When is my client's T2 return due, and when does the corporation have to pay the tax?
A T2 return is due six months after the corporation's tax year ends, so a December 31, 2025 year end was due June 30, 2026. A year ending on a month's last day files by the last day of the sixth month. Tax is due sooner: two months after year end, or three for an eligible CCPC.
Due dates for common 2025 and 2026 year ends
The CRA's rule is short: file the T2 within six months of the end of each tax year, and the tax year is the corporation's fiscal period canada.ca. The statute says the same thing in paragraph 150(1)(a) of the Income Tax Act
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The dates below already apply the weekend and holiday shift.
| Tax year end | T2 due | Balance due, 2 months | Balance due, 3 months (eligible CCPC) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 31, 2025 | Jun 30, 2026 | Mar 2, 2026 (Feb 28 is a Saturday) | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Jan 31, 2026 | Jul 31, 2026 | Mar 31, 2026 | Apr 30, 2026 |
| Mar 31, 2026 | Oct 1, 2026 (Sep 30 is a CRA holiday) | Jun 1, 2026 (May 31 is a Sunday) | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Jun 30, 2026 | Dec 31, 2026 | Aug 31, 2026 | Oct 1, 2026 (Sep 30 is a CRA holiday) |
| Aug 31, 2026 | Mar 1, 2027 (Feb 28 is a Sunday) | Nov 2, 2026 (Oct 31 is a Saturday) | Nov 30, 2026 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | Apr 30, 2027 | Dec 31, 2026 | Feb 1, 2027 (Jan 31 is a Sunday) |
| Dec 31, 2026 | Jun 30, 2027 | Mar 1, 2027 (Feb 28 is a Sunday) | Mar 31, 2027 |
September 30, 2026 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and it's on the list of public holidays the CRA recognizes canada.ca. The 2027 dates in the table fall on weekdays outside the holidays the CRA recognized in 2026.
The month end rule, and where it stops
When the tax year ends on the last day of a month, the return is due on the last day of the sixth month after it. When the year ends on any other day, the return is due on the same day of the sixth month canada.ca. The CRA's own examples: a March 31 year end files by September 30, August 31 by February 28, September 23 by March 23, and October 2 by April 2.
So a June 30 year end files by December 31, not December 30. An August 31, 2027 year end files by February 29, 2028, because 2028 is a leap year and the sixth month's last day moves with it.
The balance due date is where people slip. The CRA states the month end rule for the return, but its balance due page only says two or three months after the end of the tax year canada.ca. Section 28 of the Interpretation Act counts a period of months to the day with the same calendar number, or the month's last day if that number doesn't exist
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. On that count, two months after June 30 is August 30, not August 31. For 2026 it doesn't matter, since August 30 is a Sunday. In other years, have a June 30 or September 30 year end client pay by the 30th.
Weekends, CRA holidays and electronic filing
When a filing due date lands on a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday the CRA recognizes, the return is on time if the CRA receives it, or it's postmarked, on or before the next business day canada.ca. A payment due on one of those days is on time if the CRA receives it by the next business day
canada.ca.
The CRA's holiday list for 2026 has 13 dates, two of them regional: Saint Jean Baptiste Day counts only in Quebec, and the Civic Holiday everywhere except Quebec canada.ca. Some provinces and territories have extra holidays, so a due date can vary by location.
The postmark rule rarely helps now. Corporations have to file electronically, except insurance corporations, corporations not resident in Canada, corporations reporting in a functional currency and corporations exempt from tax under section 149 canada.ca. A corporation that should file electronically and doesn't faces a $1,000 penalty under subsection 162(7.2).
Two months or three: the balance due test
Generally, corporate tax is due two months after the end of the tax year. Part I, VI, VI.1 and XIII.1 tax gets three months when conditions 1 and 2 are both met, plus either 3 or 4 canada.ca. Part III and Part XII.6 tax always stays at two months.
| Condition | What it requires |
|---|---|
| 1 | The corporation is a CCPC throughout the tax year |
| 2 | It claimed the small business deduction for the current or the previous tax year |
| 3 (not associated) | Its taxable income for the previous tax year doesn't exceed its business limit |
| 4 (associated) | The associated group's combined taxable income for their last tax years ending in the previous calendar year doesn't exceed their combined business limits |
Previous year taxable income here is measured before specified future tax consequences such as a loss carryback, so carrying a loss back later doesn't rescue a missed test. For a group, see the rules on associated corporations.
Worked example: your client is a CCPC with a March 31, 2026 year end, not associated with anyone, and it claimed the small business deduction last year. Its taxable income for the year ended March 31, 2025 was $380,000, below the $500,000 business limit for a corporation that isn't associated canada.ca. It passes, so the balance for 2026 was due June 30, 2026, and the T2 by October 1, 2026. Had last year's taxable income been $620,000, the balance would have been due June 1, 2026 (May 31 was a Sunday).
A short previous year changes the math. If that year was shorter than 51 weeks, its business limit is prorated by days over 365. A first year of 273 days gets $500,000 × 273 ÷ 365 = $373,972.60, so $380,000 of taxable income in that year would fail condition 3 and push the balance back to two months.
What filing late costs
The late filing penalty is 5% of the tax unpaid at the filing due date, plus 1% of that unpaid tax for each complete month the return is late, up to 12 months canada.ca. It rises to 10% plus 2% a month, up to 20 months, when the CRA demanded the return under subsection 150(2) and assessed a failure to file penalty in any of the three previous tax years.
On $40,000 of tax still unpaid at the due date, a return filed four complete months late costs 5% ($2,000) plus 4% ($1,600), or $3,600. Paying the balance by the balance due date leaves no unpaid tax for that penalty to bite on, though the return is still owed on time.
More on the penalty is on the T2 late filing penalty page.
Sources
Does a corporation with no tax to pay still have to file a T2?
Yes. Every corporation files a T2 for every tax year, including inactive corporations, nonprofit organizations and corporations exempt from tax canada.ca. The only exceptions are tax exempt Crown corporations, Hutterite colonies and corporations that were registered charities for the whole year.
Does the extra month for a CCPC also push back the filing deadline?
No. The three month rule only moves the payment date. The T2 itself is still due six months after year end, whether or not the corporation qualifies for three months to pay.
When is the T2 due for a February 28 year end?
It depends on the year. February 28, 2026 is the last day of the month, so the month end rule makes the return due August 31, 2026. In 2028, February 28 isn't the last day of the month, so a February 28, 2028 year end files by August 28, 2028.
Are instalments due on the same schedule?
No. Instalments run during the tax year, monthly or quarterly, and the balance due date only covers what's left once the year ends canada.ca. A corporation with a calendar tax year pays its monthly instalments by the last day of each month.
General information for the tax year shown, not advice for a specific client. Confirm the facts before you file or remit.