Do Bare Trusts Have to File a T3 for 2025? When Reporting Starts in Canada

You may be on title to a property or an account that really belongs to someone else, such as a parent on a child's home or a person added to an account for convenience. If so, you may wonder whether a T3 trust return applies to you, and when.

The short answer is that no filing is expected for 2025, but the rules change for later years. This article walks through the timeline, what a bare-trust filing contains, and how to check where you stand.

This article covers Canadian federal tax law, which applies in every province.

What a bare trust is, and how it differs from an express trust

The Income Tax Act does not define "bare trust". The CRA uses the term for an arrangement where the trustee acts as agent for all the beneficiaries, and such an arrangement is generally treated as not being a trust for the Act's purposes, with some exceptions.

A trustee generally qualifies as an agent when the trustee has no significant powers, cannot act without the beneficiary's instructions, and only holds legal title. The beneficiary is the beneficial owner and the trustee is the legal owner.

That is different from a regular (express) trust. There the trustee holds and manages property under a trust document, with real powers and duties, and the trust files its own T3. Resident express trusts that are not listed trusts must file a T3.

The relief for 2023, 2024 and 2025

For taxation years ending in 2025, the CRA does not expect bare trusts to file a T3 return, including Schedule 15 (Beneficial Ownership Information of a Trust). The CRA's guide and FAQ say bare trusts are not subject to the trust reporting rules for taxation years ending on or after December 31, 2024 and before December 31, 2026. For 2023, the CRA likewise said it would not require bare trusts to file.

Schedule 15 must be filed with the T3 only by trusts that must file. A bare trust that is not required to file for 2025 therefore has nothing to file.

The bare trust relief applies to specific taxation years, so check which year-end applies to you. The CRA's T3 guide and FAQ state that bare trusts are not subject to the trust reporting rules, and so need not file a T3 or Schedule 15, for taxation years ending on or after December 31, 2024 and before December 31, 2026. If you receive a direct request from the CRA, deal with it rather than assuming relief covers you.

What changes from 2026

Bill C-15, the Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 1, received royal assent on March 26, 2026. The Act contains the amended s. 150(1.2) and the new s. 150(1.3) and (1.31) of the Income Tax Act. Some older CRA pages may still describe these changes as proposed, so check the current wording of the CRA's trust pages.

Under s. 150(1.3), an express trust includes an arrangement where a legal owner holds property for the use or benefit of others and can reasonably be considered to act as their agent. The legal owner is deemed a trustee and the users or beneficiaries are deemed beneficiaries. The CRA calls this a reportable bare trust, and it can include an arrangement that would not otherwise be a trust under the Act.

Reportable bare trusts are subject to the trust reporting rules for taxation years ending on or after December 31, 2026. The first returns are therefore for the 2026 year, due 90 days after year-end, which is March 31, 2027 for a December 31, 2026 year-end. If a due date falls on a weekend or CRA-recognized holiday, the next business day applies.

Not every bare arrangement is caught. Section 150(1.31) lists exclusions, including some joint accounts and certain principal residence situations. Those exclusions are covered in a separate article, so check there before assuming you must file.

What a bare-trust filing contains

• Schedule 15 asks for specified information on all trustees, settlors, beneficiaries and controlling persons: name, address, date of birth (for individuals), country of residence and a tax identification number.
• On the T3 for a reportable bare trust, only the fields the CRA marks need completing and the rest can be left blank.
• If the trust has no governing document name, the CRA says to list the beneficial owner's legal name followed by the word "Trust".
• Income, capital gains and capital losses from the trust property should be reported on the beneficial owner's tax return, not on the trust's T3.

Missing information such as tax identification numbers leaves Schedule 15 incomplete, and the CRA says the trust has then not met its filing obligations. A person who fails to give a tax identification number, such as a SIN, to the trustee may face a $100 penalty for each failure.

Two further points. A reportable bare trust that is also a listed trust is not required to file unless it is requested to file. The reporting provisions also do not require disclosure of information covered by solicitor-client privilege.

Penalties and what to do next

A late-filing penalty is generally 5% of the unpaid tax plus 1% for each full month late, to a maximum of 12 months. A bare trust usually has no tax payable. In that case the alternative penalty, which is the likely one, is $25 a day, with a minimum of $100 and a maximum of $2,500.

• List any property or accounts where your name is on title but someone else owns and uses the property.
• Ask whether you could act without that person's instructions. That is often the key to whether you are really an agent.
• Check whether an exclusion applies, such as a joint account or a principal residence arrangement.
• Collect names, addresses, dates of birth and SINs for everyone involved, so Schedule 15 is complete if you must file.
• Mark your calendar for the 2026 year, with the first due date of March 31, 2027 for a December 31 year-end.
• Speak with a lawyer or accountant if you are unsure, because the CRA says whether a bare trust exists is a question of fact.

Frequently asked questions