A new year is here and as diligent accountants (read: nerds), we’re already planning for 2022. 

To get the ball rolling, we’re going to list out the most common tax deadlines that Canadian tax payers will encounter this year. We will look at:

If you or your spouse earned business income in 2021 then your tax return is due 

This deadline is a bit tricky because taxes owing are still due 

even though the actual filing of the return is not due until June.

If you and your spouse do not earn self-employment income, then your tax return and taxes owing are both due 

This is the most common scenario for tax payers.

 and still have it reduce your 2021 taxes owing.

Corporate tax deadlines are a little different than personal tax deadlines. For tax purposes, corporations can have year-ends that are not December 31st. However, we can still easily figure out when your corporate tax returns and amounts owing are due.

When the corporation's tax year end is on the last day of a month, the return is 

due by the last day of the 6th month after the year-end

. For example, a December 31, 2021 year end would have a June 30, 2022 due date.

When the last day of the tax year is not the last day of a month, the return is 

due the same day of the 6th month after the year-end

. For example, a September 15, 2021 year end would have a March 15, 2022 year end.

The due dates for balances owing are earlier than the due dates for actually filing the tax returns. The short version is that taxes owing are 

However, there is an exception that is very common. Corporate taxes are 

The corporation claimed the small business deduction for the current or previous year.

The corporation and all associated corporations (if applicable) had taxable income less than $500,000 in the previous year.

The exception noted above is very common, so there is a good chance your corporate taxes are due 3 months after the year-end. Because it’s a bit trickier, we recommend asking your accountant or 

 to make sure you’ve got the right date.

There are a few common scenarios for GST/HST return due dates.

When GST returns are filed monthly, the return and amounts owing are 

due 1 month after the end of the reporting period

. For example, a June 1-30 filing period means the return is due July 31st.

When GST returns are filed quarterly, the return and amounts owing are 

. For example, a July 1 - September 30 filing period means the return is due October 31st.


ANNUAL FILERS (EXCEPT INDIVIDUALS WITH DECEMBER 31 YEAR-ENDS)

When GST returns are filed annually by a business that is not an individual, the return and amounts owing are 

due 3 months after the reporting period end date

. For example, a July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022 filing period means the return is due September 30, 2022.


ANNUAL FILERS (INDIVIDUALS WITH DECEMBER 31 YEAR-ENDS)

Individuals who file GST annually and have December 31, 2021 as their fiscal and tax year-ends have slightly different due dates. They mirror the tax due dates for self-employed individuals. 

If you have any questions or need clarification about when something is due, 

We truly enjoy helping and we take pride in being organized and making sure that we don’t miss deadlines!

2022 Tax Due Dates for Canadians

A new year is here and as diligent accountants (read: nerds), we’re already planning for 2022. 

To get the ball rolling, we’re going to list out the most common tax deadlines that Canadian tax payers will encounter this year. We will look at:

Personal Tax Deadlines in 2022

Corporate Tax Deadlines in 2022, and

GST / HST Deadlines in 2022

Personal Tax Deadlines 2022



SELF-EMPLOYED

If you or your spouse earned business income in 2021 then your tax return is due June 15, 2022.

This deadline is a bit tricky because taxes owing are still due May 2, 2022 even though the actual filing of the return is not due until June.


NOT SELF-EMPLOYED

If you and your spouse do not earn self-employment income, then your tax return and taxes owing are both due May 2, 2022. This is the most common scenario for tax payers.


TAX INSTALLMENTS

If you are required to pay tax installments in 2022, they are due:

March 15th

June 15th

September 15th

December 15th


RRSP CONTRIBUTION DEADLINE

You can contribute to your RRSP until Monday, March 1, 2022 and still have it reduce your 2021 taxes owing.



Corporate Tax Deadlines

Corporate tax deadlines are a little different than personal tax deadlines. For tax purposes, corporations can have year-ends that are not December 31st. However, we can still easily figure out when your corporate tax returns and amounts owing are due.


CORPORATE TAX RETURNS

Corporate tax return filings are due 6 months after the year-end. Let’s clarify a couple of scenarios:

When the corporation's tax year end is on the last day of a month, the return is due by the last day of the 6th month after the year-end. For example, a December 31, 2021 year end would have a June 30, 2022 due date.

When the last day of the tax year is not the last day of a month, the return is due the same day of the 6th month after the year-end. For example, a September 15, 2021 year end would have a March 15, 2022 year end.


CORPORATE TAXES OWING

The due dates for balances owing are earlier than the due dates for actually filing the tax returns. The short version is that taxes owing are due 2 months after the year-end.

However, there is an exception that is very common. Corporate taxes are due 3 months after the year-end if the following criteria apply:

The corporation is a Canadian Controlled Private Corporation.

