CRA tax slips are the information returns that employers, banks, investment firms, and government agencies file with the Canada Revenue Agency to report the income they paid you during the year. The agency uses them to match against what you report on your return, so the numbers need to line up. You can view your slips through CRA My Account, receive paper or electronic copies directly from each issuer, or import them into certified tax software using Auto-fill My Return.1Canada Revenue Agency. Get a Copy of Your Tax Slips Your filing deadline for 2025 income is April 30, 2026, or June 15, 2026, if you or your spouse are self-employed.2Canada Revenue Agency. Due Dates and Payment Dates – Personal Income Tax
Employment and Pension Slips
The T4, Statement of Remuneration Paid, is the slip most Canadians see first. It reports your employment earnings, the income tax your employer withheld, and any registered pension plan contributions. Taxable benefits such as a company car or employer-paid health premiums appear in the “Other information” area at the bottom.3Canada Revenue Agency. T4 Slip: Statement of Remuneration Paid
The T4A, Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other Income, is a catch-all for payments that don’t belong on a standard T4. Pension and superannuation income goes in box 016, annuities in box 024, and scholarships or bursaries in box 105.4Canada Revenue Agency. T4A Slip: Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other Income Research grants (box 104) and postdoctoral fellowship income (box 210) have their own boxes. Self-employed commissions or fees for services often show up on a T4A too, because the payer wasn’t your employer.
Retirees collecting Old Age Security receive a T4A(OAS), which breaks out the taxable pension paid, any overpayment recoveries, and Guaranteed Income Supplement amounts.5Canada Revenue Agency. T4A(OAS), Statement of Old Age Security Canada Pension Plan and Quebec Pension Plan recipients get a T4A(P) with the same kind of detail for their CPP or QPP benefits.
RRSP withdrawals trigger a T4RSP. It reports RRSP income including early withdrawals, Home Buyers’ Plan amounts, and Lifelong Learning Plan withdrawals, along with the tax the plan administrator held back at source.6Canada Revenue Agency. T4RSP Statement of RRSP Income
Investment, Trust, and Partnership Slips
The T5, Statement of Investment Income, covers interest, dividends, and royalties. Payers must issue a T5 whenever the total paid to a recipient reaches $50 or more in a year.7Canada Revenue Agency. When Do You Have to Prepare a T5 Slip Expect one from each financial institution where your savings accounts, GICs, or corporate bond interest crossed that threshold.
The T5008, Statement of Securities Transactions, reports what you received when you sold or redeemed stocks, bonds, mutual fund units, or other securities. It shows the proceeds but may not reflect your adjusted cost base, so you generally need your own purchase records to calculate the capital gain or loss.8Canada Revenue Agency. T5008 Statement of Securities Transactions – Slip Information for Individuals This is where errors happen most often: people enter the proceeds without subtracting cost, which overstates the gain.
Trust income flows through the T3, Statement of Trust Income Allocations and Designations. Trustees issue one to each beneficiary who received a share of the trust’s income during the year, including capital gains and taxable interest.9Canada Revenue Agency. T3 Trust Guide – Section: Chapter 4 – T3 Slip and T3 Summary If you hold mutual funds outside a registered account, the fund trust typically sends a T3 each spring.
Partners in a business partnership get a T5013, Statement of Partnership Income, which reports each partner’s share of income, losses, and other allocable amounts. The partnership itself doesn’t pay tax; each partner reports their share on their personal return.10Canada Revenue Agency. T5013 Statement of Partnership Income
Government Benefit and Education Slips
Employment Insurance benefits, including regular, maternity, parental, and work-sharing payments, appear on the T4E, Statement of Employment Insurance and Other Benefits. EI is taxable, so the slip also shows any tax withheld at source.11Canada Revenue Agency. T4E Slip: Statement of Employment Insurance and Other Benefits
Workers’ compensation and social assistance payments come on the T5007, Statement of Benefits. Workers’ compensation includes wage-loss replacement for injuries, disability payments, and survivor benefits paid after a workplace death. Social assistance covers needs-tested payments for food, clothing, and shelter.12Canada Revenue Agency. Guide T5007 – Return of Benefits Workers’ compensation itself isn’t taxed, but you still report it because it factors into other credit calculations.
