How to File Your First Canadian Tax Return as a Newcomer in 2026 for the 2025 Tax Year
Learn how newcomers to Canada file their first 2025 income tax and benefit return in 2026, including tax residency, date of entry, worldwide income, SIN or temporary tax number, filing options, deadlines and benefits.
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If you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes in 2025, your first Canadian income tax and benefit return generally covers the period from the date you became a Canadian tax resident to December 31, 2025. Enter your date of entry, report your worldwide income for the part of 2025 when you were a Canadian resident, and report certain Canadian-source income earned before becoming a resident when the CRA rules require it. You normally need a Social Insurance Number or applicable CRA tax number to file. Most first-time filers can file electronically with CRA-certified software, including eligible newcomers using NETFILE. For most individuals, the 2025 return was due April 30, 2026.
What you need
- Your date of entry into Canada and the date you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes.
- Your Social Insurance Number, or an applicable temporary tax number or individual tax number where permitted by CRA rules.
- Canadian tax slips such as T4, T4A, T5 or T5007 slips that apply to your income.
- Details of income from all sources inside and outside Canada for the period when you were a resident of Canada in 2025.
- Details of certain Canadian-source income earned during the part of 2025 before you became a Canadian resident, when applicable.
- Your spouse's or common-law partner's income information where required, including net world income information used for tax credits and benefits.
- Receipts and supporting records for deductions, credits and expenses you intend to claim.
- The 2025 tax package for the province or territory where you resided on December 31, 2025 if filing on paper.
Eligibility
Canada's income tax system is based on residency for tax purposes rather than immigration status. A newcomer who entered Canada and established significant residential ties may become a Canadian resident for income tax purposes during the year. Significant residential ties can include a home in Canada, a spouse or common-law partner in Canada and dependants in Canada.
You generally need to file a return if you owe tax, want to claim a refund, or want to begin or continue receiving benefits and credits for which filing is required. Newcomers should also file even where income is low or nil when filing is needed to establish or maintain benefit and credit payments.
If you are unsure whether or when you became a resident of Canada for tax purposes, you can submit Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada), to ask the CRA for an opinion.
How to do it
- Determine the date you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes. This is generally based on when you established significant residential ties with Canada, not simply your immigration status.
- Get a Social Insurance Number from Service Canada if you are eligible. If Service Canada cannot issue you a SIN, CRA rules may allow a temporary tax number. If you have no SIN, TTN or ITN and cannot obtain one before filing, follow the CRA's paper-filing instructions for people without a tax identification number.
- Collect your Canadian tax slips, including any applicable T4, T4A, T5, T5007 and other information slips, plus receipts for deductions, credits and expenses you plan to claim.
- Calculate and report your worldwide income in Canadian dollars for the part of 2025 when you were considered a resident of Canada. This includes income from sources both inside and outside Canada.
- Report any Canadian-source income that the CRA requires for the part of the year before you became a Canadian resident.
- Enter your date of entry in the residence information section of the return. If you became a resident during 2025, the return requires the date you entered Canada or became resident for tax purposes.
- Provide your spouse's or common-law partner's information where applicable, including their net world income when required for credits and benefit calculations.
- Use the tax package for the province or territory where you resided on December 31, 2025. Quebec residents also file a separate provincial return with Revenu Québec.
- File electronically using CRA-certified software and NETFILE if eligible. First-time filers can generally file electronically, and eligible newcomers can use NETFILE with a valid SIN or qualifying temporary tax number. If electronic filing is unavailable, file a paper return.
- Pay any balance owing by the applicable payment deadline. For most individuals, the 2025 filing and payment deadline was April 30, 2026. A qualifying self-employed individual generally had until June 15, 2026 to file, while the balance owing was still generally due April 30, 2026.
- After the CRA processes your first return, review your notice of assessment. You can then use the CRA's available account registration options to access online tax services.
- Keep your tax slips, receipts and supporting documents in case the CRA asks to review your return.
How newcomers file a first Canadian tax return in 2026
If you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes during 2025, your first Canadian income tax and benefit return is generally filed in 2026. Your tax obligations depend on your Canadian tax residency, not simply on whether you are a permanent resident, temporary resident, worker, student or other immigration-status holder.
The key steps are to determine when Canadian tax residency began, obtain the correct tax identification number, report the income required for the resident and non-resident portions of the year, and file the 2025 return using the correct province or territory.
When do you become a Canadian resident for tax purposes?
The CRA determines residency using your residential ties and the facts of your situation. A newcomer may become a factual resident of Canada after entering Canada and establishing significant residential ties.
