2024 Tax Deadlines Canada: When Are Business and Personal Taxes Due?

Tax filing deadlines can creep up on you, and there’s nothing more frustrating than having to pay a fine that could have been avoided.

Take a few minutes to save each relevant filing date to your calendar, and stay ahead of the CRA and their late filing penalties!

CONTENTS

1. Personal Tax Deadlines 2024
• Self-Employed
• Not Self-Employed
• Tax Installments
• RRSP Contribution Deadline

2. Corporate Tax Deadlines
• Corporate Tax Returns
• Corporate Taxes Owing

3. GST / HST Deadlines
• Monthly Filers
• Quarterly Filers
• Annual Filers (Except Individuals With December 31 Year-Ends)
• Annual Filers (Individuals With December 31 Year-Ends)

4. Small-Books Can Help


Personal Tax Deadlines 2024

Self-Employed

If you or your spouse earned business income in 2023 then your tax return is due June 17, 2024. 

Normally this would be June 15th, but because that falls on a Saturday, your return isn’t due until the next business day.

This deadline is a bit tricky because taxes owing are still due April 30, 2024 even though the actual filing of the return is not due until June.

Not Self-Employed

If you and your spouse do not earn self-employment income, then your tax return and taxes owing are both due April 30, 2024.

‍‍This is the most common scenario for tax payers.

Tax Installments

If you are required to pay tax installments in 2024, they are due:

  • March 15th

  • June 15th

  • September 15th

  • December 15th

RRSP Contribution Deadline

You can contribute to your RRSP until February 29, 2024 and still have it reduce your 2023 taxes owing.


Corporate Tax Deadlines

Corporate tax deadlines are a little different than personal tax deadlines. For tax purposes, corporations can have year-ends that are not December 31st. However, we can still easily figure out when your corporate tax returns and amounts owing are due.


Corporate Tax Returns

Corporate tax return filings are due 6 months after the year-end.

Let’s clarify a couple of scenarios:

  • When the corporation's tax year end is on the last day of a month, the return is due by the last day of the 6th month after the year-end. For example, a December 31, 2023 year end would have a June 30, 2024 due date.

  • When the last day of the tax year is not the last day of a month, the return is due the same day of the 6th month after the year-end. For example, a September 15, 2023 year end would have a March 15, 2024 year end.

Corporate Taxes Owing

The due dates for balances owing are earlier than the due dates for actually filing the tax returns. The short version is that taxes owing are due 2 months after the year-end.

However, there is an exception that is very common. Corporate taxes are due 3 months after the year-end if the following criteria apply:

  • The corporation is a Canadian Controlled Private Corporation.

  • The corporation claimed the small business deduction for the current or previous year.

  • The corporation and all associated corporations (if applicable) had taxable income less than $500,000 in the previous year.

The exception noted above is very common, so there is a good chance your corporate taxes are due 3 months after the year-end.

Because it’s a bit trickier, we recommend asking an expert to make sure you’ve got the right date.


GST / HST Deadlines

There are a few common scenarios for GST/HST return due dates.


Monthly Filers

When GST returns are filed monthly, the return and amounts owing are due 1 month after the end of the reporting period. For example, a June 1-30 filing period means the return is due July 31st.


Quarterly Filers

When GST returns are filed quarterly, the return and amounts owing are due 1 month after the end of the reporting period. For example, a July 1 - September 30 filing period means the return is due October 31st.


Annual Filers (Except Individuals With December 31 Year-Ends)

When GST returns are filed annually by a business that is not an individual, the return and amounts owing are due 3 months after the reporting period end date. For example, a July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024 filing period means the return is due September 30, 2024.


Annual Filers (Individuals With December 31 Year-Ends)

Individuals who file GST annually and have December 31, 2023 as their fiscal and tax year-ends have slightly different due dates. They mirror the tax due dates for self-employed individuals. Due dates in 2024 look like this:

  • GST owing is due April 30, 2024

  • Filing of the GST returns is due June 17, 2024 (June 15th is the usual date, but because it falls on a Saturday this year, the due date is Monday June 17, 2024).


Small-Books Can Help

If you have any questions or need clarification about when something is due, reach out!

We truly enjoy helping and we take pride in being organized and making sure that we don’t miss deadlines.

Ready to outsource the deadlines to someone else? Check out our Service Packages to learn more!

 

What is Small-Books?

The online bookkeeping service that gives you a dedicated bookkeeper supported by a team of knowledgeable small business experts. We’re here to take the guesswork out of running your own business—for good. Your bookkeeping team imports bank statements, categorizes transactions, and prepares financial statements for you every month. We even take care of the tax filing for you, from HST to income tax, so you can say goodbye to tax season stress!

 

This post is to be used for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, business, or tax advice. Each person should consult his or her own attorney, business advisor, or tax advisor with respect to matters referenced in this post. Small-Books assumes no liability for actions taken in reliance upon the information contained herein.

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