The Canada Revenue Agency headquarters in OttawaSean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
The deadline to file your income-tax return has come, again.
Due to a bungled notice sent last month by the Canada Revenue Agency, Canadians were given until May 5 to get their returns filed without penalty.
All returns transmitted electronically up until 3:00 a.m., Eastern Time will be considered as filed on time.
It's the second straight year the CRA has extended the deadline. Last year, taxpayers were also able to file as late as May 5 due to the "Heartbleed" software bug which prompted a shutdown for the CRA website.
Even if you can't pay your entire tax bill immediately or are missing information, tax experts say you should at least file your return because waiting until after the deadline triggers charges that start piling up on your tax bill right away.
If you owe money for 2014, compound daily interest is charged starting May 1. But you'll also face the late-filing penalty of 5 per cent of the amount owing, plus 1 per cent of the balance owing for each full month your return is late to a maximum of 12 months.
As well, filing a late return could cause a delay or interruption of the quarterly GST/HST credit, or if you or your spouse or partner expect to receive the Child Tax Benefit.
For self-employed individuals, the deadline for filing is June 15.
What you need to know:
- The lowdown on this year’s tax changes
- TFSA, RRIF changes: Prepare to review your savings strategy
- Six tax-filing tips to save you money
Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report