The corporation claimed the small business deduction for the current or previous year.

The corporation and all associated corporations (if applicable) had taxable income less than $500,000 in the previous year.

The exception noted above is very common, so there is a good chance your corporate taxes are due 3 months after the year-end. Because it’s a bit trickier, we recommend asking your accountant or sending us a message to make sure you’ve got the right date.



GST / HST Deadlines

There are a few common scenarios for GST/HST return due dates.


MONTHLY FILERS

When GST returns are filed monthly, the return and amounts owing are due 1 month after the end of the reporting period. For example, a June 1-30 filing period means the return is due July 31st.


QUARTERLY FILERS

When GST returns are filed quarterly, the return and amounts owing are due 1 month after the end of the reporting period. For example, a July 1 - September 30 filing period means the return is due October 31st.


ANNUAL FILERS (EXCEPT INDIVIDUALS WITH DECEMBER 31 YEAR-ENDS)

When GST returns are filed annually by a business that is not an individual, the return and amounts owing are due 3 months after the reporting period end date. For example, a July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022 filing period means the return is due September 30, 2022.


ANNUAL FILERS (INDIVIDUALS WITH DECEMBER 31 YEAR-ENDS)

Individuals who file GST annually and have December 31, 2021 as their fiscal and tax year-ends have slightly different due dates. They mirror the tax due dates for self-employed individuals. 

Due dates in 2022 look like this:

GST owing is due April 30, 2022

Filing of the GST returns is due June 15, 2022

If you have any questions or need clarification about when something is due, reach out here.

We truly enjoy helping and we take pride in being organized and making sure that we don’t miss deadlines!

2022 Tax Deadlines Canada: When Are Corporate and Personal Taxes Due?

Company Cars - Buying or Leasing a Car in a Corporation

If you are considering leasing or buying a vehicle in your corporation, there are several tax implications that you will want to understand from the onset.

When a vehicle is leased through a corporation, the company has the benefit of deducting the business-use portion of the lease payments and other vehicle operating costs on its tax return.

Oftentimes, there is also a personal use component to the vehicle usage as well. Any personal use results in a benefit to you that is either added to an employee’s T4 slip or, in the case of a shareholder using the vehicle, the benefit can be allocated to their shareholder loan account.

Taxable Benefits - Automobile Used by an Employee

If a vehicle is made available to an employee for personal use, then the employee is considered to have received a taxable benefit from their employer. In the eyes of the CRA, 

even driving to and from work with a company car is considered personal use!

The automobile taxable benefit is included in employment income on the employee’s annual T4 slip and is subject to payroll deductions including income tax, CPP and EI. There are two elements to the automobile taxable benefit: the standby charge and operating benefit.

The standby charge benefit recognizes that the employee is receiving a benefit by having an automobile made available to them during the year. 

Generally speaking, the standby charge is calculated as:

2% per month of the cost of the automobile, or 

⅔ of the lease costs calculated with reference to the number of days the automobile is made available to the employee in the year. 

Note that this standby charge may be reduced if more than 50% of the vehicles mileage in the year is for business use and less that 20,004 km per year are driven for personal use.

The operating cost recognizes that the employer has paid for all of the automobile’s operating costs throughout the year, even though it has been made available for personal use to an employee. 

This taxable benefit is also included in the employee’s income for the year, less any reimbursements made by the employee to the employer for the vehicle use.

The operating cost benefit is calculated as the number of personal kilometres driven in the year multiplied by the specified per kilometer rate ( $0.27/km for 2021). 

If the employee uses the automobile primarily (at least 50%) for work related purposes, a reduced operating benefit may be calculated as 50% of the standby charge less any reimbursements.

 that you can use to estimate the taxable benefits resulting from a company owned vehicle made available to a shareholder or employee. 

You simply need to enter the vehicle information (cost/lease payment), the length of time it was made available to the employee in the year as well as the mileage and the calculator computes the expected taxable benefit for the individual.

If the corporation decides to lease an automobile, it will be able to deduct the monthly lease payments on its corporate tax return up to a limit of $800/month +GST/HST. 

If the vehicle is purchased, the first $30,000 of the automobile’s cost can be depreciated on the corporate tax return under the capital cost allowance program.

In addition, the corporation can also deduct the operating expenses incurred to run your car such as:

You can also deduct the full amount of parking fees related to your business activities. More information on claiming motor vehicle expenses can be found 

The two key things to remember about deducting vehicle expenses is that they have to be reasonable and receipts have to be kept on file.

Anytime vehicle costs are being claimed for tax purposes, it's always best practice to track your mileage. In the event of a CRA review, documentation could be provided to support the business-use of the vehicle and related tax deduction. 

