Enter your average monthly withholding amount — the income tax, CPP and EI you deduct and remit in a typical month — to see which CRA remitter category you fall into and when each remittance is due. Thresholds reviewed for the 2025 tax year.
Your withholdings
How it works. CRA classifies employers by their average monthly withholding amount — all the income tax, CPP and EI deducted from staff in a month, plus the employer shares. The category sets how often those deductions must be sent in: quarterly for the smallest compliant employers, monthly for most, and up to four times a month for the largest payrolls.
Your remitter category
—
Based on an average monthly withholding of $0
CRA sets your category from your AMWA of two calendar years ago; new employers start as regular remitters.
An estimate is a starting point. Get your real number.
This calculator uses published rates. Your actual position depends on the credits, deductions and structure behind your numbers.
- A professional tax accountant reviews your figures, not a formula
- Fixed quote before any work starts
- You pay after you approve the filing
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Send your details and we'll confirm your exact position.
How Small Business Payroll Works
Your remitter category comes from your average monthly withholding amount two calendar years back — the look-back is what lets CRA tell you your schedule before the year starts, and it is why a payroll that grew quickly can still be on a slower schedule for a while. Employers with an AMWA under $3,000 can ask to remit quarterly, but only with a perfect compliance record: every return filed and every remittance on time. Most employers are regular remitters, paying by the 15th of the month after the deductions were made; from $25,000 of AMWA the accelerated schedules take over, splitting each month into two or four remittance periods. Late remittances draw penalties that escalate from 3% to 10% of the amount, so knowing your category is not optional.
Our payroll service runs the remittance calendar for you, and the employee cost calculator shows how the amounts you are remitting fit into the true cost of each hire.
What this calculator does not cover
Quebec runs a separate system: source deductions for Quebec employees — QPP, QPIP and Quebec income tax — are remitted to Revenu Québec on its own schedule, so a payroll with Quebec staff has two calendars to keep. This tool also assumes your AMWA is settled history; if this is your first payroll year, CRA starts you as a regular remitter regardless of size. To set the schedule up correctly from the first hire, see our payroll service.
| AMWA | Category | Due |
|---|---|---|
| Under $3,000 | Quarterly option | 15th after quarter end |
| Under $25,000 | Regular | 15th of next month |
| $25,000–$99,999 | Accelerated 1 | 25th / 10th, twice monthly |
| $100,000+ | Accelerated 2 | 3 working days after each period |
Rates reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Founder and Tax Accountant. Federal and provincial rates change annually, and this tool is an estimate for planning rather than tax advice. Confirm current figures before relying on them for a filing.
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Rates and method reviewed by Udit Gupta
Ex Big 4 — Ernst & Young, Deloitte · International & cross-border tax specialist · CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program) · Chartered accountant, ICAI & MIA
Udit Gupta has over 15 years of experience helping corporations and business owners with corporate structuring, corporate tax filing, bookkeeping, payroll, GST/HST, cross-border tax and CRA representation. He is Big 4 trained, at Ernst & Young and Deloitte, and qualified as a chartered accountant in India and again in Malaysia. In 2014 he founded his accounting practice to serve entrepreneurs, startups and non-resident business owners across Canada. View full member bio.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India — member 521458 · Malaysian Institute of Accountants — member CA 44667 · Ex Big 4: Ernst & Young, Deloitte · CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program), completed 19 Dec 2023 · In-Depth GST/HST Part I, 12 Jul 2022 · Part II, 5 Jul 2023
Editorial policy. Every page is researched against primary sources — the Income Tax Act, CRA publications and CPA Canada guidance — and every rate or threshold is stated with the tax year it applies to.
Sources. CRA — Payroll · CRA — Keeping records · Income Tax Act (Justice Laws Website)