Reference
Ontario tax rates, limits and deadlines for 2026
Last reviewed: August 2026
Every rate, threshold, limit and deadline an incorporated Ontario owner-managed business runs into in a year. We keep this page because we got tired of looking the same numbers up in five different places.
Ontario figures, each one checked against the source named under its table. Rates move mid-year, so check the source before you file on one.
Corporate tax rates
Rates on active business income earned in Ontario by a Canadian-controlled private corporation. Federal and Ontario rates stack, so the combined rate is the one that matters to the bank balance.
| Rate | 2026 | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| Federal small business rate | 9% | On active business income up to the business limit. CRA, Corporation tax rates. |
| Ontario small business rate | 3.2%, then 2.2% | 2.2% applies from July 1, 2026, down from 3.2%. Ontario, Corporations tax and 2026 Ontario Budget annex. |
| Combined small business rate | 12.2%, then 11.2% | 9% + 3.2% before July 1, 2026. 9% + 2.2% from July 1, 2026. |
| Federal general rate | 15% | 38% basic rate, less the 10% federal abatement and the 13% general rate reduction. CRA, Corporation tax rates. |
| Ontario general rate | 11.5% | Unchanged since July 1, 2011. Ontario, Corporations tax. |
| Combined general rate | 26.5% | Income above the business limit, and income of a corporation that cannot claim the small business deduction. |
| Small business limit | $500,000 | Federal business limit, shared across associated corporations on Schedule 23. Ontario uses the same $500,000. |
Source: CRA, Corporation tax rates; Ontario, Corporations Tax: Corporate income tax; 2026 Ontario Budget, Annex. Current as of August 2026.
The July 1, 2026 change and straddling year ends
The Ontario small business rate falls from 3.2% to 2.2% on July 1, 2026. The Budget states the reduction is prorated for taxation years that straddle that date, so a corporation with a year end that is not June 30 or December 31 gets a blended Ontario rate for the year rather than one rate or the other. A December 31, 2026 year end sits half on each side. A September 30, 2026 year end sits three quarters on the old rate and one quarter on the new one. This is worth knowing before you decide when to declare a bonus or when to close a year, which is the sort of thing we look at in the corporate tax work rather than in April.
The passive investment income grind
The $500,000 business limit is reduced when the corporation and its associated corporations earn adjusted aggregate investment income above $50,000 in the previous year. The reduction is straight line from $50,000 to $150,000, which works out to $5 of business limit for every $1 of passive income over $50,000. At $150,000 of passive income the business limit is nil and every dollar of active income is taxed at the general rate.
| Adjusted aggregate investment income | Business limit | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 or less | $500,000 | No grind. |
| $50,001 to $149,999 | Reduced straight line | $100,000 of passive income wipes out $250,000 of business limit. |
| $150,000 or more | Nil | All active income taxed at the combined general rate. |
Source: CRA, T4012 T2 Corporation Income Tax Guide, small business deduction. A separate grind applies where taxable capital employed in Canada is between $10 million and $50 million, and the greater of the two reductions applies. Current as of August 2026.
Filing and payment deadlines
The one that catches people is the corporate balance. It is due before the return is, which means the money has to be paid on a number nobody has finished calculating yet.