There are a bunch of great apps out there to help you track your mileage - below are a few of the more popular ones:

If you are interested in a zero-emission vehicle, there are a few incentives out there right now that are worth checking out. 

If you lease an eligible vehicle, you can qualify for a federal rebate of up to $5,000. As well, if you buy one of the eligible vehicles, you can get a 100% write-off in the year of purchase (compared to 30% for a gas-powered vehicle).

 It's important to note that you can get the rebate or the tax write-off, and not both. More information on this new program can be found 

Company Cars - Buying or Leasing a Car in a Corporation

If you are considering leasing or buying a vehicle in your corporation, there are several tax implications that you will want to understand from the onset.

Business vs. Personal Use

When a vehicle is leased through a corporation, the company has the benefit of deducting the business-use portion of the lease payments and other vehicle operating costs on its tax return.

Oftentimes, there is also a personal use component to the vehicle usage as well. Any personal use results in a benefit to you that is either added to an employee’s T4 slip or, in the case of a shareholder using the vehicle, the benefit can be allocated to their shareholder loan account.

Taxable Benefits - Automobile Used by an Employee

If a vehicle is made available to an employee for personal use, then the employee is considered to have received a taxable benefit from their employer. In the eyes of the CRA, even driving to and from work with a company car is considered personal use!

The automobile taxable benefit is included in employment income on the employee’s annual T4 slip and is subject to payroll deductions including income tax, CPP and EI. There are two elements to the automobile taxable benefit: the standby charge and operating benefit.

Standby Charge Benefit

The standby charge benefit recognizes that the employee is receiving a benefit by having an automobile made available to them during the year. 

Generally speaking, the standby charge is calculated as:

2% per month of the cost of the automobile, or 

⅔ of the lease costs calculated with reference to the number of days the automobile is made available to the employee in the year. 

Note that this standby charge may be reduced if more than 50% of the vehicles mileage in the year is for business use and less that 20,004 km per year are driven for personal use.

Operating Cost Benefit

The operating cost recognizes that the employer has paid for all of the automobile’s operating costs throughout the year, even though it has been made available for personal use to an employee. 

This taxable benefit is also included in the employee’s income for the year, less any reimbursements made by the employee to the employer for the vehicle use.

The operating cost benefit is calculated as the number of personal kilometres driven in the year multiplied by the specified per kilometer rate ( $0.27/km for 2021). 

If the employee uses the automobile primarily (at least 50%) for work related purposes, a reduced operating benefit may be calculated as 50% of the standby charge less any reimbursements.

CRA Automobile Benefits Calculator

The Canada Revenue Agency has an online automobile benefits calculator that you can use to estimate the taxable benefits resulting from a company owned vehicle made available to a shareholder or employee. 

You simply need to enter the vehicle information (cost/lease payment), the length of time it was made available to the employee in the year as well as the mileage and the calculator computes the expected taxable benefit for the individual.

Corporate Tax Deductions

If the corporation decides to lease an automobile, it will be able to deduct the monthly lease payments on its corporate tax return up to a limit of $800/month +GST/HST. 

If the vehicle is purchased, the first $30,000 of the automobile’s cost can be depreciated on the corporate tax return under the capital cost allowance program.

In addition, the corporation can also deduct the operating expenses incurred to run your car such as:

licensing and registration costs

fuel and oil

insurance

repairs and maintenance costs


You can also deduct the full amount of parking fees related to your business activities. More information on claiming motor vehicle expenses can be found here if you're interested. 

The two key things to remember about deducting vehicle expenses is that they have to be reasonable and receipts have to be kept on file.

Mileage Tracking

Anytime vehicle costs are being claimed for tax purposes, it's always best practice to track your mileage. In the event of a CRA review, documentation could be provided to support the business-use of the vehicle and related tax deduction. 

There are a bunch of great apps out there to help you track your mileage - below are a few of the more popular ones:

MileIQ

TripLog

Everlance

Hurdlr

Zero-Emission Vehicles

If you are interested in a zero-emission vehicle, there are a few incentives out there right now that are worth checking out. 

If you lease an eligible vehicle, you can qualify for a federal rebate of up to $5,000. As well, if you buy one of the eligible vehicles, you can get a 100% write-off in the year of purchase (compared to 30% for a gas-powered vehicle).

 It's important to note that you can get the rebate or the tax write-off, and not both. More information on this new program can be found here.

Company Cars - Should you buy or lease a car in your corporation?

Ownr Review: Easily Incorporate a Business in Canada with Ownr

Incorporating your business in Canada can be a difficult process. Without guidance, it’s tough to know even what questions you should be asking.

Often, a lawyer is hired to help guide business owners through the process of incorporation, but this can be costly and time consuming.