Significant ties include a home in Canada, a spouse or common-law partner in Canada and dependants in Canada. Secondary ties may also be relevant, including Canadian bank accounts, credit cards, a driver's licence, provincial or territorial health insurance, personal property and social ties.
If you are uncertain about your status, you can complete Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada), and send it to the CRA. The CRA can provide an opinion based on the information you submit.
What date do you put on your first Canadian tax return?
Enter the date you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes in the residence information section of your return. For example, if you arrived and established significant residential ties on June 8, 2025, the CRA instructs you to enter June 8 as your date of entry for tax purposes.
The date matters because it determines the period during which you are generally required to report worldwide income to Canada and can affect the calculation of certain credits.
Do newcomers report worldwide income in Canada?
Yes. For the part of 2025 when you were considered a resident of Canada, you must report your world income in Canadian dollars. World income means income from all sources inside and outside Canada.
Foreign employment income, business income, pension income, investment income and other foreign-source amounts may therefore need to be reported for the resident portion of the year. A tax treaty may exempt certain income from Canadian tax, but the CRA may still require the income to be reported before an applicable deduction or treaty exemption is claimed.
Income earned before becoming a resident
For the part of the year before you became a Canadian resident, you do not generally report worldwide income in the same way as for the resident period. However, the CRA requires certain Canadian-source income to be reported. Common examples can include Canadian employment income, business income carried on in Canada, taxable capital gains from taxable Canadian property and certain taxable Canadian-source scholarships or research grants.
Pre-arrival income and benefit calculations
The CRA may also require information about income earned outside Canada before arrival when determining benefit and credit amounts. Its newcomer benefit procedures use pre-arrival income information for certain benefit calculations, even though that information is not necessarily taxable as Canadian resident income for the pre-residency period.
Do you need a SIN to file your first Canadian tax return?
A Social Insurance Number is the main identification number used for personal income tax purposes. Eligible newcomers should apply for a SIN through Service Canada.
If Service Canada cannot issue you a SIN, the CRA may issue a temporary tax number. If you do not have a SIN, TTN or ITN and need to file, the CRA instructs you to file a paper return without entering a number, include a cover letter explaining why you do not have or cannot obtain a SIN, and include a certified copy of proof of identity.
If you applied for a SIN but have not received it and the filing deadline is near, the CRA's newcomer instructions say to file a paper return without the SIN and attach a note explaining the situation. You cannot file online without an accepted tax identification number.
What documents do newcomers need for a first tax return?
Gather all information slips that apply to you. These may include T4 employment slips, T4A slips, T5 investment income slips, T5007 benefit slips and other tax documents issued by employers, financial institutions, governments or other payers.
You should also keep receipts supporting deductions and credits you plan to claim, such as eligible childcare, moving, medical or charitable donation expenses where the applicable CRA requirements are met.
If you are self-employed, keep your business income and expense records.
What information is needed about a spouse or common-law partner?
If you have a spouse or common-law partner, the return may require their Social Insurance Number if they have one and their net world income information. For a newcomer return, the CRA instructs you to report the spouse's or partner's net world income for 2025 and also the net world income for the period when you were resident in Canada where the form requires it.
This information can affect your eligibility and amounts for certain tax credits and benefits.
Which province or territory should a newcomer use?
If you were a newcomer to Canada in 2025, use the 2025 income tax package for the province or territory where you resided on December 31, 2025.
For most provinces and territories, federal and provincial or territorial taxes are filed through the CRA. If you were a resident of Quebec on December 31, 2025, you also need to file a separate Quebec income tax return with Revenu Québec.
Can a newcomer file a first Canadian tax return online?
Yes, in most cases. The CRA confirms that most taxpayers, including first-time filers, can use certified tax software to prepare and electronically send a return.
For the 2026 filing season, NETFILE accepts eligible 2025 personal income tax and benefit returns. A newcomer can use NETFILE with an eligible SIN, and qualifying temporary tax numbers beginning with 01 or 03 are also accepted under the NETFILE rules.
You do not need to have a CRA account before electronically filing your first return. CRA account services become more useful after the first return has been processed.
What if you cannot file online?
You can file a paper return using the tax package for the province or territory where you lived on December 31, 2025. The package can be downloaded and printed or ordered from the CRA.
A paper return may also be required when you do not yet have an identification number accepted for electronic filing or when another NETFILE restriction applies.
How much does it cost to file a tax return?
The CRA does not charge a filing fee for submitting your personal income tax and benefit return. Some CRA-certified tax software products are free, while others charge a fee.