| What | When | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| T2 corporate return | 6 months after the tax year end | CRA, 2026 tax deadlines for Canadian businesses. |
| Corporate balance of tax | 3 months after year end for a qualifying CCPC, otherwise 2 months | Three months requires CCPC status throughout the year, a small business deduction claim in the current or previous year, and prior-year taxable income within the business limit, counting associated corporations. CRA, Balance-due day. |
| GST/HST, monthly filer | 1 month after the reporting period ends | Filing and payment are the same date. CRA, Reporting requirements and deadlines. |
| GST/HST, quarterly filer | 1 month after the reporting period ends | Same as monthly, four times a year. |
| GST/HST, annual filer | 3 months after the fiscal year end | An individual with a December 31 year end and business income files by June 15 and pays by April 30. CRA, Reporting requirements and deadlines. |
| T4 and T5 slips | Last day of February following the calendar year | Both the slips to the recipients and the return to CRA. CRA, When to file information returns. |
| T5018 contract payments | 6 months after the end of the reporting period | The reporting period is the calendar year or the fiscal period, whichever the payer chooses. Applies where construction is the main source of business income. CRA, When to file information returns. |
| Payroll remittance, regular remitter | 15th day of the month after the month you paid the wages | Regular remitter means an average monthly withholding amount under $25,000. CRA, Remitting source deductions. |
| Personal T1 | April 30 | June 15 where you or your spouse carried on a business, but the balance is still due April 30. CRA, 2026 tax deadlines. |
| Ontario Employer Health Tax return | March 15 following the calendar year | Ontario, Employer Health Tax. |
Source: CRA, 2026 tax deadlines for Canadian businesses and self-employed individuals; CRA, Balance-due day; CRA, File your GST/HST return: reporting requirements and deadlines; CRA, When to file information returns; CRA, Remitting source deductions: how and when to remit; Ontario, Employer Health Tax. Current as of August 2026.
Put your own year end into the deadline checker and it will turn all of these into actual dates for your corporation.
GST/HST
| Item | 2026 | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario HST rate | 13% | 5% federal plus 8% provincial. CRA, Charge and collect the tax: which rate to charge. |
| Small supplier threshold | $30,000 | Taxable supplies, worldwide, including associates. CRA, When to register for and start charging the GST/HST. |
| Single quarter test | $30,000 in one calendar quarter | You stop being a small supplier immediately and charge GST/HST on the sale that took you over. |
| Four quarter test | $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters | You stop being a small supplier at the end of the month following that quarter. |
| Registration deadline | 29 days | From the effective date of registration. |
Filing frequency by annual taxable supplies
| Annual taxable supplies | Assigned period | You can elect instead |
|---|---|---|
| $1,500,000 or less | Annual | Monthly or quarterly |
| More than $1,500,000 up to $6,000,000 | Quarterly | Monthly |
| More than $6,000,000 | Monthly | Nothing. Monthly is mandatory. |
Source: CRA, RC4022 General Information for GST/HST Registrants; CRA, When to register for and start charging the GST/HST; CRA, Charge and collect the tax: which rate to charge. Current as of August 2026.
Instalments for annual filers
An annual filer whose net tax for the previous fiscal year was $3,000 or more has to pay quarterly GST/HST instalments through the following year, with the balance settled on the annual return. Source: CRA, Remit the GST/HST by instalments: find out if you need to pay by instalments.
The Quick Method
The Quick Method lets an eligible business remit a flat percentage of GST/HST-included sales instead of tracking input tax credits on operating costs. Eligibility is annual worldwide taxable supplies of $400,000 or less including GST/HST, counting associates, and there is a 1% credit on the first $30,000 of eligible supplies in a fiscal year. Accountants, bookkeepers, lawyers, actuaries and financial consultants are excluded, along with listed financial institutions, charities and most public sector bodies. The remittance rates themselves vary by province and by whether you are a service business or a reseller, so check them against the CRA guide for your situation rather than against a rate someone quoted you once. Source: CRA, RC4058 Quick Method of Accounting for GST/HST.
If the question is whether a particular service is exempt or taxable at 13%, the HST lookup covers the common Ontario cases, and the clinic pages go through the health care exemption properly.