Ownr is here to change all of that and make incorporating your business easy and cost effective.

Start here for our quick summary of our Ownr review and then read the full article below for details.

Ownr is an excellent platform to use for incorporating your business, managing corporate filings or registering a sole proprietorship. You can easily save $1,000 by incorporating with Ownr compared to incorporating through a lawyer.

 to those who are looking to start a business or incorporate.  

The main drawback is that you won't have access to a lawyer through Ownr for legal advice.  You'll want to have a good idea of how you want to set up your corporation.

The cost to use Ownr for incorporation and corporate filings is significantly less than using a lawyer, but you don’t get the benefit of legal advice that comes with a lawyer.

The standard cost of incorporating with Ownr ranges from $399 to $599 depending on which services you choose and where you’re located.

You can also get up to $300 back if you open an RBC business bank account after incorporating see details 

Ownr provides a clear step-by-step process for incorporating your business. You can also access templates for various corporate documents and agreements.

Ownr is a Canadian business that helps new businesses to register, incorporate, create legal agreements, manage employees and more.

It sets itself apart from traditional service providers like lawyers and notaries by providing an online platform where business owners can easily set up their businesses.

Use Ownr to set up a sole proprietorship or a corporation in a matter of minutes.

Check out this quick 1 minute video from Ownr one how it works.

At the time of this writing, Ownr is available in the following provinces:

Ownr is working on expanding its services to other locations, but for now it’s only available in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario.

Ownr can help you register a new business (sole proprietorship or corporation), or manage the administration of an existing corporation.

Incorporate your business with Ownr quickly using their online platform and for much less than incorporating through a lawyer.

Incorporation and filings with the government

Company organization documents and share issuances

Access to your incorporation documents through Ownr’s online platform

Corporate Administration and Document Management with Ownr

Owner will ensure that you have the legal documents required to run your business and can act as a home for your important corporate documents.

Corporate administration and document management includes

Secure corporate document organization (bylaws, director appointments, corporate resolutions, etc.)

Initial share issuances and company ownership register

Management of corporate directors, officers and addresses through the platform

Various legal document templates (employee agreements, NDAs, dividend resolutions, shareholder agreements, vesting agreements, financing documents, etc.)

Ownr also allows you to register your business as a sole proprietorship in minutes.

Sole proprietorship registration includes:

Which Business Structures Can You Register with Ownr?

With Ownr, you can register a corporation or a sole proprietorship.

that can be registered with Ownr include:

 that can be registered with Ownr Include:

At this time, Ownr can only offer federal incorporations if you’re located in Ontario. Info on the difference between federal and provincial incorporation can be found 

If you’re not located in BC, AB or ON, you can add your email within Ownr and they will notify you once they are available in your location.

Incorporating or registering your business with Ownr is very reasonably priced. This is especially true when comparing the cost to the alternative of hiring a lawyer.

Registering a sole proprietorship is $89 + tax

 and includes unlimited business name searches, business registration number, business registration documents and business document storage.

The cost of incorporation with Ownr varies depending on what province you’re located in and whether you subscribe to the managed corporation plan after incorporation or not.

The one-time incorporation fee includes incorporation and filings with the government, company name registration, share issuances, and access to the online minute book for one year.

If you’re incorporating and you choose the managed corporationplan, you’ll save $100 on the initial incorporation fee.

Compare these prices to the pretty standard cost of 

$1,500 you’ll pay to incorporate with a lawyer 

and you can see that Ownr is a much less expensive way to incorporate.

How to get up to $300 back when Incorporating with Ownr

Ownr is an RBC Ventures company and you can get up to 

 if you open an RBC Business Bank account through Ownr.  

Open an RBC Business bank account within 60 days

 and you can receive up to $300 back depending on province of incorporation.

If you registered a sole proprietorship, you can expect the 

keep the RBC bank account open for at least one year

 if you want to take advantage of this offer.

To claim the offer, log into your Ownr account and click the “refund me” button in your dashboard.

Pros and Cons of Incorporating Your Business

Looking to start your business but not sure what business structure is best? We wrote an entire article on 

the pros and cons of incorporating your business

. Check out the link or read the summary below.

Advantages of Incorporating Your Business

 — Operating your business through a corporation provides a layer of security against personal liability. It makes it more difficult for someone to go after your personal assets if the business defaults on its debts.

— In some situations, corporations have a lower tax rate than individuals. Operating your business through a corporation instead of a proprietorship can help to defer and save taxes.

 — Income splitting used to be a major reason for incorporating your small business. Since 2018, this has changed significantly due to some new tax regulations, and it is now much less of an advantage.

 — The LCGE allows some incorporated businesses to sell at a gain of up to $892,218 without paying any tax.