You can also pay a professional tax preparer. If you have a modest income and a simple tax situation, you may qualify for help through a free tax clinic.
What is the first tax return deadline for newcomers in 2026?
If you became a Canadian resident for tax purposes in 2025, your 2025 return was generally due April 30, 2026.
If the applicable self-employment filing rules applied to you or your spouse or common-law partner, the return was generally due June 15, 2026. However, a balance owing was generally still due April 30, 2026.
If you missed the filing date, file as soon as possible. Filing late can result in penalties and interest when tax is owing and may delay benefits and credits.
How long does a first Canadian tax return take to process?
The CRA states that electronically filed individual returns usually take about two weeks to process. Processing may take longer if the return requires review, contains missing or inconsistent information, or involves a more complex tax situation.
What happens after your first tax return is filed?
After processing your return, the CRA issues a notice of assessment. It explains the CRA's assessment of your return and shows whether you have a refund, a balance owing or changes to amounts you reported.
After your first return is processed, you can use the CRA's available registration methods to access CRA account services. These online services can help you review tax information, notices, benefits and future returns.
Why should newcomers file even with little or no income?
Filing an income tax and benefit return can be necessary to receive or continue receiving federal benefits and credits. The CRA uses income tax return information to calculate eligibility and payment amounts for a number of programs.
Newcomers may also be able to apply for certain benefits before filing their first Canadian tax return, provided they meet the program's eligibility requirements and supply the income information requested by the CRA.
Special tax issues newcomers should check
Newcomers with foreign income, foreign assets, property owned before arriving in Canada or income covered by a tax treaty may have additional reporting or calculation requirements. The CRA specifically provides newcomer guidance for property owned on arrival, foreign tax credits and treaty-exempt income.
If you owned specified foreign property with a total cost amount over the applicable reporting threshold during 2025, additional foreign reporting requirements may apply. Review the CRA's foreign reporting rules before filing if this situation applies to you.
Frequently asked questions
Do newcomers to Canada have to file a tax return in their first year?
A newcomer may need to file if they owe tax, want a refund, or want to begin or continue receiving benefits and credits for which filing is required. A person who became a Canadian tax resident in 2025 generally files the 2025 return in 2026.
Is Canadian tax residency based on immigration status?
No. The CRA determines income tax residency based on residential ties and the facts of your situation, not solely on your immigration status.
What date of entry should I enter on my first Canadian tax return?
Enter the date you became a resident of Canada for income tax purposes. This is generally the date you established significant residential ties with Canada.
Do I have to report foreign income on my first Canadian tax return?
Yes. You generally report income from all sources inside and outside Canada for the part of the year when you were considered a Canadian resident for tax purposes.
Do I report income earned before I moved to Canada?
For the pre-residency part of the year, you generally report only Canadian-source income that the CRA requires on the tax return. However, the CRA may separately require pre-arrival worldwide income information to calculate certain benefits and credits.
Can I file my first Canadian tax return online?
Yes. Most first-time filers can file electronically using CRA-certified tax software if they meet NETFILE requirements and have an accepted SIN or qualifying temporary tax number.
Do I need a CRA account before filing my first tax return?
No. The CRA states that you do not need a CRA account to file your first return online. After the return is processed, you can use the CRA's available registration options for online account services.
What if I do not have a Social Insurance Number yet?
Apply for a SIN through Service Canada if you are eligible. If Service Canada cannot issue one, the CRA may issue a temporary tax number. If you have no SIN, TTN or ITN, CRA instructions allow a paper return with an explanatory cover letter and certified proof of identity.
What tax package should a newcomer use?
For a 2025 return, use the income tax package for the province or territory where you resided on December 31, 2025. Quebec residents also file separately with Revenu Québec.
What was the 2025 tax return deadline for newcomers filing in 2026?
For most individuals, the deadline was April 30, 2026. Qualifying self-employed taxpayers generally had until June 15, 2026 to file, although balances owing were generally due April 30, 2026.
How long does the CRA take to process a first tax return?
The CRA states that electronically filed individual tax returns usually take about two weeks to process, although some returns take longer if additional review or information is required.
Can I get Canadian benefits before filing my first tax return?
Potentially. The CRA states that newcomers may qualify for certain benefits and credits as soon as they arrive, before filing their first return, if they meet the applicable program rules and provide the required information.
What should I do if I am unsure whether I am a Canadian tax resident?
You can complete Form NR74, Determination of Residency Status (Entering Canada), and send it to the CRA for an opinion based on your residential ties and circumstances.