Payroll
CPP and EI
| Item | 2026 | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| CPP maximum pensionable earnings | $74,600 | The first ceiling, the YMPE. |
| CPP basic exemption | $3,500 | Maximum contributory earnings of $71,100. |
| CPP rate, employee | 5.95% | Maximum $4,230.45. |
| CPP rate, employer | 5.95% | Maximum $4,230.45. The corporation pays this on top of the wage. |
| CPP second ceiling | $85,000 | The YAMPE, the top of the CPP2 band. |
| CPP2 rate | 4% | On earnings between $74,600 and $85,000. Maximum $416 each for employee and employer. |
| EI maximum insurable earnings | $68,900 | Outside Quebec. |
| EI rate, employee | 1.63% | Maximum $1,123.07. |
| EI rate, employer | 2.282% | 1.4 times the employee rate. Maximum $1,572.30. |
Source: CRA, CPP contribution rates, maximums and exemptions; CRA, Second additional CPP (CPP2) contribution rates and maximums; CRA, EI premium rates and maximums. Current as of August 2026.
The owner-manager point about EI. Employment is not insurable where the employee is a shareholder who controls more than 40% of the voting shares of the corporation that employs them. An owner over that line pays no EI premiums and collects no regular EI benefits, and neither does the corporation on that person's wage. CPP is a different question and is still payable. Source: CRA, Determine if employment is pensionable and insurable.
Ontario Employer Health Tax and minimum wage
| Item | 2026 | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| EHT exemption | $1,000,000 | Of Ontario payroll, shared across an associated group. Next inflation adjustment is scheduled for January 1, 2029. Ontario, Employer Health Tax. |
| EHT exemption eliminated | Payroll over $5,000,000 | An associated group over $5 million of Ontario payroll gets no exemption at all. |
| EHT rate | 0.98% to 1.95% | Graduated by Ontario payroll. 0.98% at the bottom, 1.95% on payroll over $400,000. Ontario, Employer Health Tax. |
| EHT monthly instalments | Payroll over $1,200,000 | Below that, one annual payment with the return. |
| Ontario general minimum wage | $17.60, then $17.95 | $17.95 from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027. Ontario, Minimum wage. |
| Ontario student minimum wage | $16.60, then $16.90 | Under 18 and working 28 hours a week or less during the school term. |
Source: Ontario, Employer Health Tax (EHT); Ontario, Your guide to the Employment Standards Act: minimum wage. Current as of August 2026.
Most owner-managed corporations sit under the EHT exemption and pay nothing, which is why it is easy to forget the registration exists at all. It becomes real the year payroll crosses $1 million, and it is one of the things covered in the monthly bookkeeping and payroll work.
Personal tax
Federal brackets, 2026
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to $58,523 | 14% |
| $58,523 to $117,045 | 20.5% |
| $117,045 to $181,440 | 26% |
| $181,440 to $258,482 | 29% |
| Over $258,482 | 33% |
Ontario brackets, 2026
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to $53,891 | 5.05% |
| $53,891 to $107,785 | 9.15% |
| $107,785 to $150,000 | 11.16% |
| $150,000 to $220,000 | 12.16% |
| Over $220,000 | 13.16% |
Credits, surtax and dividends, 2026
| Item | 2026 | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| Federal basic personal amount | $16,452 | Phased down to $14,829 for net income between $181,440 and $258,482. CRA, Indexation adjustment for personal income tax and benefit amounts. |
| Ontario basic personal amount | $12,989 | CRA, T4032-ON Payroll Deductions Tables. |
| Ontario surtax, first threshold | $5,818 | 20% of Ontario basic tax over $5,818. |
| Ontario surtax, second threshold | $7,446 | A further 36% of Ontario basic tax over $7,446, on top of the 20%. |
| Non-eligible dividend gross-up | 15% | Applies to dividends paid in 2019 and later. CRA, T4015 T5 Guide. |
| Federal dividend tax credit, non-eligible | 9.0301% | Of the taxable, grossed-up dividend. CRA, T4015 T5 Guide. |
| Ontario dividend tax credit, non-eligible | 2.9863% | Of the taxable, grossed-up dividend. Scheduled to fall to 1.9863% on January 1, 2027. 2026 Ontario Budget, Annex. |
Source: CRA, Current year tax rates and income brackets (2026); CRA, Indexation adjustment for personal income tax and benefit amounts; CRA, T4032-ON Payroll Deductions Tables, Ontario; CRA, T4015 T5 Guide: Return of Investment Income; 2026 Ontario Budget, Annex. Current as of August 2026.