 — A corporation is a separate entity to you, so it continues to live on regardless of what happens to you. This can be helpful when planning to transfer your assets to others.

Disadvantages of Incorporating Your Business

We are seeing it a lot. You get hired as a “contractor” and part of the deal is that you need to incorporate. It seems to be a tactic used by some employers to get around employment standards laws and other regulations of hiring employees, including tax. It’s unfortunate because it places the burden of compliance and the costs associated with it on you, the contractor/employee.

Complaints aside, there are now things that you need to do in order to maintain compliance for your corporation and manage the flow of money to you personally. This article will cover everything you need to do.

Real Talk - You’re Probably a Personal Services Business

Unfortunately, all the benefits you have heard about corporations (low tax rates, tax planning, etc.) will likely not apply to you. This is because you are likely considered a 

. This is a special type of corporation that essentially covers incorporated employees and limits the ability to pay dividends and deduct certain expenses.

With that said, let’s walk through what you need to do to get the corporation started and what you’ll need to do going forward to keep it compliant (spoiler alert: you can do this yourself, but we can help too - 

It’s likely that you will be the only owner of this corporation, so a simple share structure should suffice. Please refer to our 

) to ensure a simple structure will work for you and consult with a lawyer if anything is unclear.

The process of incorporation is fairly straightforward with services like

 (using this link give you a 20% discount). They offer affordable incorporation services online. Alternatively, you can have a lawyer help you.

For a simple corporation like this, a numbered company will work just fine, but you can name it too for a little flair!

As a corporation, you are able to choose any year-end date that you like. However, for most corporations like this, we would advise you to make it December 31 to keep things simple.

You will need a bank account in the corporation’s name. The corporation is a separate legal entity from you, so when you invoice and get paid to the corporation your account name must match that legal entity name.

Register for GST/HST and a Payroll Account

One you have your incorporation, you should be given a CRA business number. This number will be suffixed by an RC0001. This is the program account and you will need to register for 2 other program accounts: GST/HST (RT0001) and Payroll (RP0001). Here’s h

Each year, you will need to file a corporate tax return (T2) with CRA. These are typically completed by an accountant, but some business owners choose to 

Corporate Registration Filings (Annually)

These are separate from your tax returns, but are often called your 

, which is confusing. If you incorporate with 

, they have service tiers to take care of these for you. Likewise, a lawyer will generally handle these for you if you use them for your incorporation.

You will need to keep track of your transactions for the corporation. Please refer to our 

For invoicing, you can use a Google or Microsoft Office template. Be sure to include GST/HST on your invoices to your employer if they are located in Canada. The percentage that you charge will be the rate where your employer is located (13% if they are in Ontario for example, 

Lastly, you must keep a record of your expenses. Digital receipts are just fine, so you can take photos of them and save them to a Google Drive folder or something similar to refer to later if audited.

 to manage the bookkeeping and invoicing, but these might be overkill for you.

Now that you have registered and are charging for GST/HST, you will need to file a return. Here’s 

 on how it works and how to file it on your own.

Filing your return is one thing, but you may need to make installment payments as well. If you owe more than $3,000 in a year, you will be required to pay quarterly installments the following year. You should receive a letter from CRA telling you what your required installments are - make sure to put these in your calendar to avoid interest charges.

Run Your Payroll (Bi-weekly, Semi-monthly, Monthly) and File T4 (Annually)

Here’s where things get a bit more complicated. Payroll can be a bit tough to wrap your head around at first, but luckily, we have a 

 together as well to help you run and track your payroll for free.

: there’s no right answer here - how often you would like to be paid (monthly is common for these situations)

Calculate Your Net Pay and Remittance Amount

: Use CRA’s online calculator or software like Wagepoint for this.

Transfer your net pay and file and pay your remittance:

 your net pay can go to your personal bank account and the remittance can be filed and paid through your online banking.

 use your spreadsheet to tally up all the amounts to file with CRA - you can file this through CRA online, or your payroll software can do this for you.

Honestly, while saving a few bucks by doing everything manually might seem appealing, you will save yourself many headaches by paying for a software like 

. Wagepoint handles your monthly filings and remittances and prepares your T4s for you (you just have to review it and mark it ready for submission each year).

If this all sounds a bit much and you’d just like someone to handle it for you, you have come to the right place. Our annual retainer package will include setting up your payroll on Wagepoint and training you and then filing your GST/HST, T4s and corporate tax returns annually. You’ll have a dedicated Client Manager to reach out to with any questions as well. 

We are seeing it a lot. You get hired as a “contractor” and part of the deal is that you need to incorporate. It seems to be a tactic used by some employers to get around employment standards laws and other regulations of hiring employees, including tax. It’s unfortunate because it places the burden of compliance and the costs associated with it on you, the contractor/employee.

