: yearly indexation doesn’t change your deduction code, so there’s nothing to redo.
A new form makes sense when something real changes. A new child, a partner who starts earning, a move into a disability credit, or a second job. With the Quebec form there’s a clock: you give your employer a corrected copy within 15 days of an event that reduces your amounts. If a change would raise your claim, hand in the new form early too, because your pay only follows the form you’ve filed.
What if you have two jobs?
Claim your personal credits once. On the federal TD1 the CRA tells you to tick the box for more than one employer and put 0 on line 13, leaving the credit lines blank on the second form. Otherwise both employers take the basic amount into account and you’d under-withhold all year.
The catch shows up in April. Two employers each withholding as if they were your only one can leave you short, because your combined pay lands you in a higher bracket than either paycheque suggests. If you ever fall behind, the tax credits calculator shows what your credits are worth (it covers federal credits only).
What does working in Quebec do to your paycheque?
Quebec residents get a federal abatement, a 16.5% reduction of federal tax for 2026 according to the payroll tables, because Quebec runs its own system. Quebec also has QPP and QPIP instead of CPP and the standard EI rate. Those differences are built into the take-home pay calculator.
Here’s how it plays out. On a $50,000 salary, our engine gives about $6,915 of income tax in Quebec and $3,795 of payroll contributions, leaving $39,290. The same salary in Ontario comes to $6,273 of income tax and $3,582 of contributions, leaving $40,145. These are estimates on the 2026 data we hold. Your own deduction code may shift the figures.
To see the full picture for your income, run the income tax calculator with Quebec selected. The payroll deductions calculator breaks out each deduction, which helps when your stub looks off.
What mistakes cause trouble with TD1 forms?
The common one is filling in only the federal form. Your employer then has nothing from Revenu Québec to go on. Another is claiming credits you don’t qualify for, since an inflated claim means too little tax comes off and you pay the gap later. A third is forgetting to update after a life change, then wondering why you owed in April.
Students and people with a small income sometimes ask whether they can avoid withholding altogether. Revenu Québec lets you ask for an exemption on its form if your total income for the year won’t pass the limit shown there. Only employment income qualifies. Read the lines on the form itself before you try it, because we haven’t confirmed the current figures.
Forget the rest. Two forms, one employer, done in the first week.
Where the numbers come from
Form rules come from the CRA’s page on filing Form TD1 and from Revenu Québec’s pages on the Source Deductions Return. The 16.5% abatement and the contribution figures come from the 2026 payroll data we hold for Quebec. Examples use our calculators and aren’t a payroll quote. We couldn’t confirm anything about penalties for a missing form, so we leave that out.
Frequently asked questions
Do I fill in a TD1 if I work in Quebec?
Yes. The CRA says Quebec residents complete the federal TD1 and the provincial TP-1015.3-V when they claim more than the basic personal amount.
Is there a separate Quebec TD1?
Not under that name. Revenu Québec's version is form TP-1015.3-V, the Source Deductions Return.
Do I redo my TD1 every year?
No, not unless your credit amounts change. Revenu Québec also says yearly indexation doesn't change your deduction code.
What happens if I don't give my employer a form?
Your employer deducts tax using only the basic amount, according to the CRA. You settle the difference when you file your return.
How fast must I report a change on the Quebec form?
Within 15 days of an event that reduces the amounts on your last copy and gives you a different deduction code.
All family and benefits calculators
- How to file your tax return in Canada: steps and dates
What to gather, when your return is due and how to file in Canada, from the first slip to the notice of assessment that closes the year
- Quebec income tax, QPP and QST in 2026
How Quebec income tax works in 2026: its own return and brackets, the federal abatement, QPP and QPIP contributions, QST, and calculators for Quebec
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.