Every payroll cycle produces a number that CRA expects to see on time. A PD7A payroll remittance in Canada is the voucher and statement that tracks source deductions for income tax, CPP, and EI. If you have ever paid the wrong amount, or only realized after a penalty notice that your payroll admin used the wrong deadline, you know how expensive this small form can be.

The good news is that the PD7A is a manageable process once you understand the remitter types, the timing, and the way CRA applies your payment. This article walks you through a PD7A remittance from start to finish, explains common errors, and shows how automated payroll can remove the guesswork. If you have not already mapped out your overall payroll obligations, start with our guide to running payroll in Canada.

Table of Contents

What Is the PD7A Payroll Remittance in Canada?

A PD7A is the remittance voucher CRA uses for current source deductions. It is part of the statement of account employers receive when they have a payroll source deductions account. The format has changed over the years, but the purpose is constant: payroll deductions for income tax, CPP, and EI are trust amounts, and the employer must send them to CRA by a set date.

The PD7A is not a bill for a tax you owe personally. It is a remittance of amounts already withheld from employee wages plus the employer contribution you owe as the cost of having employees. The voucher shows these pieces so that you can reconcile them to your payroll records. If your business uses an accountant or bookkeeper, the PD7A is one of the documents they will expect at month end.

CRA assigns each employer a remitter type. The assigned type is based on the average amount of source deductions you withhold each month and on whether you have been compliant. New employers that are already in arrears can be put on a faster schedule. Paying late or missing a payment can also trigger a reassignment, which is why the remittance workflow matters beyond the voucher itself.

Why the Remittance Deadline Matters

The remittance deadline is the date CRA must receive payment, not the date you schedule it in online banking. For most monthly and quarterly remitters, the due date is the 15th day of the month after the payroll period. If the 15th is a Saturday, Sunday, or federal holiday, the payment is considered on time on the next business day. Do not assume a weekend gives you extra days to run payroll; in practice you want the payment cleared before the deadline.

CRA publishes remitter type categories, and the table below shows the general timing.

| Remitter type | Typical profile | Payment schedule | | Regular quarterly | Average monthly source deductions below the CRA threshold and no remittance arrears | Four times a year, due April 15, July 15, October 15, and January 15 | | Regular monthly | Average monthly source deductions above the quarterly threshold but below the accelerated threshold | Monthly, due the 15th of the following month | | Accelerated | Average monthly source deductions at or above the accelerated threshold, or a history of late remittances | Twice a month or weekly, according to CRA's schedule |

An employer can check their remitter type in CRA's My Business Account or on the most recent statement. Do not assume your type simply because the payroll amount looks small. Client payroll for a busy contractor firm can cross the threshold quickly when bonuses or overtime are paid.

Many small businesses keep the remittance schedule in a spreadsheet, but a spreadsheet does not watch calendar changes or payroll adjustments. Awditify's small business suite keeps remitter types and due dates visible so you do not have to reconstruct them from CRA letters.

How to Complete a PD7A Payroll Remittance Step by Step

The exact steps differ depending on whether CRA sends you a paper voucher or you remit electronically. The underlying workflow is the same. Start with your payroll register, because the register is the source of truth.

  1. Confirm the remitter type and the period covered. The top of the PD7A shows a period ending date and the corresponding remittance deadline. If you are unsure, look up the remitter type in CRA's My Business Account.
  2. Pull the source deduction totals from the payroll register or payroll system. You need income tax withheld, employee CPP, employer CPP, employee EI, and employer EI. Do not combine amounts before checking them against the individual pay runs.
  3. Check for adjustments from prior periods. If you corrected a previous remittance, the CRA statement may include a balance, a credit, or a penalty. Apply that adjustment before calculating the current total.
  4. Complete the voucher or the online remittance total. For a paper PD7A, enter the amounts in the labelled boxes. For electronic filing, you may only need the total, but you should still keep a copy of the payroll register.
  5. Pay before the deadline. Use CRA's online payment options, your bank, or the remittance voucher if CRA requires it. Confirm that the payment is processed, not just scheduled, by the due date.
  6. Record and reconcile the liability. The payment should reduce the source deduction liability account in your ledger. Reconcile the CRA statement to that balance at each month end, because a mismatch is easier to fix before the T4 filing season.

A Worked Example: 12-Person Contractor Firm in Ontario

Consider an Ontario contractor with 12 full-time employees and an average monthly source deduction total of $18,400. That figure includes employee and employer CPP, employee and employer EI, and federal and provincial income tax. Because the amount is under the accelerated remitter threshold, CRA treats the firm as a monthly remitter with a payment due on the 15th.

On a short month, the payroll admin runs payroll with one business day before the deadline. They calculate the remittance by hand, enter the payment in online banking, and send a screenshot to the bookkeeper as proof. Later, the bookkeeper goes through the bank feed and categorizes the payment, hoping the payroll register ties out. If the admin transposes two digits in the total, the payment is short, CRA charges interest, and the next statement shows a balance carried forward.

Now compare that with an automated workflow. The payroll system calculates source deductions and employer contributions, schedules the remittance amount, and carries a clear liability balance. The bookkeeper can see that the amount paid equals the amount withheld. The payroll calendar in Awditify keeps the deadline visible, and the ledger is updated as soon as the payment posts. The manual versus automated difference is not convenience; it is accuracy.