Students get a T2202, Tuition Enrolment Certificate, from their designated educational institution. It reports eligible tuition fees paid and the months of full-time or part-time enrolment, which feeds the tuition tax credit.13Canada Revenue Agency. T2202 Tuition Enrolment Certificate Unused tuition credits can be transferred to a parent, grandparent, or spouse, or carried forward.
When Your Slips Should Arrive
Most slips, including the T4, T5, and T4A, must reach you by the last day of February following the calendar year they cover.14Canada Revenue Agency. Distribute the Slips Issuers deliver them by mail or through secure online portals, and the CRA gets its own copy at the same time.
The T3 is different. Trustees have 90 days after the trust’s tax year-end to send T3 slips.9Canada Revenue Agency. T3 Trust Guide – Section: Chapter 4 – T3 Slip and T3 Summary Since nearly all trusts must use a December 31 year-end, that lands on March 31 for most beneficiaries.15Canada Revenue Agency. Tax Year-End and Fiscal Period If you hold mutual funds in a non-registered account, that later date is why your paperwork sometimes shows up weeks after everything else.
How to Access Your Slips
CRA My Account is the fastest way to see your slips. You can sign in with a Sign-In Partner (your existing online banking credentials), a CRA user ID and password, or a provincial partner login if you’re in British Columbia or Alberta.16Canada Revenue Agency. Sign In to Your CRA Account First-time users who don’t sign in through a bank receive a CRA security code by mail to finish identity verification. Once inside, you can view slips issuers have submitted to the CRA for the current and prior tax years.1Canada Revenue Agency. Get a Copy of Your Tax Slips
Auto-fill My Return takes it a step further. With CRA-certified tax software, Auto-fill pulls your available slip data directly into the return, which cuts down manual entry and transposition errors.17Canada Revenue Agency. Auto-fill My Return Before you trust it, check that every slip you expect has actually appeared. Issuers upload on their own schedule, and some slips trickle in through March.
Without internet access, call the CRA’s individual tax enquiries line at 1-800-959-8281 (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET, with Saturday hours during filing season).18Canada Revenue Agency. Contact the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) An agent will verify your identity from previous filings and can mail slip copies to the address on file.
If you work with an accountant or tax preparer, they can pull your slips through the Represent a Client portal once you authorize them. The representative submits a request using their RepID, and you confirm it by logging into My Account and selecting “Confirm pending authorizations” under your profile.19Canada Revenue Agency. Authorize a Representative: How to Give Authorization
If a Slip Is Missing or Wrong
Contact the issuer first. When a slip contains an error, the issuer must file an amended version with the CRA.20Canada Revenue Agency. Make Corrections After Filing If the issuer is out of business or simply won’t respond, file your return on time anyway.
To estimate income for a missing slip, add up your pay stubs or bank statements for the year. Include a note with your return giving the issuer’s name and address, the type of income involved, and the steps you took to get the slip. Electronic filers should keep those supporting documents in case the CRA asks for them; paper filers should attach copies.1Canada Revenue Agency. Get a Copy of Your Tax Slips
Filing with an estimate and correcting later beats filing late. A late return with a balance owing triggers a penalty of 5% of the balance, plus 1% for each full month the return stays outstanding, up to 12 months.21Canada Revenue Agency. Interest and Penalties on Late Taxes The CRA also charges compound daily interest on overdue amounts, at a prescribed rate of 7% for the first quarter of 2026.22Canada Revenue Agency. Interest Rates for the First Calendar Quarter
What Happens If You Leave a Slip Off
Because the CRA already has its own copy of each slip, an omission is easy for the automated system to catch. If you fail to report $500 or more of income and you also failed to report income in any of the three preceding tax years, the CRA can apply a repeated-failure penalty. That penalty is the lesser of 10% of the unreported amount or 50% of the difference between the additional tax owing and any tax already withheld on that income.23Canada Revenue Agency. False Reporting or Repeated Failure to Report Income Federal and provincial penalties can both apply.
If you realize years later that a past return missed income, the Voluntary Disclosures Program may reduce or eliminate penalties and prosecution. You have to come forward before the CRA starts an audit or investigation, include all relevant documentation, and either pay the estimated tax owing or arrange a payment plan. The disclosure must be at least one year or one reporting period past the original due date.24Canada Revenue Agency. Who Is Eligible – Voluntary Disclosures Program (VDP) It won’t help if you’re already under audit for the same issue or if the corrected return would result in a refund.