Form T1134 is the information return a Canadian resident taxpayer, or certain partnerships, files every year for each non-resident corporation or trust that's a foreign affiliate or controlled foreign affiliate at any time in the year. For taxation years beginning after 2020, it's due 10 months after your year end. There's no tax on the form itself, but the penalties for missing or incomplete returns are substantial.
If you own shares in a company outside Canada through your Canadian business, or personally, this is the form to check. Everything here comes from the CRA's T1134 page and the instructions printed in the 2021 version of the form, as of October 2026.
Who has to file T1134
- A taxpayer resident in Canada for which a non-resident corporation or trust is a foreign affiliate (FA) or controlled foreign affiliate (CFA) at any time in the year, unless all of its taxable income for the year is exempt from Part I tax.
- A partnership where non-resident members' share of the income or loss is less than 90% and a non-resident corporation or trust would be an FA or CFA of the partnership if the partnership were a person resident in Canada.
The return is made of a T1134 Summary plus a separate T1134 Supplement for each foreign affiliate that doesn't meet the dormant test. Related Canadian groups have the option of filing one set for the whole group.
The due date
| Taxation year or fiscal period | T1134 due |
|---|---|
| Began before 2020 | 15 months after the year end |
| Began in 2020 (transitional) | 12 months after the year end |
| Began after 2020 | 10 months after the year end |
Use the 2021 version of the form for taxation years that begin after 2020. For earlier years, and for amending any return you filed for those years, you still use the 2012/2017 version. An amended return always uses the same version as the original.
The dormant affiliate exemption
You don't file a Supplement for an affiliate if both of these are true, as of October 2026:
- The total cost amount of your interest in that affiliate was less than $100,000 (Canadian) at all times in the year.
- The affiliate was dormant or inactive for its taxation year: gross receipts under $100,000 (Canadian) and, at no time in the year, assets with a total fair market value of more than $1,000,000 (Canadian).
You still give base-level information for that affiliate in Part I, Section 3 D of the Summary: its name, your cost amount, and its gross receipts and assets.
The detail people miss about dormant affiliates
Gross receipts here means any receipt in the year, not just income. The instructions say it includes non-revenue receipts such as loans. So a holding company abroad with no trading income, but with a large loan passing through it, can fail the dormant test and need a full Supplement. The test is about activity, and cash moving through the entity counts as activity.
The thresholds are also measured in Canadian dollars whatever functional currency you've elected, and they're applied at the level of each legal entity.
What the Supplement asks for
- The affiliate's name, head office, taxpayer identification number and principal activity by six-digit NAICS code.
- The countries where it carries on business, and its direct shareholders in the reporting group.
- Ownership percentages and adjusted cost base of common and preferred shares at the end of the year.
- Debts owed between the affiliate and the reporting entity at year end.
- Surplus information where dividends were received, and questions on reorganizations and the foreign affiliate dumping rules.
- Whether any requested information isn't available (Part IV, Disclosure).
For the group structure questions, you can submit an organizational chart instead of filling in the tables, as long as it shows every entity's name, country of residence and ownership percentages.
Before you start the return
Gather the year-end ownership records, the adjusted cost base of each class of shares, any intercompany loan balances and the affiliate's own financial statements before you open the form. Most of the Supplement is a record of facts you should already hold, and missing information has to be disclosed in Part IV rather than left blank.
Penalties: why they multiply
The form warns of substantial penalties under sections 162 and 163 of the Income Tax Act for not filing accurately by the due date. The trap for groups is that filing one combined set doesn't combine the risk. Each reporting entity stays responsible for its own foreign affiliates, and penalties apply to each entity as if it had filed alone. If one Supplement is wrong or missing, more than one Canadian shareholder can be penalized for it.
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How to file
- Confirm which version applies to the taxation year you're reporting.
- List every foreign affiliate and test each one against the dormant rules.
- Complete the Summary, then one Supplement per non-dormant affiliate.
- File electronically where you can: partnerships can EFILE and NETFILE T1134 for 2017 and later years, and corporations and partnerships can send supporting documents through tax software.
- Diarize the 10-month deadline next to your corporate return dates.
If you're also registering a Canadian business, the CRA business number is the account number most reporting entities will use on the Summary, and self-employed owners report their own business income separately on a T2125.
The verdict
T1134 is a reporting form, not a tax form, which is why it gets forgotten until a penalty letter arrives. If you hold any foreign company or trust interest through Canada, put the 10-month date in your calendar, test every affiliate against the dormant rules honestly, and remember that loans count as receipts. When in doubt, file the Supplement.
A separate return covers overseas holdings, as our guide to reporting foreign property explains.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Form T1134?
It's the CRA information return for Canadian residents and certain partnerships that have controlled or non-controlled foreign affiliates at any time in the year.
When is T1134 due?
For taxation years beginning after 2020, no later than 10 months after the end of your taxation year or fiscal period.
Do I need to file T1134 for a small foreign company?
You skip the Supplement only if your total cost amount was under $100,000 (Canadian) and the affiliate was dormant: gross receipts under $100,000 and assets never over $1,000,000. You still report basic details on the Summary.
Do loans count as gross receipts for the T1134 dormant test?
Yes. The instructions say gross receipts means any receipt in the year, including non-revenue receipts such as loans.
Can a related group file one T1134?
Yes, for taxation years beginning after 2020, but each reporting entity stays responsible for penalties as if it had filed on its own.
