Who needs to issue an RL-1?
The RL-1 slip: Employment and Other Income is Québec’s year-end payroll slip, and if you have employees in Québec, it belongs on your to-do list. At first glance it looks similar to the T4, but it comes with its own boxes, its own codes, and a summary that calculates contributions you won’t see anywhere on a T4.
The good news? Once you know what goes where, the RL-1 is far less intimidating than it looks. This guide covers who needs to receive one, what each box means, and how to get your slips and summary to Revenu Québec by the end of February, without the year-end scramble.
Who receives a RL-1 slip?
If your business is based in Québec, or you have employees who had earnings while reporting to work in Québec, you’ll need to issue an for each person you paid during the year. You’ll issue one if you:
- Paid salaries, wages, tips, fees, scholarships or commissions as an employer or payer.
- Paid amounts as the custodian of an employee benefit plan to a beneficiary of the plan.
- Allocated amounts as the trustee of an employee trust to a beneficiary of the trust.
- Paid certain other income that isn’t salary or wages, as a payer.
Note: The RL-1 covers Québec reporting only. You’ll still need to file T4 slips and the T4 Summary with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for federal reporting.
For more information on T4s, check out: A Canadian small business employer’s guide to T4s.
What goes on the RL-1 slip vs. the RL-1 summary?
The RL-1 slip reports what you paid each person and what you withheld from their pay. Employer-paid contributions don’t appear on the slips. They’re reported on the RL-1 summary (RLZ-1.S-V), which you file in addition to all your slips.
What does an RL-1 slip report?
Each employee’s slip reports their income earned, like salary, wages, gratuities, tips, taxable benefits, fees, scholarships or commissions, as well as amounts withheld from their pay. These deductions include Québec income tax, employee QPP contributions, employee QPIP premiums, EI premiums, RPP contributions and union dues.
What does the RL-1 summary report?
The RL-1 summary reconciles your payroll year. It compares the Québec income tax, QPP contributions, QPIP premiums and Health Services Fund contribution you owed with the amounts you remitted to Revenu Québec during the year.
You also use the summary to calculate the contributions only the employer pays:
- Health Services Fund (HSF) contribution
- Labour standards contribution (CNESST)
- Workforce Skills Development and Recognition Fund (WSDRF) contribution, if it applies to you, along with any eligible training expenditures you can carry forward
The summary is where many first-time Québec filers get tripped up. Contribution rates and thresholds for the HSF, labour standards and WSDRF change, so check the current Guide for Employers (TP-1015.G-V) each year.
Want a deeper look at what each Quebec employer contribution covers? Read Beyond QPP: Employer payroll taxes and contributions in Québec.
A box-by-box guide to the RL-1
Revenu Québec’s Guide to Filing the RL-1 Slip (RL-1.G-V) is the definitive reference and is updated every year. Here’s a plain-language walkthrough of each box.
| Box | What it reports |
|---|---|
Box A — Employment income |
The gross salary, wages, and other remuneration you paid before source deductions, including most taxable benefits. However, don’t include employment income situated on a reserve or premises that you report in Box R. |
Box B.A — QPP contribution |
The base and first additional QPP contributions you withheld. Also include any employee contributions you paid on their behalf that are reported in Box L. If you withheld nothing, leave the box blank. |
Box B.B — Additional QPP contribution |
The second additional QPP contributions withheld on earnings above the maximum pensionable earnings. Otherwise, the same rules as Box B.A apply. |
Box C — EI premium |
The total Employment Insurance premiums you withheld. |
Box D — RPP contribution |
Registered pension plan contributions withheld for current and past service. It also includes interest treated as a contribution and amounts withheld under a retirement compensation arrangement. |
Box E — Québec income tax withheld |
The total Québec income tax you withheld at source. However, it doesn’t include any other contributions. |
Box F — Union dues |
Union dues you withheld under an agreement where the union or employee association won’t issue receipts. Don’t include membership fees. |
Box G — Pensionable salary or wages under the QPP |
The earnings on which you withheld QPP contributions, up to the annual maximum. |
Box H — QPIP premium |
The total Québec Parental Insurance Plan premiums you withheld. |
Box I — Eligible salary or wages under the QPIP |
Insurable earnings for QPIP, up to the annual maximum. |
Box M — Commissions |
Commissions that are included in Box A or Box R. However, commissions paid to self-employed individuals go in Box O instead. |
Box N — Charitable donations and gifts |
Donations withheld from the employee’s pay and remitted to a registered charity or other qualified donee. |
Box O — Other income |
Income that isn’t reported in any other box, identified with a code. Common codes include:
|
Box Q — Deferred salary or wages |
Amounts you paid to a custodian or trustee of an employee benefit plan, profit-sharing plan, or employee trust. Note that these amounts aren’t included in Box A or Box L. |
Box R — Income situated on a reserve or premises |
Tax-exempt employment income of an employee registered as an Indian under the Indian Act, where the income is situated on a reserve or premises. Because it’s reported here, don’t include it in Box A. |
Box S — Tips |
Tips the employee reported to you, plus tips added to a customer’s bill and shared with the employee. This box applies to hotel, bar, and restaurant employees. |
Box T — Tips allocated by the employer |
Tips you were required to allocate to the employee under Revenu Québec’s tip allocation rules. |
Taxable benefit boxes on the RL-1
The following boxes report taxable benefits. Their amounts are also included in Box A, or in Box R where it applies.
