Know Your Small Business Tax Deadlines For 2024

Interest Rates for Late Tax Filings

• Due to the increase in interest rates overall, the amount of interest charged on late or overdue balances for both CRA and Revenue Quebec are significantly higher in 2024 (10% compared with 5% in 2022 on overdue tax balances). See links below for current rates:

SALES TAX DEADLINES

• GST/HST returns for 2023 must be filed by June 17th, 2024 for those who are required to file annually. This would normally be June 15th, however since this falls on a Saturday, the deadline is pushed to June 17th which is a Monday.

• GST/HST payments for 2023 are due by April 30th, 2024 If payment is not made, Revenue Canada (CRA) will start charging interest starting May 1st on balances due.

• QST returns for 2023 are due by  June 17th, 2024 for those who are required to file annually. This would normally be June 15th, however since this falls on a Saturday, the deadline is pushed to June 17th which is a Monday.

• QST payments for 2023 are due by April 30th, 2024.  If payment is not made, Revenue Quebec (RQ) will start charging interest starting May 1st.   Since interest charged on late QST payments is higher than interest charged on income tax, it is better to prioritize payment of QST.

• GST/HST Instalments for 2024 must be paid on a quarterly basis for those whose net GST/HST payable was higher than $3,000 in the previous year.  GST/HST Instalments are due on April 30th, 2024, July 31st, 2024, October 31, 2024 and January 31st, 2025.  If instalments are not paid, CRA will charge interest starting on the due date of the instalment.

• QST Instalments for 2024 must be paid on a quarterly basis for those whose net QST payable was higher than $3,000 in the previous year.  QST Instalments are due on April 30th, 2024, July 31st, 2024, October 31, 2024 and January 31st, 2025. If instalments are not paid RQ will charge interest starting on the due date of the instalment.

• See my post on Late filing penalties for GST/HST and QST.

• It should be noted that penalties and interest on overdue balances are not tax deductible expenses.

INCOME TAX DEADLINES

Ensure that you at least file your tax returns by the due date even if you are unable to pay the balance due. This will help you to avoid penalties for late filing, which are based on the balance payable.

• Income tax returns for individuals (those who do not have unincorporated businesses or are self employed) for the calendar year 2023 (January to December 2023) must be filed and paid by April 30, 2024  If tax returns are not filed on time, penalties will be charged.  If tax returns are filed on time, but the balance due is not paid, only interest applies.

• Income tax returns for small businesses, self employed sole proprietors and partnerships i.e. any unincorporated business that include the T2125 in their returns have until June 17th, 2024.  This also includes spouses of unincorporated business owners even if the spouses don’t have self employed income. If tax returns are not filed by June 17th,  penalties will apply. 

• Although income tax returns for self employed unincorporated small business owners is due by June 17th, both CRA and RQ will start charging interest on balances due starting May 1st, 2024.  So if you choose to file between May 2nd and June 17th it is best to pay at least an estimate of taxes owing by May 1st, 2024 to avoid or reduce interest costs.

• Instalments relating to the 2024 tax year are payable by March 15th, 2024, June 17th, 2024, September 16th, 2024 and December 16th, 2024.  If you are required to pay instalments as a sole proprietor (unincorporated business/self employed), you will be advised about the amounts and due dates by both Revenue Canada and Revenue Quebec via mail or by going to “my account” which is available online.  Note that generally if your income taxes payable exceed $3,000 in 2023, you are required to pay quarterly instalments for 2024, except if you live in Quebec where instalments are based on taxes payable in the previous year of $1,800.

• It should be noted that if your instalments start for the first time as a result of exceeding the income threshold in 2023, instalment payments will only start September 16th, 2024. 

• See my post on Late filing penalties for income taxes.

RRSP CONTRIBUTION DEADLINE

All individual taxpayers have until February 29, 2024 to contribute to their RRSPs for the 2024 calendar year.  The maximum amount that you can contribute can be found on your 2022 notice of assessment or by going to CRA my account. Exceeding this amount will result in penalties so you want to be careful about how much you contribute.  It should also be noted that the higher your marginal tax rate, the more benefit you get from an RRSP contribution.  

PAYROLL DECLARATIONS (T4 AND RL1) DEADLINE

For Sole proprietors and corporations who pay employees via payroll:

With a little bit of preparation, filing your tax declarations on time is fairly straightforward and can help save you interest, penalties and the inevitable stress that comes with procrastination.

Download our free Canada unincorporated business tax deadline calendar for 2024 (both Federal and Quebec).

Ronika Khanna is an accounting and finance professional who helps small businesses achieve their financial goals. She is the author of several books for small businesses and also provides financial consulting services.