Affordable Board and Treasurer Reporting for Canadian Non-Profits and Charities

Paper returns go to the CRA tax centre that serves your province or territory of residence, not to one national address. The correct address is printed in the paper return package and listed on canada.ca under mailing addresses for individual returns, and it differs for non-residents and for business returns. Filing electronically is much faster: for the 2025 tax year the CRA aims to issue a refund on an online return in about two weeks, against a considerably longer standard on paper.

As the rules stand for the 2025 tax year filed in 2026, the late-filing penalty is 5% of the balance owing plus 1% of that balance for each full month the return is late, to a maximum of 12 months, so 17% at worst. It rises to 10% plus 2% per month for up to 20 months, a 50% maximum, but only where the CRA formally demanded the return and had already charged a late-filing penalty for any of the three preceding tax years. Interest compounds daily.

Income tax starts once taxable income passes the basic personal amount, and a separate provincial or territorial amount applies on top, so the break-even point shifts every year with indexation and differs by where you live. Look up the current amounts on the CRA site or in the year's return package. Credits for tuition, disability, pension income or dependants push the point higher. Filing can still be worthwhile or required with no tax owing, for benefits and credits.

Yes. Rent you receive is taxable income. You report the gross rents, subtract deductible expenses such as mortgage interest, property tax, insurance, utilities you pay, repairs, condominium fees and advertising, and the net rental profit is added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rate. There is no separate rental tax rate. A rental loss can generally offset other income where the property is genuinely rented at fair market value.

Two different categories carry no tax. Zero-rated supplies are taxed at nil, including basic groceries, prescription drugs, medical devices and most agricultural products, and the seller can still claim input tax credits. Exempt supplies, such as most residential rent, health and dental care and financial services, carry no tax and no input tax credits. Small suppliers below the $30,000 threshold, unchanged for 2025 and 2026, also charge nothing until they register. The CRA lists both categories.

Most housing support is not taxable. Rent supplements, rent-geared-to-income subsidies and one-time housing top-ups are benefit payments rather than income, and there is normally no slip and nothing to report. Social assistance that happens to include a shelter component is different: it comes on a slip, goes into income and is then deducted, which affects benefit calculations but not tax. If you received a slip, report it; if not, check that program's own page.

For individuals the tax year is the calendar year, January through December. For the 2025 year, online filing opened 23 February 2026 and the filing and payment deadline was 30 April 2026; if you or your spouse were self-employed, filing ran to 15 June 2026 but payment was still due 30 April 2026. A corporation picks its own fiscal year end instead, with the T2 due six months after that date.

Not automatically. A refund is overpaid tax coming back, so it turns on how much was withheld against what you owe, not on earning less. Lower income does mean a smaller tax bill and can qualify you for income-tested credits and benefits, which is why lower earners often see money back. Someone with no withholding at all, such as a self-employed person, can earn very little and still owe a balance.

A bursary is treated the same way as a scholarship. The payer reports it on a T4A, and the scholarship exemption then removes the amount from income for a student enrolled full time in a qualifying educational program. Part-time students can exempt an amount tied to tuition and program costs. Money that is really compensation for work is taxable and belongs in income, and support for training outside a qualifying program is taxable only beyond the small basic exemption that applies to awards which do not qualify.

Nothing comes back federally, because there is no federal deduction or credit for rent on your home. Some provinces do pay a benefit that takes rent into account, including Ontario, Manitoba and Quebec, and the amount turns on your income, family size, age and the rent actually paid in the year. You claim it on the provincial schedule attached to your return, so it is worth filing even in a year with little or no income.

A charity is not exempt as an organisation. What matters is the supply. Many goods and services a registered charity provides are exempt, so no GST/HST is charged on them and no input tax credit can be claimed on the related costs. A charity making taxable supplies above the small-supplier threshold must register and charge tax at the combined rate for the province of supply, using the special net tax calculation for charities. Public service body rebates recover part of the rest.

Not by default. Property tax is governed by provincial legislation and municipal bylaws rather than by the CRA, so any exemption depends on where the property sits and how it is used. Places of worship, certain charitable and educational uses and some seniors housing commonly qualify, and many municipalities offer partial rebates to registered charities that lease space. Exemption is rarely automatic: you usually have to apply, and reapply, with evidence of use and status.