The January 2027 Ontario dividend change. The 2026 Ontario Budget reduces the Ontario dividend tax credit rate on non-eligible dividends from 2.9863% to 1.9863% effective January 1, 2027, to match the small business rate cut. We are stating the 2026 rate of 2.9863% as the figure to use for 2026 dividends. The post-change figure is not confirmed on this page. It is a Budget measure and it has to be legislated, so check the enacted rate before you use it in a 2027 calculation.
The practical effect is that the same dividend costs the shareholder slightly more Ontario tax from 2027, while the corporation pays slightly less. Whether the combination leaves an owner ahead depends on the actual numbers, which is what the salary vs dividends calculator is for.
Capital cost allowance
The classes an owner-managed business actually meets. Rates are declining balance unless the note says otherwise.
| Class | Rate | What goes in it |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | 20% | The catch-all. Office equipment, furniture, machinery and anything else used in the business that is not included in another class, plus data network infrastructure equipment. |
| 10 | 30% | Motor vehicles, and passenger vehicles that fall under the Class 10.1 cost limit. Trucks and tractors used in the business sit here too. |
| 10.1 | 30% | A passenger vehicle costing more than the limit, capped at $39,000 before tax for a vehicle acquired on or after January 1, 2026. |
| 12 | 100% | Tools, medical and dental instruments and kitchen utensils costing less than $500, and computer software other than systems software. |
| 13 | Over the lease | Leasehold improvements. There is no single percentage. The maximum depends on the type of leasehold interest and the terms of the lease, so the write-off period comes out of your lease document. |
| 14.1 | 5% | Goodwill and intangibles with no fixed life, including most purchased customer lists and unlimited-life licences. Property that was eligible capital property before 2017 runs at 7% until 2027. |
| 50 | 55% | Computer hardware and systems software acquired after March 18, 2007. |
| 53 | 50% | Machinery and equipment used in Canada primarily to manufacture or process goods for sale or lease, acquired after 2015 and before 2026. Equipment acquired after 2025 goes to Class 43 at 30%, so for most 2026 purchases this class is closed. |
| 54 | 30% | Zero-emission vehicles that would otherwise be Class 10 or 10.1, capped at $61,000 before tax. |
Source: CRA, Capital cost allowance (CCA) classes; CRA, T4002 Self-employed Business, Professional, Commission, Farming and Fishing Income, Chapter 4; Department of Finance Canada, Government Announces the 2026 Automobile Deduction Limits. Current as of August 2026.
| Rule | What it does |
|---|---|
| Half-year rule | In the year you add property to a class, you claim CCA on half the net addition, so a $30,000 addition gives you CCA on $15,000 in year one. Some property is excluded, including accelerated investment incentive property, zero-emission vehicles and Class 56 property, and where an accelerated first-year rule applies it overrides the half-year rule. |
| Available-for-use rule | You cannot claim CCA until the property is available for use, which is generally the earlier of the time you first use it to earn income and the beginning of the second tax year after you acquired it. For a building it is generally when 90% of it is used in the business. |
Source: CRA, T4002, Chapter 4: Capital cost allowance. Current as of August 2026. The accelerated first-year rules have changed more than once and are being phased through the late 2020s, so confirm the enhanced percentage that applies to your acquisition year with the source before claiming it.