The same discipline applies to CPA firms running multiple clients and to municipalities with in-house payroll staff. A missed remittance creates a client fire drill, and CRA does not waive penalties simply because the bookkeeper was busy. Build the remittance into the payroll close routine rather than treating it as a separate monthly task.

What Each Amount on the PD7A Means

Employers sometimes look at the PD7A and assume the total is the same as the employee deductions shown on the pay stubs. It is not. The total includes employer contributions, so the remittance is substantially higher than the sum of the deductions withheld from employees.

Here is how the pieces fit together:

  • The income tax portion is the total income tax withheld from employee pay.
  • The CPP portion is employee CPP plus employer CPP.
  • The EI portion is employee EI plus employer EI.
  • The total is the sum of those three lines.

The PD7A is not the return for provincial payroll taxes. Ontario's Employer Health Tax, Quebec's health services fund, and similar levies have separate returns and deadlines. Keep those obligations out of the PD7A total, or the reconciliation will never tie out.

Reconciling the PD7A to your payroll register is the only reliable way to catch an error. If income tax on the voucher does not match the sum of employee tax from the pay run, go back to the payroll journal. The longer the gap, the harder it is to explain.

Common Errors and the Consequences

Several errors appear regularly in payroll remittance files. Missed deadlines are the most obvious, but short payments and classification mistakes are just as costly.

  • Remitting only the employee portion of CPP and EI, leaving out the employer match.
  • Using the previous month's total because the payroll register was not updated.
  • Paying the right total but applying it to the wrong CRA account.
  • Ignoring the remitter type and making monthly payments when CRA expects accelerated remitting.
  • Failing to reconcile the PD7A totals to the T4 summary, which is what CRA reviews when comparing payroll filings.

CRA charges daily compound interest on amounts paid after the due date. It can also assess a penalty of 3% of the amount owing, with an additional 3% for each full month the payment is late, up to three months. Repeat problems can move an employer into the accelerated remitter category. That is not just a label. It changes cash flow and forces more frequent payments, which increases the chance of another error if payroll is manual.

If you correct an error within a few days, the penalty amount is often modest. If you let the balance ride until the next quarter, the compound interest and the compliance notice make the problem bigger. The practical fix is to make remittance reconciliation part of the monthly close, not an afterthought.

How Awditify Simplifies the PD7A Workflow

This is where the choice of payroll tool matters. A spreadsheet and an online banking session can work, but they depend on the same person remembering to do the same steps every month. The risk is not mathematical; most people can add. The risk is process.

Awditify addresses that risk with features that connect the payroll calculation to the remittance payment and the ledger:

  • Canadian payroll with CPP, EI, and income tax calculated from the pay run, so the remittance total is not a manual transcription.
  • Automatic bank feeds that match the CRA payment to the source deduction liability account.
  • Payroll calendar tracking that shows which remittance is due and when.
  • A full audit trail of who approved and posted each payroll and remittance.
  • Separate ledgers for firms and municipalities that move payroll, property tax, and utility billing through one system.

Those features are part of Awditify's small business platform. For a broader look at how the same data flows into practice management and municipal finance, see the features page.

CPA firms can use Awditify to monitor remittance deadlines across every client instead of waiting for a penalty letter. Municipalities running payroll alongside property tax and utility billing can keep separate ledgers in one system for PSAB reporting, with no need to reclassify entries at year end. Because Awditify keeps an audit trail, a CRA request for the remittance record becomes a quick report rather than a search through paper.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a PD7A payroll remittance in Canada?

A PD7A is CRA's statement of account and remittance voucher for source deductions. It shows the income tax, CPP, and EI amounts withheld from employee pay, plus the employer's share of CPP and EI. Remitting by the deadline clears the liability and keeps the employer in good standing.

When is the PD7A remittance due in Canada?

The due date depends on the remitter type CRA assigns. Regular monthly remitters pay by the 15th of the following month, quarterly remitters by the 15th of April, July, October, and January, and accelerated remitters more often. If the 15th is a weekend or holiday, the payment is considered on time on the next business day.

Can I submit the PD7A online instead of mailing a paper voucher?

Yes. Most employers remit electronically through CRA My Business Account, online banking, or a payroll provider. You still need to keep the statement data for your records, and you must ensure the total ties to your payroll register.

What happens if I miss the PD7A remittance deadline?

CRA will charge daily compound interest on the unpaid amount and may assess a penalty starting at 3% of the amount due. The penalty increases for additional full months of late payment, and repeat issues can move you into the accelerated remitter category. Fixing the remittance quickly limits the damage.

How do I automate payroll remittance in Canada?

You need a system that calculates source deductions, tracks remittance deadlines, and reconciles the payment to the liability account. Awditify's Canadian payroll module calculates CPP, EI, and income tax, and the payroll calendar keeps the remittance schedule visible. Automatic bank feeds then match the CRA payment to the ledger, which helps if CRA reviews the file.

What to Do Next

Start by confirming your remitter type and the next due date. Then compare the total on your latest CRA statement with the payroll liability totals in your books. If the two do not match, work back through the pay runs, not just the most recent one. And if you are tired of chasing these numbers manually, consider moving the whole payroll cycle into a platform built for Canadian source deductions.

Awditify's small business plan combines payroll, bank feeds, remittance tracking, and the reports CRA expects. You can also book a demo to run the workflow on your own client file. Once the remittance routine is stable, the next decision is usually choosing the right payroll system overall. Compare your options in our Canadian payroll guide before you commit.