New Corporation First-Year Filing Deadline Calendar
Every date your new corporation has to meet in its first year, in order, with the days remaining and the penalty attached to each. Built from your incorporation date and your chosen year end.
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Your Year One Calendar
| Date | Obligation | Basis | Days | Penalty If Missed |
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Points That Catch New Corporations
What to Do Next
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Disclaimer: A first fiscal period cannot exceed 53 weeks from incorporation. The T2 return is due six months after the fiscal year end. The balance of tax is due three months after year end for a Canadian-controlled private corporation claiming the small business deduction, and two months otherwise. An Ontario corporation files its annual return with the Ontario Business Registry within six months of the fiscal year end, while a federal corporation files with Corporations Canada within sixty days of the anniversary of incorporation, which is a different date entirely. Annual HST filers with a corporate year end file three months after that year end, while monthly and quarterly filers file one month after each period. Regular payroll remitters remit by the fifteenth of the month following payment. T4 and T5 slips are due the last day of February following the calendar year. Where a date falls on a weekend or public holiday the CRA generally accepts the next business day, which is not adjusted for here. This page is general information, not tax advice.
The Federal Annual Return Is Not on the Same Date as Anything Else
Almost every year-one deadline runs from the fiscal year end. The federal annual return does not. It is due within sixty days of the anniversary of incorporation, which for most corporations falls nowhere near the tax deadlines.
| Corporation | Annual Return Due |
|---|---|
| Ontario, under the OBCA | Six months after the fiscal year end, with the Ontario Business Registry |
| Federal, under the CBCA | Sixty days after the anniversary of incorporation, with Corporations Canada |
A federal corporation that goes one year without filing its annual return can be dissolved. There is no tax at stake and no penalty notice arrives, so it is missed more often than any other obligation on this page. Founders assume their accountant handles it with the T2. Usually nobody does.
The Balance Is Due Before the Return
This catches nearly every new owner. The T2 is due six months after year end, but the tax itself is due three months after year end for a CCPC claiming the small business deduction, or two months for anyone else.
So the money has to be paid before the return that calculates it has been prepared. In practice that means estimating the liability and paying it, then filing later. Interest runs from the balance due date whatever the filing date.
| Year End 31 December 2026 | Date |
|---|---|
| Balance of tax due, CCPC with the small business deduction | 31 March 2027 |
| Balance of tax due, other corporations | 28 February 2027 |
| T2 return due | 30 June 2027 |
No Instalments in the First Year
One piece of genuine good news. A new corporation is not required to pay instalments in its first tax year, and no corporation needs instalments where total taxes payable are $3,000 or less.
Instalments begin in year two, based on year one. That makes the second year harder on cash flow than the first, which is worth knowing before the money is spent.
Choosing the Year End
The first fiscal period can be any length up to 53 weeks from incorporation, and it is the one decision on this page you make only once.
- A short first year brings the first filing forward but keeps the year simple and the fees lower.
- A year end just before your busy season gives you time to deal with the work properly.
- Avoid 31 December if you can, since every accountant in the country is busiest between January and April.
- A year end that straddles a calendar year complicates T4 and T5 reporting, which always follow the calendar year regardless of your fiscal one.
- Exceeding 53 weeks is not permitted, and the CRA will assign a year end if the first return uses an invalid one.
Slips Follow the Calendar Year, Not Your Fiscal Year
T4 and T5 slips are due the last day of February following the calendar year in which the salary or dividend was paid. That is true regardless of your fiscal year end, and it is the most common source of confusion for a corporation with a year end other than December.
A corporation with a 30 June year end that paid a dividend in November 2026 files the T5 by 28 February 2027, months before its own year end falls due.
The ISC Register Has Real Penalties
Both federal and Ontario corporations must maintain a register of individuals with significant control. Federal corporations must also send that information to Corporations Canada with the annual return and within fifteen days of any change.
The penalties are not administrative. Directors and officers face fines of up to $200,000 and personal liability, which is out of proportion to almost everything else in year one and is the obligation founders are least likely to have heard of.
Register Payroll Before the First Salary
A payroll account has to exist before the first salary is paid, including a salary to yourself. Paying first and registering afterwards creates late remittances from day one, and the payroll penalty regime is considerably harsher than the others, starting at 3% and reaching 10% after seven days.
Practical Order for a New Corporation
- Choose the year end deliberately and record it, since the first return you file effectively sets it.
- Open the CRA accounts you need before the activity starts rather than after.
- Put the ISC register in place immediately, because it is required from incorporation.
- Diarise the federal annual return separately, because it is not on the fiscal calendar.
- Set money aside monthly for a balance due three months after year end.
- Plan for instalments in year two, which arrive without warning for most founders.
Nothing here is difficult. It is only ever missed because nobody wrote the dates down. Our corporate year end service covers the full compliance calendar, the filings and the reminders.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions from founders in their first year.
Related Calculators and Guides
More tools for new corporations.
Nothing Here Is Difficult. It Is Only Missed Because Nobody Wrote It Down.
Send us your incorporation date and your chosen year end. We will set the full compliance calendar, open the accounts you need, and handle every filing on this page for a fixed fee.