Complaints aside, there are now things that you need to do in order to maintain compliance for your corporation and manage the flow of money to you personally. This article will cover everything you need to do.

Real Talk - You’re Probably a Personal Services Business

Unfortunately, all the benefits you have heard about corporations (low tax rates, tax planning, etc.) will likely not apply to you. This is because you are likely considered a Personal Services Business. This is a special type of corporation that essentially covers incorporated employees and limits the ability to pay dividends and deduct certain expenses.

With that said, let’s walk through what you need to do to get the corporation started and what you’ll need to do going forward to keep it compliant (spoiler alert: you can do this yourself, but we can help too - just reach out here).

How to Set Up Your Corporation

Incorporation

It’s likely that you will be the only owner of this corporation, so a simple share structure should suffice. Please refer to our article on share structure (video) to ensure a simple structure will work for you and consult with a lawyer if anything is unclear.

The process of incorporation is fairly straightforward with services like Ownr (using this link give you a 20% discount). They offer affordable incorporation services online. Alternatively, you can have a lawyer help you.

Named or Numbered?

For a simple corporation like this, a numbered company will work just fine, but you can name it too for a little flair!

Choose a Year-end

As a corporation, you are able to choose any year-end date that you like. However, for most corporations like this, we would advise you to make it December 31 to keep things simple.

Open a Business Bank Account

You will need a bank account in the corporation’s name. The corporation is a separate legal entity from you, so when you invoice and get paid to the corporation your account name must match that legal entity name.

Register for GST/HST and a Payroll Account

One you have your incorporation, you should be given a CRA business number. This number will be suffixed by an RC0001. This is the program account and you will need to register for 2 other program accounts: GST/HST (RT0001) and Payroll (RP0001). Here’s how to register for program accounts.

Maintaining the Corporation

Corporate Tax Returns (Annually)

Each year, you will need to file a corporate tax return (T2) with CRA. These are typically completed by an accountant, but some business owners choose to file these on their own.

Corporate Registration Filings (Annually)

These are separate from your tax returns, but are often called your Annual Corporate Return, which is confusing. If you incorporate with Ownr, they have service tiers to take care of these for you. Likewise, a lawyer will generally handle these for you if you use them for your incorporation.

Bookkeeping & Invoicing

You will need to keep track of your transactions for the corporation. Please refer to our bookkeeping guide and walkthrough of our free bookkeeping template.

For invoicing, you can use a Google or Microsoft Office template. Be sure to include GST/HST on your invoices to your employer if they are located in Canada. The percentage that you charge will be the rate where your employer is located (13% if they are in Ontario for example, here are the others).

Lastly, you must keep a record of your expenses. Digital receipts are just fine, so you can take photos of them and save them to a Google Drive folder or something similar to refer to later if audited.

You could also use software like Wave, Xero or Quickbooks to manage the bookkeeping and invoicing, but these might be overkill for you.

GST/HST Returns (Annually or Quarterly)

Now that you have registered and are charging for GST/HST, you will need to file a return. Here’s our article on how it works and how to file it on your own.

Filing your return is one thing, but you may need to make installment payments as well. If you owe more than $3,000 in a year, you will be required to pay quarterly installments the following year. You should receive a letter from CRA telling you what your required installments are - make sure to put these in your calendar to avoid interest charges.

Run Your Payroll (Bi-weekly, Semi-monthly, Monthly) and File T4 (Annually)

Here’s where things get a bit more complicated. Payroll can be a bit tough to wrap your head around at first, but luckily, we have a guide for that too. We’ve also put a video series together as well to help you run and track your payroll for free.

Here are the basics:

Choose your payroll frequency: there’s no right answer here - how often you would like to be paid (monthly is common for these situations)

Calculate Your Net Pay and Remittance Amount: Use CRA’s online calculator or software like Wagepoint for this.

Record the details in a spreadsheet: Our YouTube series has a link to a free template.

Transfer your net pay and file and pay your remittance: your net pay can go to your personal bank account and the remittance can be filed and paid through your online banking.

File your T4 each year: use your spreadsheet to tally up all the amounts to file with CRA - you can file this through CRA online, or your payroll software can do this for you.

Honestly, while saving a few bucks by doing everything manually might seem appealing, you will save yourself many headaches by paying for a software like Wagepoint. Wagepoint handles your monthly filings and remittances and prepares your T4s for you (you just have to review it and mark it ready for submission each year).

The Easiest Way

If this all sounds a bit much and you’d just like someone to handle it for you, you have come to the right place. Our annual retainer package will include setting up your payroll on Wagepoint and training you and then filing your GST/HST, T4s and corporate tax returns annually. You’ll have a dedicated Client Manager to reach out to with any questions as well. Reach out now to get started.

