Do you owe income tax? Here’s how to make paying as easy as 1, 2, 3!

Did you know?

Most Canadian income tax and benefit returns for 2015 are due on April 30, 2016. However, as this date is a Saturday, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will consider your return as filed on time and your payment to be made on time if the CRA receives your submission or it is postmarked by midnight on May 2, 2016.

Self-employed individuals and their spouses or common-law partners have until June 15, 2016, to file their income tax and benefit return, but any balance owing is still due no later than May 2, 2016.

If you received income that has no tax withheld or does not have enough tax withheld for more than one year, you may have to pay tax by instalments. We will issue you a reminder if we think that you may have to pay by instalments. Failing to pay in full and on time will result in interest charges, and could lead to legal actions by the CRA.

Payment Methods

More and more Canadians are paying their taxes online. When you pay online, you can make your payment anytime, from anywhere! Last year, we received over six million payments from individual filers online.

There are several secure ways to make a payment to the CRA.

Online payment options

Online banking:
1. Sign in to your financial institution's online banking service.
2. Under 'add a payee', look for CRA (revenue)-(2015)-tax owing, CRA (revenue)-past tax owed, CRA (revenue)-tax instalment or a similar payee and select the one that applies to you.
3. Be sure to enter your account number (either your social insurance number or business number) carefully to avoid a lost or misapplied payment.

Debit card: Use My Payment, the CRA’s online payment service. It allows individuals and businesses to make payments using Interac® Online.
Credit card: The CRA offers the option of paying taxes using a credit card through a third-party service provider that offers additional payment methods. Third-party providers charge a fee for their service. The CRA may charge you penalties and interest if your payment is late; the CRA receives your payment on the date the service provider sends the funds to the CRA—contact the service provider to find out about processing delays. The only provider that currently offers the credit card option is listed below for your convenience.
- Plastiq (T2 Corporation and T1 Individual)
Pre-authorized debit: Pre-authorized debit lets you set up a payment to be made from your bank account to the CRA on a pre-set date. You can pay an overdue amount or make instalment payments. You can set up a pre-authorized debit agreement at your convenience using the CRA's My Account service. For more information, go to Pay by pre-authorized debit.

For other payment methods, go to www.cra.gc.ca/payments.

Payment arrangements

If you cannot pay your balance owing by the tax-filing season deadline, you can make a payment arrangement in one of the followings ways:

make a pre-authorized debit payment agreement using My Account;
call the CRA's TeleArrangement telephone service at 1-866-256-1147; or
call the CRA's debt management call centre at 1-888-863-8657 to speak to an agent.

The CRA’s online services make filing and managing your taxes easier

The CRA's online services are fast, easy, and secure. You can use them to help file your income tax and benefit return, make a payment, track the status of your return, register for online mail, apply for child benefits, and more. Access the CRA’s full suite of self-service options—register for My Account at www.cra.gc.ca/myaccount today, and start managing your tax matters online!

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