Trusts — T3
T3 Trust Income Tax and Information Returns filed accurately and on time with the CRA. We prepare and file T3 returns for testamentary trusts, inter vivos trusts, and all other trust arrangements requiring annual reporting.
- Full T3 return preparation and CRA filing
- Allocation of trust income to beneficiaries
- T3 slips issued to each beneficiary
- Review of all trust income sources and deductions
- Deadline tracking: March 31 and estate-specific dates
A Graduated Rate Estate holds a unique position under the Income Tax Act: it benefits from graduated tax rates and a December 31 fiscal year for up to 36 months after death. We ensure the estate is correctly designated and fully optimized during this window.
- GRE designation review and qualification assessment
- Graduated rate calculation and planning
- Coordination with the terminal return and legal estate administration
- Loss carryback and deduction optimization
- Transition planning when GRE status expires
A bare trust is an arrangement where one person holds legal title to property for someone else and acts only as their agent. No bare trust had to file for 2024 or 2025. Starting with the 2026 tax year, one does unless the Income Tax Act excepts it: a T3 return with Schedule 15, within 90 days of the year end. For 2026 that is March 31, 2027. We work out which side of that line your arrangement is on, and file the return if it needs one.
- Filing obligation assessed against the exceptions in the Act
- Schedule 15 beneficial ownership disclosure
- Nominee arrangements and joint ownership structures
- Ongoing compliance monitoring as rules evolve
Parliament narrowed these rules in March 2026. An arrangement is outside them altogether when:
- Everyone with the use or benefit of the property is also on title, and nobody is on title who is not one of them
- The people on title are related individuals, and the property is a home that would qualify as the principal residence of at least one of them
- One spouse or common-law partner holds title to a home for the other, and it would qualify as the title holder's principal residence
- Everyone on title is a partner holding the property solely for their partnership, and the partnership falls under the partnership information return rules
- The property is held under a court order
Three narrower exceptions cover resource property held for publicly listed companies and the entities they control, government funding held by one tax-exempt body for another, and investment accounts at a securities dealer or trust company that already reports all of the income and gains on tax slips.
A bare trust outside all of those still does not file for a year in which it:
- Had existed for less than three months
- Held property with a total fair market value of $50,000 or less throughout the year, whatever the property was
- Held property with a total fair market value of $250,000 or less throughout the year, where every trustee is an individual, every beneficiary is an individual related to every trustee, and the property is only of the kinds the Act lists: mainly cash and deposits, GICs, government bonds, listed securities, mutual and segregated funds, personal-use property, and exempt life insurance policies
For these rules the person on title counts as the trustee, and the person the property is held for counts as the beneficiary. "Related" includes aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews.
Trusts established during a settlor's lifetime (family trusts, alter ego trusts, spousal trusts) require careful annual compliance. We prepare the T3 return and manage the income and capital allocations to beneficiaries each year.
- Annual T3 preparation and filing
- Income allocation and attribution rule review
- 21-year deemed disposition planning
- Spousal and alter ego trust compliance
- Integration with individual beneficiary T1 returns
Trusts involve some of the most complex provisions in the Income Tax Act. We provide planning and advisory services to help trustees, estate executors, and their advisors navigate trust taxation, income splitting, and distribution strategies.
- Pre-distribution income and tax planning
- TOSI (tax on split income) review for family trusts
- Trust wind-up and deemed disposition planning
- Coordination with estate lawyers and financial advisors
- CRA correspondence and audit support
A T3 return is from $599, covering the return, the allocation of income to beneficiaries, and a T3 slip for each of them. A trust with many beneficiaries or an unusually complicated year gets a written quote naming exactly what it adds before any work begins, and it doesn't move unless the scope does. Trust planning and advisory work is billed at $125 an hour. Prices are before tax — we add 13% HST to each invoice. GST/HST No. 75896 0975 RT0001. Every price we charge, for every service, is on the pricing page.
Working Together
What we need,
and what you get
What we need from you
The trust deed, or the will that created the trust; the CRA trust account number if one exists; the year's statements for every account and investment the trust holds; records of what was paid or allocated to beneficiaries; and each beneficiary's name, address and SIN for their T3 slip. For an estate, the date of death and the final T1 if it has been filed.
What happens next
We confirm which return and schedules the trust needs, including whether a bare trust falls inside the rules above, and quote the fee in writing before any work begins: from $599. Income allocations are worked out with you before anything is filed, because they change the beneficiaries' own returns.
What you get back
The T3 return filed with the CRA, a T3 slip for each beneficiary and the summary, Schedule 15 where it applies, and a note of the dates that matter for next year: 90 days after the trust's year-end, which for most trusts is March 31.
Common Questions
Three Things People Ask
Does an estate need to file a T3 return?
Usually, if the estate earned income after the date of death: interest, dividends, rent, or a gain on something the executor sold. That income belongs to the estate rather than to the person who died, so it goes on a T3 and not on the final T1. An estate wound up quickly with no income after death may not need one, and we check before anything is filed.
What is a graduated rate estate, and why does it matter?
An estate that is designated a graduated rate estate is taxed at graduated rates, like an individual, for up to 36 months after death. Every other trust pays the top rate on every dollar. The designation is made on the first T3 return and only one estate per person can hold it, which is why the first filing is the one to get right.
Do I have to file for a bare trust?
For 2024 and 2025, no. From the 2026 tax year, yes, unless the arrangement falls inside one of the exceptions set out above, such as a home held by related people where it is a principal residence, or property worth $50,000 or less throughout the year. The return is a T3 with Schedule 15, due 90 days after year-end: March 31, 2027 for 2026. We work out which side of the line you are on first.