My employer says I need to incorporate, what do I do?

How to Set Up Your “CRA My Business Account”

” is the official CRA online portal for business owners. It allows business owners to interact with the CRA electronically and access their business information relating to corporate income tax, GST/HST, payroll and more.

This article will provide important information about the CRA My Business Account, including:

How to set up and access your CRA My Business Account

How to authorize a representative within your CRA My Business Account

Business owners (including partners, directors, and officers) can use the “CRA My Business Account.”

That’s it. Those are the people who can use it.

This means that as a business owner, you can’t set up employees or other third parties with access to your “CRA My Business Account”.

However, there is a way to provide third parties like your accountant with access to your information. Accountants like Avalon will access your CRA information using their “

The last section of this article will explain how you can help your accountant gain access to your CRA information. It’s pretty much essential that they have this access.

How to set up your CRA My Business Account

There are a few steps required when setting up your CRA My Business Account. We’ll start with a helpful video that CRA has prepared and then provide step-by-step instructions below.

There is a step that involves calling the CRA to speak to an agent and obtain an access code. To speed up the process, begin your registration during CRA’s operating hours listed below.

Access to a computer and internet connection

Your 9 digit business number (starts with a 7 or an 8)

A copy of your most recent personal tax return

To be able to call CRA and speak to an agent

CRA My Business Account Registration Page

 (www.canada.ca/my-cra-business-account).

There are two options you can use to register.

Login using a sign-in partner (an existing login for a financial institution)

Create a new CRA user ID and login using that

CRA has partnered with a number of financial institutions to allow you to sign in using your online banking login credentials.

This is a fast way to get started if you already have online access to one of the financial institutions listed below.

Step 1 - Sign in using an existing financial institution login

How to Set Up Your “CRA My Business Account”

The “CRA My Business Account” is the official CRA online portal for business owners. It allows business owners to interact with the CRA electronically and access their business information relating to corporate income tax, GST/HST, payroll and more.



This article will provide important information about the CRA My Business Account, including:

Who can use CRA My Business Account

How to set up and access your CRA My Business Account

How to authorize a representative within your CRA My Business Account



Let’s get started!

Who Can Use the CRA My Business Account

Business owners (including partners, directors, and officers) can use the “CRA My Business Account.”

That’s it. Those are the people who can use it.

This means that as a business owner, you can’t set up employees or other third parties with access to your “CRA My Business Account”.

However, there is a way to provide third parties like your accountant with access to your information. Accountants like Avalon will access your CRA information using their “CRA Represent a Client” account.

The last section of this article will explain how you can help your accountant gain access to your CRA information. It’s pretty much essential that they have this access.

How to set up your CRA My Business Account

There are a few steps required when setting up your CRA My Business Account. We’ll start with a helpful video that CRA has prepared and then provide step-by-step instructions below.

Timing of CRA My Business Account setup

There is a step that involves calling the CRA to speak to an agent and obtain an access code. To speed up the process, begin your registration during CRA’s operating hours listed below.

Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm local time

Saturday 9am to 5pm local time

Closed on Sunday

What you will need

Access to a computer and internet connection

Your social insurance number

Your 9 digit business number (starts with a 7 or an 8)

Your current postal code

A copy of your most recent personal tax return

Your email address

To be able to call CRA and speak to an agent

Get Started - Go to the CRA My Business Account Registration Page (www.canada.ca/my-cra-business-account).

There are two options you can use to register.

Login using a sign-in partner (an existing login for a financial institution)

Create a new CRA user ID and login using that

Option 1 - Login Using a Sign-in Partner

CRA has partnered with a number of financial institutions to allow you to sign in using your online banking login credentials.

This is a fast way to get started if you already have online access to one of the financial institutions listed below.

Step 1 - Sign in using an existing financial institution login
If applicable, login using one of your existing online banking logins listed below. If you don’t have one of these, please use option 2 (below) to create your account.

Step 2 - Enter your social insurance number 
Enter your social insurance number as shown below.

Step 3 - Validate your identity
Validate your identity by entering the requested info (this is where you’ll need your previous year’s tax return).

Step 4 - CRA sends you a security code
CRA can either snail-mail you a security code or email you a security code. If you choose email, you will need to call CRA at 1-800-959-8281 to confirm this step. Email is the faster of the two options as snail-mail can take up to 10 days.

Step 5 - Enter your security code once received
Once you have your security code, login to your new account and choose the “Enter or request your security code” option to finalize setting up your CRA account.

Step 6 - Enter your business number 
Once you’ve logged in, you can provide your business number to connect your new login with that business.


