CRA Tax Instalment Calculator
See your quarterly instalment payments under all three CRA methods, with the March, June, September, and December due dates. Free, instant, no signup.
| Method | Mar 15 | Jun 15 | Sep 15 | Dec 15 | Year Total |
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How CRA Tax Instalments Work
If most of your income has no tax withheld at source — you're self-employed, collect rent, live off investments, or have pension income with too little withholding — the CRA expects you to pre-pay your tax in four quarterly instalments instead of one lump sum at filing.
your net tax owing is more than $3,000 ($1,800 in Quebec) in the current year and in either of the two previous years. If you're below the threshold, you don't have to pay instalments at all.
The three options explained
- No-calculation option: the amounts CRA prints on your instalment reminders. Front-loaded on 2 years ago, then trued-up to last year. Pay these and you never owe instalment interest.
- Prior-year option: last year's net tax split into four equal payments. Also protects you from interest.
- Current-year option: your estimated tax this year split into four. Lowest payments if your income dropped — but you owe interest if you underestimate.
The due dates are always March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15. This calculator is an estimate — your official amounts come from the CRA instalment reminders mailed to you or in CRA My Account.
Frequently Asked Questions
Anyone whose net tax owing exceeds $3,000 ($1,800 in Quebec) this year and in one of the two prior years — often the self-employed, investors, landlords, and retirees.
March 15, June 15, September 15, and December 15 — the next business day if a date lands on a weekend or holiday.
The no-calculation and prior-year options always avoid instalment interest. The current-year option can trigger interest if you underestimate.
If you were required to pay and don't, the CRA charges instalment interest and possibly a penalty on top of the tax you still owe.
Who actually has to pay instalments
You owe instalments if your net tax owing exceeds $3,000 in the current year and in either of the two previous years. In Quebec the federal threshold is $1,800, with a separate provincial requirement. The test is net tax owing — the amount left after deductions at source — not total tax paid. Someone with $90,000 of employment income and full payroll withholding almost never triggers it.
The people who do are self-employed workers, those with significant investment or rental income, retirees drawing from RRIFs without enough withheld, and anyone with a second income stream nobody is deducting tax from. It usually appears in year two: the first year produces a large balance owing, and the CRA then asks for instalments going forward.
Three methods — and only one carries no risk
You may choose any of the three, and you do not have to tell the CRA which you used.
Pay exactly what the CRA's instalment reminder says. This is the only method that cannot attract interest — if you pay the stated amounts on time, you are protected even if you end up owing more. Best choice when your income is steady or rising.
Base instalments on last year's net tax owing, split into four. Useful when this year looks like last year but the CRA's reminder is based on an older, higher year.
Estimate what you will owe this year and pay a quarter each time. This is the one that can bite. Guess low and the CRA charges instalment interest — and it is not deductible. Only sensible when you are confident income has genuinely fallen.
Due dates, and how the interest works
Personal instalments are due March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15. If the date falls on a weekend or holiday the next business day is fine. Note these are not calendar quarters — the gap between December and March is three months, but between March and June is only three as well; the schedule is fixed regardless of when you earn the income.
Instalment interest is charged at the CRA's prescribed rate and compounds daily. It works both ways: paying an instalment early earns offset interest that can cancel out a later shortfall. If the interest exceeds a set threshold, an additional instalment penalty applies on top. Missing one payment entirely and catching up later is usually cheaper than it looks, because the offset mechanism nets the two — but do not rely on that as a plan.
Practical points
- A reminder is not an assessment. You can ignore the CRA's figure and use a different method — you are only exposed if you underpay.
- Instalments cover federal and provincial tax together everywhere except Quebec, which requires separate payments to Revenu Québec.
- Set the money aside as you earn it. A common approach is moving 25–30% of each self-employed payment into a separate account the day it arrives.
- GST/HST instalments are separate and follow their own schedule if your annual net tax exceeds the threshold.
- Increase withholding instead, if you can. If you also have employment income or a pension, asking for extra tax to be withheld at source can remove the instalment requirement entirely — and withholding is never subject to instalment interest.