CRA reference for Canadian accounting firms
Payroll PD7A remittance deadlines
For a one-to-five-person firm, start each payroll file with the client’s CRA remitter type. The deadline follows payday, not the pay period in which the work was done.
Regular and quarterly remitters
- Regular remitters: remit by the 15th day of the next month after paying employees. January payroll paid in February belongs to the February remitting period and is due March 15.
- Quarterly remitters: remit for January to March by April 15; April to June by July 15; July to September by October 15; and October to December by January 15 of the next year.
Quarterly remitting is not an unrestricted choice. Verify eligibility and the remitter type on the CRA account; the rules depend on withholding amounts, account history and compliance. Pay frequency alone does not set remitting frequency.
Accelerated remitters need a different calendar
- Threshold 1: remuneration paid from the 1st to 15th is due by the 25th of that month. Remuneration paid from the 16th to month-end is due by the 10th of the next month.
- Threshold 2: the remitting periods are the 1st to 7th, 8th to 14th, 15th to 21st, and 22nd to month-end. Remit by the third working day after each period ends, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Check the CRA payment-method requirements for these remitters.
Do not substitute a monthly deadline for an accelerated one. Confirm the assigned remitter type before setting up the client’s calendar.
Source: CRA: When to remit payroll deductions and contributions.
PD7A statements and nil remittances
Form PD7A is a statement of account for current source deductions with a remittance voucher for regular and quarterly remitters. It is not the annual T4 information return. A missing statement or voucher does not extend the payment deadline.
If there are no deductions to remit, check whether a nil remittance must be reported. Do not treat an empty payroll run as permission to ignore the CRA account.
Source: CRA: Employers’ Guide, Chapter 8 — Remitting payroll.
Weekends and public holidays
When a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday recognized by the CRA, payment is on time if the CRA receives it or it is processed at a Canadian financial institution by the next business day. Allow for the processing time of the selected payment method.
These are payroll source deductions, not corporate income tax instalments. A business closure or other account change can create a separate final-remittance deadline; verify the CRA special-situation rules.
What to verify in NorthForm
NorthForm generates monthly or calendar-quarter remittance tasks from the client’s selected source deduction frequency when payroll is enabled. An unselected frequency defaults to monthly. NorthForm does not determine the client’s CRA remitter type or quarterly eligibility.
NorthForm does not calculate accelerated remittance dates. Select accelerated for those clients and track the dates separately. A remittance task created before the switch stays until your firm deletes it; T4 slip tasks still generate.
NorthForm does not adjust dates for weekends or holidays. It does not remit payments, submit nil remittances or calculate final-remittance deadlines. Verify the CRA account and actual paydays before relying on a date.
This is a general reference, not tax advice. Verify the client’s circumstances and current CRA guidance.
Keep remittance dates with the client file
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