Option 2 - Create a CRA User ID

If you don’t have online access to one of the financial institutions noted above, then you’ll need to create a CRA User ID. Don’t worry, it’s only a little bit painful. Here’s how:

Step 1 - Select "CRA Register" under option 2
1. On the My Business Account page, click the “CRA register” link under “Option 

Step 2 - Enter your social insurance number 
Enter your social insurance number as shown below.

Step 3 - Validate your identity
Validate your identity by entering the requested info (this is where you’ll need your previous year’s tax return).

Step 4 - CRA sends you a security code
CRA can either snail-mail you a security code or email you a security code. If you choose email, you will need to call CRA at 1-800-959-8281 to confirm this step. Email is the faster of the two options as snail-mail can take up to 10 days.

Step 5 - Create a CRA user ID and password
Next you will create a CRA user ID and password.  

Step 6 - Create some security questions
CRA will ask you to choose from a number of security questions to help authenticate your sign-ins.

Step 7 - Enter your security code once received
Once you have your security code, login to your new account and choose the “Enter or request your security code” option to finalize setting up your CRA account.

Step 8 - Enter your business number 
Once you’ve logged in, you can provide your business number to connect your new login with that business.

Now that you’ve created your CRA login and connected it with your business number, you can access the business’ tax information.

You will also be able to provide access to your accountant through their “Represent a client” account.


Authorize a representative using your CRA My Business account

It’s important to provide your accountant with access to your business’ tax information through CRA’s online portal. Accountant’s like Avalon Accounting use CRA’s “Represent a client” portal to request third party access to this information.

Now that you have a “CRA My Business” account, your accountant can request access through their “Represent a client” portal. Here is how that process works.

Option 1 - Your accountant requests access

There are two methods for authorizing a representative using your CRA My Business account. At Avalon, we will typically initiate (option 1 here), but you can also do it yourself (see option 2 below).

Your accountant will send you a form to sign which will authorize them to request access to your account through their online portal. Sign this document and your accountant will submit it to the CRA.

Once your accountant has submitted the request for authorization, you can login to your CRA My Business account and approve the request.

Step 1 - Login to your CRA My Business account

Login to your CRA My Business account. If you don’t have one yet, please see the section above on how to create a CRA My Business account.

Step 2 - Navigate to the “Profile” section of your account

Navigate to the “Profile” section on the top banner of your CRA My Business account.

Step 3 - Choose “Manage authorized representatives

From the profile under “Authorized representatives,” choose “Manage authorized representatives.”

Step 4 - Choose “Confirm pending authorizations

Your accountant has already submitted the authorization request so you will be choosing “Confirm pending authorizations.”

Step 5 - Confirm the authorization request from your accountant

Once in the “Confirm pending authorizations page,” you will be able to confirm the authorization request that your accountant has previously submitted.

It may take a couple of days for the request to show up, so check back in 2 days if you don’t see it there yet.

You’re done!

Once confirmed, your accountant will have access to your business’ information with CRA.

Option 2 - Initiate the authorization request yourself

There is an alternative method that you can use if you want to initiate the authorization request for your accountant.

Step 1 - Login to your CRA My Business account

Login to your CRA My Business account. If you don’t have one yet, please see the section above on how to create a CRA My Business account.

Step 2 - Navigate to the “Profile” section of your account

Just like in option 1, you will navigate to the “Profile” section on the top banner of your CRA My Business account.

Step 3 - Choose “Manage authorized representatives"

From the profile under “Authorized representatives,” choose “Manage authorized representatives.”


Step 4 - Choose “Authorize a representative” within your profile

Navigate to your CRA My Business account profile as shown above.

Instead of choosing “Confirm pending authorizations,” you will choose “Authorize a representative” to initiate the authorization yourself.

Step 5 - Enter your accountant’s representative ID number

Enter your accountant’s representative ID number and click next. They will be able to provide you with their RepID, GroupID or BN. Any one of those three options should work.

Step 6 - Choose level of authorization and expiry date

In the next step you will choose the level of authorization that you want your accountant to have. You can also add an expiry date if you like.

At Avalon, our typical setup is to choose level 2 authorization (update and view) and leave the expiry date blank. Authorization can be cancelled manually at any time.

Step 7 - Choose which accounts to authorize

The last step before finalizing authorization is to choose which program accounts you want your accountant to be able to update and view. You can authorize access for just one account or all.

At Avalon our standard setup is to authorize all accounts so we can dive into the information and help out as needed.

Click next and then the last step is to confirm the information you’ve entered.

You’re done!

Once confirmed, your accountant will have access to your business’ information with CRA.

How to use the CRA My Business Account

As part of our ongoing effort to support new and small business owners, we regularly publish articles that aim to resolve common questions and problems.

Welcome to the Avalon Blog.

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