Guides · Written by a Canadian CPA · Not legal or tax advice
Missed the 90-day deadline? Extension of time to object
Missing the objection deadline does not always end the matter — but the fix is a separate application, with its own deadline and its own conditions. Here is how the extension process works, and why it should not wait.
First, confirm the deadline actually passed
The ordinary income-tax objection period for individuals (other than trusts) and graduated rate estates is generally the later of one year after the return’s filing-due date and 90 days after the notice was sent (ITA s.165(1)(a)); corporations and other trusts generally have 90 days, and GST/HST objections have a 90-day period (ETA s.301(1.1)). Many people who think they are late are not, because the individual “later of” rule gives more time than the bare 90 days. Check your deadline — free before assuming you need an extension.
The extension application: ITA s.166.1
If the objection period has expired, ITA s.166.1 lets you apply to the Minister to extend the time for serving a notice of objection. The application is addressed to the Chief of Appeals in a CRA District Office or Taxation Centre. The Minister considers the application and grants or refuses it.
There is a hard outside limit: no application can be granted unless it is made within one year after the objection period expired. Miss that one-year mark and the extension route is closed. The application should include a copy of the notice of objection itself and set out the reasons the objection was not filed on time. If the extension is granted, the objection is treated as served on the day the Minister’s decision is sent.
What you must show
An extension is not automatic. Under s.166.1, you must demonstrate all of the following:
- During the original objection period, you were unable to act or to instruct another person to act in your name, or you had a bona fide intention to object to the assessment;
- Granting the extension would be just and equitable; and
- The application was made as soon as circumstances permitted.
A simple “I forgot” or “I was busy” does not obviously meet these tests. Whatever your reason for the delay, document it and deal with it promptly — the “as soon as circumstances permitted” condition means further delay can itself become the problem.
GST/HST assessments: ETA s.303
A parallel extension application exists for GST/HST objections under ETA s.303: apply to the Minister within one year after the original objection period expires, with a copy of the objection and the reasons for the delay, and the same kinds of conditions apply. Approval is not automatic for either tax.
If the extension is refused — or never decided
If the Minister refuses your income-tax extension application, or 90 days pass after you apply and no decision has been notified, you may apply to the Tax Court of Canada for an order granting the extension (ITA s.166.2). That Tax Court application must be made within 90 days after notification of the Minister’s refusal was mailed to you. For GST/HST, the limit following a refusal is 30 days after the decision was mailed (ETA s.304).
The Court applies conditions similar to the ones above. These are court applications with their own forms and timelines — they are not something to improvise near a deadline.
What Nyphron does — and does not — do
Nyphron prepares objection documents only. It does not prepare extension applications or Tax Court applications, and it cannot extend any deadline for you. But note what an extension application requires: a copy of the objection itself. The objection still has to be written — clearly setting out what you dispute, your facts and your reasons — and that written objection is exactly what our packet helps you assemble. If a deadline may have passed, get prompt professional help with the extension step; the one-year window does not pause while you prepare.
Check the official sources
Reviewed October 11, 2026. General information only; check the current instructions and your notice before filing.