US and Canada tax deadlines for 2027, and what to gather first

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The button asks askROI for a spreadsheet checklist for a US freelancer's 2026 federal return, with the deadlines at the top and a link to the IRS page behind each item. If you file in Canada, swap in your slips and the CRA, and send it.

Every spring, people ask the same question in a hurry: when are taxes due in 2027? The tax deadline 2027 dates for 2026 returns are April 15, 2027 in the US and April 30, 2027 in Canada. Self-employed Canadians get until June 15 to file, but not to pay.

Below are the dates from the IRS and the CRA themselves (all pages checked November 6, 2026), the catch in each country's extension, and a list of what to gather before you sit down to file.

US: file and pay by April 15, 2027

The IRS says the tax deadline for 2026 tax returns is April 15, 2027. That's a Thursday, so no weekend shift applies. It's the deadline to file and the deadline to pay: the IRS individual filing page calls it "the deadline to file and pay taxes".

If you need more time to file, you can get an extension to October 15 (in 2027, a Friday). There are three ways to ask: pay what you owe online and check the box saying the payment is for an extension, request it through IRS Free File, or send Form 4868. You have to ask by the April due date.

The extension covers paperwork only. In the IRS's words, "The extension is only for filing your return", and payment for taxes you owe is due by the filing deadline even if you get a filing extension. If you think you'll owe, estimate the amount and pay it by April 15.

US estimated tax: one payment left for 2026

If you freelance or have other income with no tax withheld, you may need to pay estimated tax through the year. The 1040-ES says you generally must if you expect to owe at least $1,000 for 2026 after withholding and refundable credits, and your withholding and credits will come to less than the smaller of 90% of your 2026 tax or 100% of your 2025 tax (110% if your 2025 adjusted gross income was over $150,000, or over $75,000 if you are married filing separately). The 2026 Form 1040-ES lists the four payments for the 2026 tax year: April 15, 2026, June 15, 2026, September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027.

One detail on that last one: you can skip the January 15, 2027 payment if you file your 2026 return by February 1, 2027 and pay the whole balance with it.

For 2027 income, the IRS schedule is the same pattern: April 15 for January to March, June 15 for April and May, September 15 for June to August, and January 15 of the next year for September to December. When a date lands on a weekend or legal holiday, the next business day counts. The 2027 Form 1040-ES isn't out yet, so check it for the exact January 2028 date.

Canada: April 30 for most people, June 15 for the self-employed

The CRA sets the return deadline at April 30 for most taxpayers and June 15 for the self-employed, with payment due April 30. Its individuals page still shows the dates for 2025 returns. Applied to 2026 returns, the CRA tax deadline in 2027 is Friday, April 30, so no weekend shift applies.

For self-employed people, the CRA has already posted its 2027 tax deadlines fact sheet. If you or your spouse or common-law partner ran a business in 2026, your filing deadline is June 15, 2027, but the payment deadline for any balance owing is April 30, 2027. The exception: if that business's expenses were mostly tax shelter investments, the filing deadline stays April 30, 2027.

That split is where people get caught. Filing in June is fine. Paying in June costs you, because the CRA charges daily compound interest on any balance from the day after it was due until it's paid.

When a due date falls on a weekend or a public holiday the CRA recognizes, the CRA counts a return or payment as on time if it arrives on the next business day.

Canadian instalments and Quebec returns

If your net tax owing is more than $3,000 (or $1,800 in Quebec) for the current year and either of the two years before, you may have to pay tax instalments. They're due March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15; the CRA's self-employed fact sheet lists the same four dates for 2027. Farmers and fishers have one instalment date, December 31.

Quebec residents file two returns: the federal one with the CRA and a provincial one with Revenu Québec. Revenu Québec's filing deadline page gives the same shape: April 30 for most people, June 15 if you or your spouse ran a business, and any balance due by April 30.

What to gather before you file

Most of the waiting in tax season is for paper. The IRS says US income forms arrive in January or February, so start a list now and tick things off as they come in.

US employees, from the IRS Gather your documents page:

• Your Social Security number or ITIN, and one for everyone on your return
• Last year's adjusted gross income, if you filed
• Form W-2 from each employer
• Any 1099 forms: 1099-INT for interest, 1099-DIV for dividends, 1099-R for pensions, 1099-G for unemployment
• Form 1095-A if you had Marketplace health insurance
• Records for credits and deductions: childcare, retirement contributions, HSA or FSA contributions, donations
• Your bank account and routing numbers for a refund by direct deposit

US freelancers need all of that, plus:

• Form 1099-NEC from clients and 1099-K from payment apps or marketplaces
• Bank, payment app and card processor statements
• Receipts and mileage logs, and records of office expenses
• Your 2026 estimated tax payments and the dates you made them

Canadian employees need their slips (the CRA lists the T4 and T4A as the common ones), plus receipts for anything they claim. Canadian freelancers also need their business income and expenses for Form T2125 and a record of any instalments paid.

The Try it button builds the freelancer version as a spreadsheet with a column to tick each item off, through the same kind of request as the AI Excel generator. If your receipts are a pile, the AI expense report generator sorts them into categories with subtotals first.

Check any AI answer about a tax figure

AI tools answer date questions confidently, and a calendar from a few years ago looks just like this year's. Before you put a date or a threshold in your diary, open the source. A good answer links the IRS or CRA page it used; if it doesn't, ask for the link, and treat a figure without one as unchecked. The AI fact checker rates each claim against its sources if you'd rather check a whole answer at once.

The pages in this post change each filing season, so check them again in the spring. This is general information about deadlines, not tax advice. For your own situation, read the IRS or CRA page, or talk to a tax professional.