Vehicles and mileage
| Limit | 2026 | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Passenger vehicle capital cost ceiling | $39,000 | Before tax, for a vehicle acquired on or after January 1, 2026. Up from $38,000. |
| Zero-emission passenger vehicle ceiling | $61,000 | Before tax, new or used. Unchanged. |
| Deductible lease cost | $1,100 a month | Before tax, for a lease entered into on or after January 1, 2026. Unchanged. |
| Deductible interest | $350 a month | On money borrowed to buy a passenger vehicle, for a loan entered into on or after January 1, 2026. Unchanged. |
| Tax-free allowance, first 5,000 km | 73 cents/km | Ontario and the other provinces. 77 cents in the territories. |
| Tax-free allowance, over 5,000 km | 67 cents/km | Ontario and the other provinces. 71 cents in the territories. |
Source: Department of Finance Canada, Government Announces the 2026 Automobile Deduction Limits and Expense Benefit Rates for Businesses, January 2026. Current as of August 2026.
The per-kilometre rates are the amounts a corporation can pay an employee or an owner-manager as a tax-free allowance for business use of a personal vehicle. Paying at those rates and keeping a log is usually simpler and cheaper than putting the car in the corporation, and it avoids the standby charge entirely. Which way is better for a given owner depends on kilometres and on the price of the vehicle, and it is a conversation we have with most contractor clients in the first year.
WSIB
WSIB premiums are set per $100 of insurable earnings, not as a percentage of profit, and the rate depends on what the business does rather than on how it is doing.
| Item | 2026 | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum insurable earnings | $121,700 | Per worker per year. Was $117,000 in 2025. WSIB, 2026 premium rates. |
| Average premium rate | $1.23 per $100 | The Ontario-wide average across all classes, not a rate any individual business pays. WSIB, 2026 premium rates. |
| How your own rate is set | By class | Each business is put in a class based on the type of work it does. The class rate reflects the shared claims experience of every business doing that work, then your own rate moves off the class rate based on your own claims and payroll history. |
| How fast a rate can move | 3 risk bands a year | Roughly 15%, up or down, until the business reaches its projected rate. WSIB, 2026 premium rates. |
Source: WSIB, 2026 premium rates; WSIB, Expanded compulsory coverage in the construction industry; WSIB, Executive officers of a corporation with employees in construction. Current as of August 2026.
We have deliberately not published a rate for any trade or classification unit. Rates are set per class and reset annually, and quoting one here would be wrong for most readers. Look yours up in your WSIB account or on wsib.ca.
Executive officers in construction. This one is commonly misunderstood the wrong way round. In construction, compulsory coverage was expanded to cover independent operators, sole proprietors, partners and executive officers, so an executive officer of a construction corporation with employees who performs construction work is generally required to be covered rather than automatically outside the system.
There is an exemption, and it is narrow. One partner or one executive officer per business can apply to be exempt if that person does not perform any construction work and does not provide direct on-site supervision. The application is WSIB form 1208A and the exemption takes effect when WSIB receives the signed form, not when you decided you qualified. If the facts change, WSIB has to be told within 10 days. Source: WSIB, Executive officers of a corporation with employees in construction.
Instalments
| Who | Threshold | Frequency and source |
|---|---|---|
| Corporation | More than $3,000 of total taxes payable | In either the current or the previous tax year. Below that, no instalments and the whole amount is paid on the balance-due day. CRA, Who has to pay in instalments. |
| Corporation, default | Monthly | First payment due one month less a day after the start of the tax year, then the same day each month. |
| Eligible CCPC | Quarterly | Available where the corporation claimed the small business deduction, has taxable income of $500,000 or less and taxable capital of $10 million or less counting associated corporations, and has remitted GST/HST, source deductions, CPP and EI on time and filed on time over the previous 12 months. CRA, Due dates for payments. |
| Individual | More than $3,000 of net tax owing | In the current year and in either of the two previous years. $1,800 for Quebec residents. Due March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15. CRA, Required tax instalments for individuals. |
| GST/HST annual filer | $3,000 or more of net tax | Net tax for the previous fiscal year. Quarterly instalments, with the balance settled on the annual return. CRA, Remit the GST/HST by instalments. |
Source: CRA, Who has to pay in instalments; CRA, Due dates for payments: corporate income tax; CRA, Required tax instalments for individuals: who has to pay; CRA, Remit (pay) the GST/HST by instalments. Current as of August 2026.
