Budget 2026 was tabled on November 5. These are proposals. They are not law yet, and details can change.
The filing date changes. From the 2027 tax year, everyone files and pays by May 15. Your 2026 return is still due April 30, 2027, or June 15, 2027 if you are self-employed.
Instalments get simpler. From 2028, you only pay instalments if your net tax owing is over $7,500. That is up from $3,000.
Some claims get simpler. From 2027, set flat amounts replace receipts and detailed calculations for several claims. Moving expenses and the Home Accessibility Tax Credit are $1,000 each. The adoption claim is $1,200 and the Labour Mobility Deduction for tradespeople is $1,500. Under the medical expense credit, a service dog is $2,000 and incontinence products are $500. The clergy residence deduction is $1,000 a month. One starts sooner: a flat $1,000 claim for celiac disease applies from 2026.
If you care for a family member, the Canada Caregiver Credit becomes refundable from 2027. You can get up to $1,260 a year, even if you owe no tax.
If you are a low income worker, the new Build Canada Workers Benefit pays up to $1,859 for a single person and $3,143 for a family from 2027. You qualify with as little as $500 of earnings. Advance payments will shrink, so plan to wait until filing time for the full amount.
Business owners should note the new Canada Growth Incentive. It can shelter up to $15 million of capital gains per person, per business, on qualifying shares issued from November 5, 2026. Strict conditions apply, and professional practices are excluded.
If you run a massage therapy practice, qualifying services are proposed to be GST and HST exempt from November 6, 2026. The law is not passed yet, so do not change how you bill until it is.