How to pay corporate tax: online with the BN, and no T7DR voucher

Which payment methods work for a T2 balance, and when does each count as paid?

The corporation has to make sure the CRA receives the payment on or before the due date, and a postdated cheque dated after that date is late canada.ca. So the method matters less than the day it counts as paid.

For online banking, the CRA gives example payee names: Corporation Tax Payments (TXINS) for instalments and Corporation Income Tax Balance Due (TXBAL) for the balance. Each bank words them a little differently, and the CRA account number is the 15 digit business number canada.ca. My Payment accepts "Corporation income tax (T2)" and T2 interim (instalment) payments, but your client's bank may cap the transaction canada.ca.

A PAD's first payment has to fall at least 5 business days after the agreement is created, and changes or skips need the same notice canada.ca. The CRA doesn't take credit cards directly; only PaySimply and Plastiq accept them, for a fee canada.ca. At a bank counter, the payment counts the day the teller date stamps it, and the voucher has to be an original canada.ca. Cheques go to Canada Revenue Agency, PO Box 3800 STN A, Sudbury ON P3A 0C3, with the business number and program account in the memo line canada.ca. A wire needs authorization number 12226367 and the full CRA account number in the description field, with charges set to OUR so the bank's fee doesn't short the payment canada.ca.

When does a corporation need a voucher, and which one?

Only for paper. A voucher is needed to pay in person at a bank or to mail a cheque, and banks don't accept photocopied vouchers canada.ca. The T7DR, the Amount Owing Remittance Voucher, is listed under the CRA's individual vouchers, not its business ones canada.ca. A corporation paying T2 tax on paper uses one of these:

The business vouchers are personalized. Order them in My Business Account, in Represent a Client or at 1-800-959-5525, and allow 10 to 14 business days for the mail canada.ca. On a voucher that isn't personalized, enter all 15 digits of the business number, and put the tax year end in the remittance period ending box as year, month and day.

A cheque without a voucher still works if the memo line or a separate sheet carries the full CRA account number and where to apply the money; leave it off and the payment is delayed canada.ca.

Which corporate payments must be electronic?

Any payment or remittance to the Receiver General over $10,000 must be made as an electronic payment, unless the payer cannot reasonably pay that way. That's subsection 160.5(2) of the Income Tax Act, and the same section defines an electronic payment as one made through electronic services offered by a designated financial institution, or by electronic means the Minister specifies laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The test is the amount of each payment, so a $42,000 balance is caught.

The penalty is $100 for each failure under subsection 162(7.4) laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. It's small next to the filing side: a corporation that has to file its T2 electronically and files on paper faces $1,000 under subsection 162(7.2). The filing rules are on the CRA penalty for not filing electronically.

A mailed cheque is the plain case that isn't electronic, and the CRA's cheque page says it strongly encourages electronic payment anyway canada.ca. For a balance over $10,000, use online banking, My Payment or a PAD.

When is an August 31, 2026 year end balance due, and what is the safe day to pay?

Your client's tax year ended August 31, 2026, and it owes $42,000 after instalments. The balance is due two months after year end, or three months for a CCPC that meets the small business deduction and taxable income tests canada.ca. A payment due on a Saturday, Sunday or CRA holiday is on time if the CRA receives it by the next business day canada.ca.

Online banking counts as paid the same or the next business day depending on the bank, so paying the Friday before covers both cases. If the CCPC pays on Thursday, December 10 instead, the balance sits unpaid for 10 days at the 7% rate for October to December 2026 canada.ca. Compounded daily, that's $42,000 × ((1 + 0.07 ÷ 365)^10 − 1) = $80.62. Mailing a cheque on time would add a $100 penalty instead.

The due date table for other year ends is on the T2 filing deadline page, and the rate itself on the CRA interest rate on overdue taxes.

How do instalments fit with the balance payment?

Instalments go to the instalment account for the current year, the balance to the year that has ended. Online banking separates them by payee (TXINS for instalments, TXBAL for the balance) canada.ca. For a PAD series, complete the instalments calculator in My Business Account, select Proceed to pay, then Schedule a series of payments, with the first one at least 5 business days before the due date canada.ca.

The CRA doesn't send corporations instalment reminders, and a corporation with taxable income in Alberta or Quebec pays that provincial tax directly to the province canada.ca. Who pays instalments and how much is on corporate tax instalments, and the cost of a short one on instalment interest.

How do you confirm the payment landed in the right account?

Confirm the payment in My Business Account under View and pay account balance. Allow 3 business days for an online payment and 10 business days plus mailing time for a cheque before calling the CRA at 1-800-959-5525 canada.ca.

A payment that landed in the wrong period or account can be moved. The owner asks through the Enquiries service in My Business Account, a representative uses Represent a Client, or you write to the tax centre's Corporation Services section. Payments can't be transferred once the return has been assessed canada.ca.

Two more traps: a cheque the bank doesn't honour, including one your client stopped, carries an administrative fee, and an advance deposit against an expected reassessment goes in on RC159 marked as an advance deposit with each tax year end and amount canada.ca. If the corporation can't pay in full, see the CRA payment arrangement page.