When is a T4A required for any business?
A T4A Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other Income is used to report various types of income. The legislation essentially requires all payments for services from Canadian entities to Canadian residents that are not included in another tax slip to be reported on a T4A slip. This causes a very broad requirement to submit T4A slips for almost all payments for services other than to employees. For example, the legislation requires a charity or corporation to issue a T4A slip to their accountants, lawyers, and bookkeepers for annual services.
What is the CRA’s moratorium?
Because of this broad requirement, in 2011, the CRA introduced a temporary moratorium on penalties for not filing T4A slips reporting fees for services (box 048), due to the volume of compliance required by the broad reporting law. This CRA administrative position provides relief from penalties but does not change the legislative requirement to file.
What changed for trucking businesses?
In the lead up to the 2025 federal budget, the government announced that the CRA will end the penalty moratorium for the failure to report fees for services in the trucking industry. They later announced that they will require T4A reporting starting with the 2025 tax year, where such payments to a CCPC in the trucking business exceed $500 in a calendar year.
What is considered a trucking business?
According to the CRA, a business is considered to be operating in the trucking industry if more than 50% of its primary source of income is from trucking activities. Trucking activities include, for example, the transportation of goods (both general and specialized freight) and acting as an intermediary (broker) between shippers and carriers. Trucking activities do not include transit and ground passenger transportation, nor does it include warehousing and storage. The CRA published a list of applicable and non-applicable trucking activities as well as examples of required reporting.
What about the Quebec RL-1 slip?
Businesses that operate in Quebec should be aware that Revenu Québec (RQ) also announced that starting for the 2025 tax year, any business in the trucking sector must report fees for services paid to a CCPC in box O (code RD) on an RL-1 slip.
Key takeaways
As the timeframe to gather information to meet the March 2 filing deadline is short, businesses should not delay reviewing information needed for reporting purposes. Consider the following practical points:
- Collect full identification details for all service providers, including the entity type, legal name, address, and tax ID. Missing recipient information does not eliminate the filing requirement.
- Track total annual payments to each service provider in preparation to file T4A slips.
- Keep thorough records, as audits may increase starting as early as 2026.
- Under the legislation, T4A slips are required for businesses to report fees paid for services provided by Canadian resident businesses, including sole proprietors, corporations, and CCPCs. To avoid potential penalties, file the T4A if you’re unsure whether the business you paid is a CCPC in the trucking industry, or if total payments might have exceeded $500.
- Businesses with significant trucking activities should assume this change in CRA administrative position applies. Where approximately 50% or more of your business operations relate to the trucking industry, or if there is uncertainty, the prudent approach is to file the T4A slips.
Keeping these tips in mind can help your business comply with the reporting requirements and avoid penalties.
How BDO can help
If you have any questions on how these changes impact your business, contact your BDO advisor.
The information in this publication is current as of January 12, 2026.
This publication has been carefully prepared, but it has been written in general terms and should be seen as broad guidance only. The publication cannot be relied upon to cover specific situations and you should not act, or refrain from acting, upon the information contained therein without obtaining specific professional advice. Please contact BDO Canada LLP to discuss these matters in the context of your particular circumstances. BDO Canada LLP, its partners, employees and agents do not accept or assume any liability or duty of care for any loss arising from any action taken or not taken by anyone in reliance on the information in this publication or for any decision based on it.