When is the deadline to file my client's SR&ED claim, and what happens if we miss it?
For a December 31, 2025 year end, the SR&ED filing deadline is June 30, 2027: Form T661 and Schedule 31 are due 12 months after the T2 filing due date, so 18 months after year end. The CRA can't extend it. A T661 filed late means no SR&ED deduction and no investment tax credit.
SR&ED deadlines for current year ends
A corporation has until 12 months after its T2 filing due date to file the SR&ED forms, and since the T2 is due six months after year end, that's 18 months after the end of the tax year canada.ca. The rule is in subsection 37(11) of the Income Tax Act for the expenditures
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca, and in paragraph (m) of the "investment tax credit" definition in subsection 127(9) for the credit
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca.
| Tax year end | T2 filing due date | SR&ED reporting deadline | Status at October 14, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 31, 2024 | Jun 30, 2025 | Jun 30, 2026 | Passed |
| Mar 31, 2025 | Sep 30, 2025 | Oct 1, 2026 (Sep 30 is a CRA holiday) | Passed |
| Jun 30, 2025 | Dec 31, 2025 | Dec 31, 2026 | Open, next one due |
| Sep 30, 2025 | Mar 31, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | Open |
| Dec 31, 2025 | Jun 30, 2026 | Jun 30, 2027 | Open |
| Feb 28, 2026 | Aug 31, 2026 | Aug 31, 2027 | Open |
The deadline lands on the same day of the month, 12 months after the return's due date, so a February 28 year end runs to August 31 of the following year canada.ca. When it falls on a weekend or a CRA holiday, the claim is on time if the CRA receives it, or it's postmarked, by the next business day. September 30, 2026 was the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a holiday the CRA recognizes
canada.ca. The 2027 dates in the table fall on weekdays outside the holidays the CRA recognized in 2026.
The clock runs from the filing due date, not from the day the T2 actually went in. For the T2 date itself, see the T2 filing deadline.
What has to be on file by the deadline
Two forms carry the claim. Form T661 supports the expenditures, and Schedule 31 (T2SCH31) supports the investment tax credit, with Part 12 showing how the credit was deducted, carried back or refunded canada.ca. An individual or a trust uses Form T2038(IND) in place of Schedule 31.
| Form T661 part | Needed by the deadline? |
|---|---|
| Part 1, general information | Yes |
| Part 2, project information (one per project) | Yes, for every project claimed |
| Part 3, expenditure calculation | Yes |
| Part 6, project costs for all projects | Yes |
| Part 9, claim preparer information | No, but missing or wrong details risk a $1,000 penalty |
You can submit Part 2 for only the 20 largest projects, but you must keep a complete Part 2 on file for every project and hand it over if the CRA asks canada.ca. An estimate, a partly finished claim or a letter saying you intend to file doesn't meet the requirement.
Use the current form. The CRA updated Form T661 on May 15, 2026, adding lines for capital expenditures on property acquired after December 15, 2024 canada.ca, and the 2026 version is on the form page
canada.ca.
What a late or incomplete form costs
If the T661 isn't filed by the deadline, subsection 37(12) deems the spending not to be SR&ED at all, and missing prescribed information for an expenditure blocks its deduction under subsection 37(11.1) laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The CRA says it can't by law allow extra time
canada.ca.
| What reached the CRA by the deadline | Result |
|---|---|
| T661 and Schedule 31, complete | SR&ED deduction and the credit |
| T661 only, Schedule 31 late | Deduction allowed, no investment tax credit |
| Schedule 31 only, T661 late | No SR&ED treatment and no credit |
| Part 2 missing for some projects | Those projects and their costs are denied, the rest stand |
| Everything except Part 9 | Claim stands, $1,000 penalty possible |
A late T661 doesn't erase the costs. The CRA processes the return without the SR&ED rules, so the spending is treated under the ordinary provisions of the Act canada.ca. The claimant and the preparer are jointly and severally liable for the $1,000 Part 9 penalty.
Worked example: adding a claim to a T2 already filed
Your client is a CCPC with a December 31, 2025 year end. Its T2 went in on June 30, 2026 with no SR&ED claim. It has until June 30, 2027 to file a request for reassessment with Form T661 and Schedule 31 attached canada.ca. The usual reassessment window of three or four years doesn't help here, because SR&ED changes stop at the reporting deadline. More on that window is on the CRA reassessment period page.
Aim for April 1, 2027. The CRA says filing at least 90 days before the deadline gives it time to review the claim and flag gaps while you can still fix them, and June 30, 2027 minus 90 days is April 1, 2027. A gap flagged after June 30 can no longer be fixed.
Now say the claim covers 15 projects and $400,000 of qualified expenditures, but Part 2 reaches the CRA for only 10 of them by June 30, 2027. The CRA denies the five missing projects, not the whole claim canada.ca. If those five carried $120,000, then $280,000 survives. At the 35% enhanced rate
canada.ca, that's $98,000 of credit instead of $140,000, so the late Part 2 forms cost $42,000. For the rates and limits, see the SR&ED tax credit page.
Individuals, trusts, partnerships and nonprofit SR&ED corporations
The same 12 months apply to every claimant, but they hang off a different return canada.ca.
| Claimant | Return due | SR&ED reporting deadline | CRA example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporation | 6 months after year end | 18 months after year end | Mar 31, 2022 year end, deadline Sep 30, 2023 |
| Individual with a business | June 15 of the next year | 17½ months after year end | 2023 tax year, deadline Jun 15, 2025 |
| Trust | 90 days after year end | Generally 15 months after year end | Dec 31, 2023 year end, deadline Mar 30, 2025 |
| Nonprofit SR&ED corporation | 6 months after year end | The return's filing due date | No credit available |
A partnership files its T661 with the partnership return, no later than 12 months after the earliest filing due date of its members for that fiscal period. Each member then claims its share of the credit on its own Schedule 31 or T2038(IND) by its own deadline canada.ca. In the CRA's example, a December 31, 2023 partnership year gives a T661 deadline of June 15, 2025, an individual member the same date, and a corporate member September 30, 2025.
Sources
Can the CRA give my client more time if we ask?
No. The CRA says it can't by law allow additional time once the reporting deadline passes, and it notifies the claimant in writing that the claim wasn't accepted canada.ca. A letter announcing an intent to file doesn't hold the date.
Does filing the T2 late push the SR&ED deadline back?
No. Subsection 37(11) counts 12 months from the filing due date, not from the date the return was filed laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The SR&ED forms can be filed before the return and still meet the deadline, though the CRA won't process the claim until the return arrives
canada.ca.
Can I add projects while the claim is under review?
Only before the deadline. Projects or expenditures added after it aren't considered, and you can't swap in new expenditures to replace ones the reviewer disallowed canada.ca.
When does the CRA treat a claim filed over the internet as received?
On the date Corporation Internet Filing issues the confirmation number. A mailed or couriered claim counts on its postmark date, and a hand delivered claim on the day it's delivered canada.ca.
General information for the tax year shown, not advice for a specific client. Confirm the facts before you file or remit.