Losing quarterly instalment status is the part owners do not see coming. One late payroll remittance in the previous twelve months moves a corporation back to monthly, which is nine extra payment dates a year to remember.
Tools that use these figures
All four are free, none of them ask for an email address, and all four are built on the same numbers as the tables above.
| Tool | What it does with these figures |
|---|---|
| CRA deadline checker | Takes your fiscal year end and turns the filing and payment table into actual dates: T2, the two or three month balance-due day, GST/HST by your filing frequency, and slip deadlines. |
| Salary vs dividends calculator | Runs the corporate rates, the personal brackets, the Ontario surtax, the CPP ceilings and the non-eligible dividend gross-up and credits against each other to show the combined corporate and personal cost of each way of taking money out. |
| HST exempt or taxable lookup | Applies the Ontario 13% rate and the health care exemption rules to specific services, which is the part of the GST/HST section that cannot be reduced to a threshold. |
| Subcontractor or employee check | Works through the CRA control and integration factors, which is what decides whether the payroll table or the T5018 line applies to a given worker. |
If you want the figures applied to your own corporation rather than looked up, that is the monthly work, and the pricing page shows what it costs before you speak to anyone.
Frequently asked questions
What is the combined small business tax rate in Ontario for 2026?
12.2% on the first $500,000 of active business income for a taxation year ending before July 1, 2026, made up of the 9% federal small business rate and the 3.2% Ontario small business rate. Ontario's rate drops to 2.2% on July 1, 2026, which takes the combined rate to 11.2%. A taxation year that straddles July 1, 2026 is prorated across the two Ontario rates.
When is corporate tax actually due?
The T2 return is due six months after the tax year end. The balance of tax is due earlier: three months after year end for a CCPC that claimed the small business deduction in the current or previous year and whose prior-year taxable income was within its business limit, and two months after year end for every other corporation. Interest runs from the balance-due day even though the return is not late yet.
What is the GST/HST small supplier threshold?
$30,000 in taxable supplies. There are two tests. If you pass $30,000 in a single calendar quarter you stop being a small supplier immediately and have to charge GST/HST on the sale that took you over. If you pass $30,000 across four consecutive calendar quarters without passing it in any one of them, you stop being a small supplier at the end of the month following that quarter. Registration is due within 29 days of the effective date.
What are the CPP and EI maximums for 2026?
CPP pensionable earnings are capped at $74,600 with a $3,500 basic exemption, at 5.95% for the employee and 5.95% for the employer, so $4,230.45 each at the maximum. CPP2 applies at 4% on earnings between $74,600 and $85,000, a maximum of $416 each. EI insurable earnings are capped at $68,900, at 1.63% for the employee to a maximum of $1,123.07, and 1.4 times that for the employer, which is 2.282% to a maximum of $1,572.30.
How much of a car can the corporation write off in 2026?
For a passenger vehicle bought on or after January 1, 2026, the capital cost is capped at $39,000 before tax in Class 10.1 and depreciated at 30%. The cap for an eligible zero-emission passenger vehicle is $61,000 before tax. If you lease instead, the deduction is capped at $1,100 a month before tax on a lease entered into on or after January 1, 2026, and interest on money borrowed to buy a passenger vehicle is capped at $350 a month.
When does a corporation have to start paying instalments?
When total taxes payable are more than $3,000 in either the current or the previous tax year. Instalments are monthly by default. An eligible CCPC can pay quarterly instead if it claimed the small business deduction, has taxable income of $500,000 or less and taxable capital of $10 million or less including associated corporations, and has a clean compliance record for the previous twelve months.
Published rates only. What the right answer is for your corporation depends on facts this page does not have, and that is the part we do. Anything we could not confirm on canada.ca, ontario.ca or wsib.ca was left out rather than guessed.
Want these figures applied to your corporation?
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