Cross-Border Filing Deadlines: The U.S. and Canadian Calendar Side by Side

A cross-border filer has two main returns with different due dates, two sets of extension rules, and a dozen form-specific deadlines that fall outside both. Some are hard: the NR6 has to be in before the first rent payment, the Form 8840 before June 15, the Form 706-NA within nine months of death. Others are soft but expensive: an extension to file is not an extension to pay in either country, and interest runs from the original date. Here is the calendar in order.

Key takeaways

• Canada: the T1 is due April 30 (June 15 if you or your spouse are self-employed), but any balance owing is due April 30 regardless. There is no extension. Quebec's TP-1 follows the same dates.
• US: the 1040 is due April 15; taxpayers abroad get an automatic extension to June 15; Form 4868 extends filing to October 15. Payment is due April 15 in all cases, with interest from that date.
• FBAR: due April 15 with an automatic extension to October 15; filed with FinCEN, not the IRS.
• Non-resident US return (1040-NR): due June 15 if the filer had no US wages subject to withholding; April 15 if they did. Form 8840 follows the same date.
• Canadian non-resident filings: NR6 before January 1 (or the first rent payment); Section 216 return by June 30; Section 217 return by June 30; T2062 for Section 116 within 10 days of a sale.

The Canadian calendar

• January 1. NR6 for the coming year's rental withholding (or before the first payment).
• February 28. T4, T4A, T5 slips issued; NR4 slips filed by March 31.
• March 15. First instalment payment for individuals who owe more than $3,000 ($1,800 Quebec).
• April 30. T1 due for most individuals; balance owing due for everyone; T1135 due with the T1; TP-1 due in Quebec.
• June 15. T1 due for self-employed individuals and their spouses (balance still due April 30); second instalment.
• June 30. Section 216 return (non-resident rental income) and Section 217 return (non-resident electing to file on Canadian-source pension or RRSP income); NR4 information return with the Section 216 filing where applicable.
• September 15 and December 15. Third and fourth instalments.
• Within 10 days of a sale. T2062 notification for a non-resident selling taxable Canadian property.
• Departure year. The final T1 is due April 30 of the following year, with the T1243 and T1161; T1244 security for deferred departure tax by the same date.
• Death. The final return is due April 30 of the following year, or six months after death if later.

The US calendar

• January 15. Fourth estimated tax payment for the prior year.
• March 15. Form 3520-A for a foreign trust (TFSA, RESP) with a calendar year; extendable on Form 7004.
• April 15. 1040 due; payment due; first estimated payment; FBAR due (automatic extension to October 15); Form 4868 extension request; Form 709 gift tax return; 1040-NR due for non-residents with US wages.
• June 15. Automatic extension for taxpayers abroad; 1040-NR due for non-residents without US wages; Form 8840; second estimated payment.
• September 15. Third estimated payment.
• October 15. Extended 1040 due; extended FBAR due; Form 3520 due with the extended 1040.
• Nine months after death. Form 706 (US citizen or resident estate) or Form 706-NA (non-resident estate with US-situs assets); extendable six months.
• Within 20 days of closing. Forms 8288 and 8288-A for FIRPTA withholding.
• Before closing. Form 8288-B to reduce FIRPTA withholding.

Extensions and payment

Canada has no extension mechanism; late filing incurs a penalty of 5% of the balance plus 1% per month, and interest from April 30. The US extension is automatic on request but extends only the filing; interest and, where an underpayment exceeds thresholds, penalties run from April 15. A cross-border filer who waits for the Canadian return to be finished before computing the US foreign tax credit should extend the US return and pay an estimate by April 15.

The sequencing problem

The US foreign tax credit depends on the Canadian tax; the Canadian foreign tax credit depends on the US tax. In practice, the return in the country where most of the income arises is prepared first. A Canadian resident with US rental income prepares the 1040-NR first (due June 15) and the T1 second (due April 30), which means the T1 is prepared with an estimate of the US tax and adjusted if needed. A US citizen in Canada prepares the T1 first (April 30) and the 1040 on extension (October 15) with the final Canadian numbers.

Worked example

A Toronto couple moved to Florida on June 30, 2026, keep a rented Toronto condo, and hold RRSPs.

• By January 1, 2027. NR6 for the 2027 rental year (2026's should have been filed before the first post-departure rent payment).
• April 15, 2027. US 1040 (dual-status) due; extend to October 15 with a payment estimate; FBAR due (auto-extended).
• April 30, 2027. Final Canadian T1 with departure date, T1243, and T1161; balance owing.
• June 30, 2027. Section 216 return for the 2026 post-departure rental income.
• October 15, 2027. Extended 1040 with the Article XIII(7) election, Form 8938, and the foreign tax credit based on the final Canadian numbers; extended FBAR.

Official sources

"April 30, 2026: Deadline to file your taxes [...] June 15, 2026: Deadline to file your taxes if you or your spouse or common-law partner were self-employed in 2025 [...] April 30, 2026: Deadline to pay your taxes" — Canada Revenue Agency, Get ready to do your taxes, https://www.canada.ca/en/services/taxes/income-tax/personal-income-tax/get-ready-taxes.html

"If you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien residing overseas or are in the military on duty outside the U.S., on the regular due date of your return, you are allowed an automatic 2-month extension of time to file your return without requesting an extension. [...] Even if you are allowed an extension, you will have to pay interest on any tax not paid by the regular due date of your return." — Internal Revenue Service, U.S. citizens and resident aliens abroad, https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/us-citizens-and-resident-aliens-abroad

"A U.S. person, including a citizen, resident, corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust and estate, must file an FBAR to report: a financial interest in or signature or other authority over at least one financial account located outside the United States if the aggregate value of those foreign financial accounts exceeded $10,000 at any time during the calendar year reported." — Internal Revenue Service, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR), https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/report-of-foreign-bank-and-financial-accounts-fbar

Practitioner note

The deadline that costs cross-border clients the most is the one nobody told them about: the NR6 before the first rent payment, the Form 8840 by June 15, the Form 706-NA nine months after a death. None of them is on either country's main return. We keep a single calendar per client with every form on it.

See also: Planning a move? Start with the Canada-to-US tax checklist and browse every corridor by city, province, and state.

Next step

Fairlight prepares the cross-border filing calendar, the sequencing of both returns, and the form-specific filings that fall outside either country's main deadline. See cross-border pricing or book a call.