What’s an RL-1 slip and how do I file it in Québec?

Why RL-1 slips are important for Québec payroll

In Québec, year-end payroll responsibilities extend beyond the federal T4 slip. You also need to prepare and file an RL-1 slip for each employee to report income for Québec income tax and Québec-based payroll taxes. 

Together with the RL-1 Summary, it helps ensure that your business stays compliant with Québec’s provincial payroll requirements. Your employees also rely on their RL-1s to file their personal income taxes. 

Here’s an overview of your RL-1 responsibilities as a small business employer in Québec.  

What’s an RL-1 slip?

The RL-1 slip, formally called the Relevé 1: Employment and Other Income, reports all employment income and certain taxable benefits paid to employees who work in Québec. It’s the provincial counterpart to the federal T4 slip. If the T4 is Batman, the RL-1 is Robin.

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When is it required?

If you have employees who work and are paid in Québec, you’ll need to issue an RL-1 slip for each of them. Or, even if your business isn’t based in Québec but you have someone working there, like a remote employee, you’re still required to file an RL-1 for that person.  Most times RL-1s for employees only, but if you either contributed to or withheld Québec taxes from a contractor/service provider, then you'd file an RL-1.

What’s included in an RL-1?

RL-1 slips contain the amounts withheld or added for:

• Québec provincial income tax
• Québec Pension Plan (QPP) — Québec’s version of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) 
• Québec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP)
• Workforce Skills Development and Recognition Fund (WSDRF)
• Québec’s labour standards tax  

In other words, these Québec payroll taxes you’re reporting for are a good additional flag for when you have to file an RL-1.

A few common RL-1 boxes are: 

• Box A — Employment income
• Box B — Québec Pension Plan (QPP) contributions
• Box E — Québec income tax withheld
• Box H – Québec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP) premiums
• Box L – Other taxable benefits (such as private health services plan contributions)
• Box O – Other income, identified by an alphabetical code.

When are RL-1s due?

RL-1 slips are due to RQ by the last business day of February following the calendar year. For example, RL-1s for 2025 payments must be filed and distributed by February 27, 2026.

They’re considered on time if they’re received or postmarked on or before that date. If February’s last day falls on a weekend or public holiday, the due date moves to the next business day.

What happens if you miss the February RL-1 deadline?

Just like the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), RQ charges late-filing penalties that multiply daily based on the number of slips and how many days they’re overdue. Not to mention, your employees will be waiting to file their personal income taxes. The longer you take, the longer it takes them. 

Who gets a copy of RL-1 slips?

Your employees and RQ each get RL-1 slips — but for different reasons.

What to know about employee RL-1s

• You must issue an RL-1 for any employee with taxable income, such as:
  
  • Salaries, wages, commissions, bonuses, or tips
  • Private health insurance premiums or vehicle allowances
  • Employer contributions or reimbursements that count as income
• Unlike the $500 earnings limit for the T4, there’s no minimum amount for RL-1s. If the income was taxable, you issue an RL-1 slip. 
• You can distribute RL-1s by mail, email, or through a secure online portal.

What to know about sending RL-1s to RQ

• If you issue more than five RL-1s, you must submit them electronically. 
• You must also send an RL-1 Summary that recaps all the RL-1 information for your business. Without this report, your submission will be considered incomplete.
• If your business has more than one employer identification number (EIN) or payroll account with Revenu Québec, you must file separate RL-1 slips and an RL-1 Summary for each account.
• Keep copies (paper or digital) for six years after the end of the tax year.

Tips for preparing RL-1 slips accurately

Tip 1: Use payroll software that’s configured for Québec payroll and compatible with Revenu Québec’s electronic filing services (clicSÉQUR or authorized XML file upload). It saves time and helps prevent reporting errors.

Do

• Enter “R” for an original RL-1 slip, “A” for an amended slip, and “D” for a cancelled slip.
• Report all amounts in Canadian dollars.
• Include cents for all amounts.
• Leave unused boxes blank.
• Verify employee information before filing.
• Check that the identification number and year are correct at the top of each slip.

Don’t

• Use dollar signs.
• Show negative amounts.
• Enter “nil” or “N/A” in blank boxes.
• Add hyphens or slashes between numbers.

Pro tip: Huumans Payroll can handle your RL-1 slips from start to finish — generating, validating, and filing them (and your summary) automatically with RQ.

Simplify Québec payroll before year-end

Running payroll in Québec can feel complex, but it doesn’t have to be. Built for small business owners, Huumans Payroll makes it easy for you to keep track of federal and provincial payroll taxes and year-end T4s and RL-1s. 

We also think that paying up to five employees free for a year will have you saying, “très bien!”

Resources

The following links can help you learn more about RL-1s and payroll taxes. 

Huumans blog

• What’s a T4 slip? What small businesses should know‍
• What’s a T4A slip, and who needs one?‍
• What payroll taxes are and how they work
  

CRA & RQ

• RQ: Guide to Filing the RL-1 Slip: Employment and Other Income 
• RQ: RL-1 Slip Guide (PDF download) 
• RQ: RL-1 Summary Guide (PDF download) 
• CRA: Sample T4s & RL-1 
• CRA: RL-1 Box Codes (English PDF download) 

FAQs

Who needs an RL-1 slip?

You must issue an RL-1 slip for each employee who worked in Québec or was paid from a Québec business. Both the employee and RQ receive copies — the employee uses it to file their personal income taxes, and RQ uses it to confirm your payroll reporting.

When are RL-1 slips due?

RL-1 slips and the RL-1 Summary must be filed with RQ, and copies provided to employees, by the last business day of February following the tax year. For 2025, it's Friday, February 27, 2026.

What’s the difference between a T4 and an RL-1?

T4 slips report employee income and deductions to the CRA. RL-1 slips report the same information to RQ for employees who work in Québec.  T4 slips cover federal income and payroll taxes, while the RL-1 covers Québec income and payroll taxes.

Do I need to file both a T4 and an RL-1?

Yes. If you have employees in Québec, you must file both. The T4 and T4 Summary go to the CRA, and the RL-1 and RL-1 Summary go to RQ.

How do I file RL-1 slips electronically?

File your RL-1 slips and summary through RQ’s clicSÉQUR portal or through certified payroll software, like Huumans. If you submit more than 5 RL-1 slips, RQ prefers digital submissions.

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Fine print changes all the time. We do our best to keep things accurate and helpful, but this blog doesn’t replace your accountant, bookkeeper, or lawyer.

If you catch something off, let us know and we’ll fix it. And if we link to other sites, that’s just us sharing resources — what they say is on them, not us.

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