GST/HST reporting period, instalments, and the weekend rule
17 October 2026 · en-CA · Educational information · No affiliate links
Not tax advice. Check Canada.ca and the CRA. This site is not the CRA and is not affiliated with it. Dates marked expected were read or calculated on 17 October 2026. Re-check on 1 January 2027 and in February 2027. The filing date of 15 June 2027 does not push the payment date of 30 April 2027.
Short answer: The CRA assigns a GST/HST reporting period from revenue bands, and you may be allowed to file more often. Instalments, when they apply, are due within one month after each fiscal quarter. A weekend or holiday moves the due date to the next business day. No penalty rate is stated on this page.
Which period you are assigned
CRA pages read on 17 October 2026, including the "when to file" page and guide RC4022, describe the assigned period in three bands. The figures below are those reporting-period bands. They are not interest charges and not penalty amounts.
| Annual taxable supplies | Assigned period |
|---|---|
| $1.5 million or less | Annual |
| More than $1.5 million up to $6 million | Quarterly |
| More than $6 million | Monthly |
You may be able to file more often through a CRA account. This calendar does not pick your band. Choose monthly, quarterly, or annual in the calendar. A small-supplier figure was not in the lines verified here, so it is not repeated. Whether you must register is a question for Canada.ca.
Instalments are not the 15th of the month
The 2027 business deadlines page says GST/HST instalment payments are due within one month after the end of each fiscal quarter. The CRA instalment page gives this example for a 31 December fiscal year-end:
| Fiscal quarter | Nominal date on the CRA example | Expected date in 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 October to 31 December | 31 January | 1 February 2027 (Sunday) |
| 1 January to 31 March | 30 April | 30 April 2027 (Friday) |
| 1 April to 30 June | 31 July | 3 August 2027 (Saturday, then Civic Holiday) |
| 1 July to 30 September | 31 October | 1 November 2027 (Sunday) |
The nominal days match quarterly file-and-pay days, but the label is different. Quarterly registrants file and pay on that date. Annual registrants may have instalments plus a separate annual return. The calendar shows instalment rows only on the annual path, labeled "if the CRA requires one", and it states no dollar test. Income-tax instalments on the 15ths are a different list. The quarter ending 31 December 2027 is due in 2028 and is not in this list.
The weekend and holiday rule
If a GST/HST due date is a Saturday, Sunday, or public holiday the CRA recognizes, you are on time on the next business day. The holiday page read on 17 October 2026 lists 2026 and notes that provinces differ. This site's 2027 dates are calculated from those names. They are expected.
- 31 January 2027 is a Sunday, so the expected date is 1 February 2027. That is Q4 2026, not every quarter, and not the employment T4.
- 31 July 2027 is a Saturday and the following Monday is treated as the Civic Holiday, so the expected date is 3 August 2027. The 2026 CRA list excluded Quebec from that holiday.
- 30 September 2027 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on those holiday names, so a monthly due date that lands there moves to the expected 1 October 2027.
- 31 March 2027 is a Wednesday and is not a quarterly due date. It is an annual corporate date, and the annual date for an individual with no business income.
A Quebec-only holiday on that page is not applied in the national script. Provincial dates stay on Revenu Québec.
Electronic filing, without a penalty figure
For periods ending in 2024 and later, most GST/HST registrants have to file electronically. The CRA page excepts charities and selected listed financial institutions, and it says a paper return can lead to a penalty. No penalty amount is printed here.
Questions readers ask
Which reporting period am I? Use the bands above only as the CRA's assignment rules, then confirm in your CRA account. Choosing "more frequent" is allowed on the page we read. This site cannot see your revenue.
Are GST/HST instalments due on 15 March? Not on the example we read. The example uses the month-end one month after the quarter, not the income-tax instalment dates.
What if the due date is a holiday only in my province? The CRA says due dates may be affected by where you live. Treat the shifted dates here as expected and verify. Do not treat them as a provincial ruling.
Sources
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/complete-file-return-business/when-file.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/rc4022/general-information-gst-hst-registrants.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/pay-instalment/when-to-pay.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/file-gst-hst-return/reporting-requirements-deadlines.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/public-holidays.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/services/taxes/resources-for-small-and-medium-businesses/2026-tax-deadlines-canadian-businesses-self-employed-individuals.html
Read 17 October 2026. A re-check is planned for 1 January 2027 and for February 2027. Wording marked expected is a date on those pages, or a next-business-day calculation from them.