Every corporation files an annual return, and missing it can put its good standing at risk. We prepare and file your annual return, keep your directors, officers and addresses current, and track the date for you, whether you are an Ontario or a federal corporation.
Two quick answers. Nothing you type is saved or sent.
It depends where the corporation was incorporated. The two have different dates and different filing sites.
Within 6 months of your fiscal year-end.
Within 60 days after your anniversary date.
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Annual return dates are listed with the other key CRA and business deadlines. See the deadlines →
A short list, and we can gather most of it for you.
A 9-digit code the ministry gives your corporation. You can share it with us so we can file for you.
Full names and addresses for everyone currently on record, and any change since the last filing.
The registered or head office address, which is on the public record.
The fiscal year-end for an Ontario corporation, or the anniversary date for a federal one.
Details of individuals with significant control, filed with the federal return.
The official email on file, so government notices reach you.
Neither registry lets it slide forever, and the effects are practical before they are legal.
A corporation that does not file is subject to cancellation, and it cannot maintain a court proceeding about its business without the court’s leave. A notice of default may be published in The Ontario Gazette first.
The return shows as overdue and blocks a Certificate of Compliance. The law allows dissolution after one year, Corporations Canada’s policy is two, and a final notice gives 120 more days.
In Ontario, property not disposed of at dissolution goes to the Crown, and a business that carries on does so without corporate status.
For an Ontario default cancellation, an interested person can apply for revival within 20 years by filing Articles of Revival. We prepare the filings.
Already behind? Do not wait for a notice. We can file the missing return, bring your record up to date and check your status.
Four steps, and you only need to be involved in the first.
We look up your corporation, confirm the key date and see what is already on file.
You confirm directors, officers and addresses, or tell us what changed.
We submit the return, and a notice of change if something moved, in the right registry.
We note next year’s date so it does not catch you by surprise.
Ontario or federal, in the correct registry and on time.
Your corporate information checked and changes reported.
Your filing date noted every year.
Your corporation’s status reviewed in the registry.
Overdue returns filed, and a revival prepared where that is needed.
Questions about the filing answered by a person.
The Ontario ministry and Corporations Canada decide a corporation’s status, and neither can be promised an outcome. We promise accurate information, filed on time, and honest advice if a corporation is already in default.
A current corporation with nothing changed is a short job, and one several years behind is not. We quote each case, and you will know what we charge before we start. Here is what shapes the quote.
Prefer to talk it through first? Call us, or send a quote request.
Call (437) 421-7171 Request a QuoteMost annual returns are filed online, so you can work with us by phone, video and secure upload. You are always welcome at one of our four offices.
We file Ontario and federal returns for corporations anywhere in Canada. Other provinces have their own rules, so ask us about yours.
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Straight answers to what corporation owners ask us.
It is a yearly filing that confirms your corporation’s basic information, such as its directors, officers and addresses, with the registry that holds its record. It is separate from your corporate income tax return.
Within 6 months of the corporation’s fiscal year-end. A corporation with a December 31 year-end files by June 30.
Within 60 days after the anniversary date, which is the date the corporation was incorporated, amalgamated or continued. It cannot be filed before that date, and none is due for the year of incorporation.
The ministry’s published guidance focuses on cancellation rather than a set late fee. A corporation that does not file is subject to cancellation, and it cannot maintain a court proceeding about its business without leave of the court. Filing late is better than not filing, and we can help you catch up.
In the Ontario Business Registry. The CRA stopped accepting Ontario annual returns on May 15, 2021. You need your company key, an Ontario.ca Login and an Ontario Business Account, or an intermediary such as an accountant can file with your key.
A 9-digit code unique to your Ontario business, needed to file in the Ontario Business Registry. The ministry provides it, and you can share it with an accountant so they can file for you.
An Ontario corporation must report a change to its information within 15 days, using a Notice of Change or the filing that matches the change. You do not wait for the annual return.
It is subject to cancellation, and it cannot maintain a court proceeding about its business without leave of the court. A notice of default may be published in The Ontario Gazette, and if the default is not fixed the corporation can be cancelled.
Often, yes. For a cancellation for a filing default, an interested person can apply for revival within 20 years by filing Articles of Revival. Property that went to the Crown is generally not returned, so it is better to file before it comes to that.
It shows as overdue in the federal database, and the corporation cannot get a Certificate of Compliance. The law allows dissolution after one year of non-filing, Corporations Canada’s policy is to wait two years, and a final notice gives 120 more days.
Since January 22, 2024, a federal corporation files information about the individuals who control it at the same time as its annual return, in the same 60-day window.
The registries ask every corporation on their record to file, whether or not it is trading. If a corporation is no longer needed, closing it properly is the way to stop the filings.
Yes. For an Ontario corporation we file with your company key, and for a federal one we file in the Online Filing Centre. We also check that your directors, officers and addresses are current.
We quote each case after a free consultation, because a current corporation and one several years behind are very different. You will know the cost before we start.
We confirm the rules on the registries’ own pages. You can read them too:
Checked against these pages in October 2026. Rules and forms change, so we confirm the current position for your corporation before we start. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Get or recover the company key you need to file in Ontario.
Learn moreT2 returns, filed separately from your annual return.
Learn moreClean records for your corporation all year.
Learn moreChanging your corporation’s name? We prepare the filing.
Learn moreRegistrations and renewals for a business name.
Learn moreClosing a corporation properly, with its final filings.
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