| Box | What it reports |
|---|---|
Box J — Private health services plan |
Your contributions to an employee’s private health services plan may be a taxable benefit. If so, enter its value here. Because these contributions usually aren’t taxable federally, Box J is a common difference between T4 and RL-1 slips. Also see IN-253-V, Taxable Benefits to calculate the value. |
Box K — Trips (remote area) |
The taxable value of trips for employees who live in a designated remote area. |
Box L — Other benefits |
Taxable benefits that aren’t reported in Boxes J, K, P, V, or W. |
Box P — Multi-employer insurance plans |
Employer contributions to a multi-employer insurance plan for the employee. |
Box V — Meals and lodging |
The taxable value of meals, board, or lodging you provided, or an allowance you paid for them. |
Box W — Motor vehicle |
The taxable value of an employee’s personal use of a vehicle you provided. |
The additional information area
The blank boxes at the bottom of the RL-1 hold a code followed by an amount. Common codes include:
- 211 (a benefit related to previous employment)
- A-3 (repayment of salary or wages)
- G-1 (taxable benefits in kind with no cash pay)
- G-3 (deemed wages under a phased retirement arrangement)
- R-1 (employment income situated on a reserve or premises)
Staying current from year to year
RL-1 rules shift a little almost every year: codes are added or retired, new filing obligations appear, and QPP and QPIP maximums change every January. Before each filing season:
- Read the “Principal changes” section near the start of the current RL-1 guide.
- Confirm the year’s QPP maximums and QPIP maximums.
- Review employer contribution rates in the Guide for Employers (TP-1015.G-V) before you prepare the summary.
- Check your payroll provider’s year-end checklist for any software-specific steps.
When are RL-1 slips due?
RL-1 slips and the RL-1 summary are due to Revenu Québec by the last day of February of the year after the slips cover. You must also give each employee or recipient their copy by the same date (Revenu Québec). Special deadlines apply if your business stops remitting permanently or an employee dies, so check the guide if either applies.
How to file RL-1 slips
You can file RL-1 slips using:
- Software authorized by Revenu Québec, such as Wagepoint
- Software you developed that meets Revenu Québec’s requirements
- My Account for businesses (Revenu Québec’s online services)
- Revenu Québec’s fillable PDF or paper forms, if you’re under the online filing threshold
Online filing is mandatory if you file more than five RL-1 slips in a calendar year. Filing paper when you’re over the threshold can lead to a penalty, as can filing late or leaving out required information. Keep copies of your slips for six years after the last tax year they cover.
How to give RL-1 slips to employees and recipients
Electronic delivery is the most secure way to share RL-1 slips. The consent rules depend on who’s receiving them and how.
Employees, through a secure portal
You don’t need prior consent, as long as the portal meets Revenu Québec’s confidentiality requirements.
Employees, by email
Get the employee’s written consent before you email their RL-1, and be sure to encrypt or password-protect the file.
Recipients who aren’t employees
For recipients such as plan beneficiaries, get written consent first. The consent must state that it stays valid until withdrawn and explain how to withdraw it.
Rules for every electronic delivery
However you deliver RL-1 slips electronically, you must:
- Protect the recipient’s personal information
- Be able to verify the identity of anyone who gives consent
- Use a format that can’t be altered
- Provide a paper copy to anyone who asks for one
How and when to file the RL-1 summary
The RL-1 summary is due by the last day of February, the same deadline as your RL-1 slips. Any balance owing on the summary must also reach Revenu Québec or your financial institution by that date.
Filing options for the RL-1 summary
You don’t have to mail the RL-1 summary. You can file it:
- Online through My Account for businesses
- Using an eligible payroll software or system
- On paper, using the form Revenu Québec mails you each year or one you order from them
If you don’t file the summary online, you must send it on paper, even if you filed your slips online. When you mail a paper summary, enclose copy 1 of any paper RL-1 slips. Skip this if your slips were filed online.
Paying a balance on the RL-1 summary
You can pay online, at a financial institution, or by cheque or money order mailed with the RL-1 summary remittance slip. Payments over $10,000 must be made electronically unless special circumstances prevent it. If you pay online, you don’t need to send the remittance slip.
If your business closes
If you stop operating your business, file the RL-1 summary and pay any balance within 30 days. Other special situations, such as permanently stopping remittances, have their own deadlines, so check the RL-1 summary guide.
Québec payroll, made easier
At Wagepoint, we know Québec payroll has its own rhythm. Wagepoint calculates QPP, QPIP and Québec income tax for you, and creates and submits RL-1 slips to Revenu Québec. We also give you the payroll information you need to complete and file your RL-1 summary, so year-end takes less time and you can get back to your clients.
This article is general information, not tax advice. Payroll legislation can change, so confirm the details with the current Revenu Québec guides or a Québec payroll professional.
