Resources · Year-end compliance
T4 Filing Deadline 2026: A Complete Guide for Canadian Employers
Everything a small business owner needs to file T4 slips for the 2025 tax year: the March 2, 2026 deadline, T4 vs T4 Summary, box-by-box explanations, electronic filing via CRA Web Forms, late-filing penalties, and how to amend a T4 after filing.
T4 filing deadline for the 2025 tax year
- Due date: Monday, March 2, 2026. The statutory deadline is the last day of February (Feb 28, 2026 — a Saturday), so the CRA accepts filings received the next business day.
- Applies to: T4 slips and the T4 Summary for every payroll account you operated during 2025.
- Employee copies: Each employee must receive their T4 slip by the same date, on paper or electronically (with the employee's consent for electronic delivery).
- Final remittance: January 2025 source deductions were due Feb 15; December 2025 source deductions were due Jan 15, 2026. Don't confuse remittance deadlines with the T4 filing deadline.
What is a T4 slip?
A T4 — Statement of Remuneration Paid reports the employment income, taxable benefits, CPP/QPP contributions, EI premiums, and income tax you withheld from one employee during the calendar year. You issue one T4 per employee per payroll account. If the same person worked in two provinces during the year, you issue two T4 slips (one per province of employment).
T4 vs T4 Summary — what's the difference?
The T4 Summary is a single form that reports the totals of all T4 slips filed under one payroll account (Business Number ending in RP-0001, RP-0002, etc.), plus the employer's share of CPP and EI. The CRA reconciles the totals against your monthly source-deduction remittances (form PD7A). When you file electronically the T4 Summary is generated automatically from your slip totals — you don't submit a separate paper Summary.
Electronic filing is mandatory over 5 slips
Since January 1, 2024 the CRA requires any employer filing more than 5 information returns of a single type (T4s, T4As, T5s, etc.) to file electronically. Paper filing is limited to 5 or fewer slips. The two electronic filing paths are:
- CRA Web Forms — a no-cost web app. You fill each slip in the browser (up to 100 slips per return), CRA validates as you type and generates the T4 Summary automatically. Best for very small employers who don't have payroll software.
- Internet File Transfer (XML) — you upload an XML file produced by your payroll software through My Business Account or Represent a Client. Best when you have more than a handful of employees or want to keep a machine-readable archive.
Step-by-step: file T4s with CRA Web Forms
- Sign in to My Business Account (business owner) or Represent a Client (accountant/bookkeeper).
- Under your RP payroll account, choose File a return → Web Forms.
- Select the slip type (T4) and the tax year (2025).
- Fill each slip: employee SIN, name, address, province of employment (Box 10), employment income (Box 14), CPP (Box 16), EI (Box 18), income tax (Box 22), pensionable earnings (Box 26), insurable earnings (Box 24) and any applicable "other information" codes.
- Review the auto-generated T4 Summary — CRA highlights any imbalance against your PD7A remittances.
- Submit. Save the confirmation number and the PDF copy of each slip; give a copy to each employee before March 2, 2026.
Step-by-step: file T4s by XML (Internet File Transfer)
- Generate the T4 XML from your payroll software (Canadian Payroll exports a CRA-compliant XML from the Year-end screen).
- Validate the file — most software runs the CRA schema check for you.
- Sign in to My Business Account or Represent a Client and open Internet File Transfer.
- Upload the .xml file, enter your web-access code (WAC) if prompted, and submit.
- Keep the confirmation number and the XML file with your year-end records for 6 years.
Common T4 boxes at a glance
| Box | Reports | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Province of employment | Two-letter code (ON, QC, BC…). Determines provincial tax withholding. |
| 14 | Employment income | Gross wages, salary, bonuses, commissions, taxable benefits. |
| 16 / 16A | CPP / CPP2 contributions | Box 16 = base CPP; Box 16A = second additional CPP2 (introduced 2024). |
| 17 / 17A | QPP / QPP2 contributions | Quebec employees only. |
| 18 | Employee EI premiums | Withheld from each pay; capped at the annual EI max. |
| 22 | Income tax deducted | Federal + provincial (except QC provincial, which goes on the RL-1). |
| 24 | EI insurable earnings | Capped at the year's maximum insurable earnings (2025: $65,700). |
| 26 | CPP/QPP pensionable earnings | Capped at YMPE for Box 16, YAMPE for Box 16A. |
| 28 | CPP/QPP/EI exemptions | Mark X for exempt earnings (e.g. under-18 CPP exempt). |
| 44 | Union dues | Only if withheld through payroll. |
| 46 | Charitable donations | Only if withheld through payroll. |
| 52 | Pension adjustment | For employees in a registered pension plan. |
Late-filing penalties
The CRA charges a per-return late-filing penalty based on the total number of information returns filed late, plus a separate penalty for paper filing when electronic filing was required:
| Slips filed late | Penalty per day | Maximum |
|---|---|---|
| 1 – 5 | $10 | $100 |
| 6 – 10 | $15 | $1,500 |
| 11 – 50 | $25 | $2,500 |
| 51 – 500 | $50 | $5,000 |
| 501 – 2,500 | $75 | $7,500 |
| 2,501 – 10,000 | $75 | $7,500 |
| 10,001+ | $100 | $7,500 |
Filing on paper when you were required to file electronically triggers its own penalty ($125 for 6–50 returns, up to $2,500 for 2,501+). Late or missing source-deduction remittances have their own interest and penalty schedule and are billed separately from the T4 late-filing penalty.
How to amend a T4 after filing
- Prepare an amended T4 slip that shows the correct amounts in the same box numbers as the original, and mark the slip "AMENDED". Do not file a slip that only shows the difference.
- If any employer totals changed (CPP, EI, income tax, insurable earnings), file an amended T4 Summary as well.
- Send the amended slip through Web Forms or Internet File Transfer the same way you filed the original.
- Give the employee a copy of the amended slip so they can update or refile their personal T1 return if it's already been filed.
Common T4 mistakes to avoid
- Missing the March 2, 2026 deadline — penalties start at day one.
- Filing on paper for more than 5 slips.
- Reporting the wrong province in Box 10 — this changes provincial tax owed.
- Leaving Box 16A (CPP2) blank for employees who earned above the YMPE.
- Forgetting the Quebec RL-1 for Quebec employees — the T4 alone is not enough.
- Not giving the employee copy on time — the deadline is the same as CRA's.
- Skipping the T4 Summary when filing on paper — CRA rejects orphan slips.
How Canadian Payroll helps
Canadian Payroll builds every T4 box from your finalized pay stubs throughout the year, generates the T4 Summary automatically, and exports a CRA-compliant XML you can upload to Internet File Transfer — plus a printable PDF slip for each employee. Quebec employers get the matching RL-1 XML in the same click. It's included in every plan.
This guide summarizes CRA T4 filing rules as of January 2026 for general information. Always verify current rules and deadlines at canada.ca — T4 information for employers.