Economical Outsourced Controller Services for Canadian Businesses

Most people pay through online or telephone banking, adding the CRA as a payee and choosing the exact account and year, such as a personal balance owing or an instalment. The alternatives are CRA My Payment with a debit card, pre-authorised debit scheduled in My Account, a credit card or e-transfer through a third-party provider that charges its own fee, or paying at your bank with a remittance voucher. For the 2025 tax year the balance was due 30 April 2026.

Multiply the pre-tax price by the combined rate for the province where the supply is made, then add that amount to the price. If the price already includes tax, divide the total by one plus the rate to get the pre-tax amount, and the difference is the tax. The rate depends on the province of supply rather than where your business sits, so verify the current rate for that province and confirm the item is not zero-rated or exempt.

Canada runs three systems. The federal GST is 5% for 2026 and applies nationally. Five participating provinces fold a provincial share into one harmonised rate: 13% in Ontario, 15% in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island, and 14% in Nova Scotia since 1 April 2025. Others add their own tax to the 5% GST, giving 12% in British Columbia and Manitoba, 11% in Saskatchewan and 14.975% in Quebec. Alberta and the territories charge 5% only.

The basic personal amount is a non-refundable credit that shelters a base level of income from federal tax, so income below it carries no federal tax. The amount is indexed every year, and the enhanced portion is phased out across the second-highest federal bracket, so taxpayers in the top bracket receive only the base amount. Each province and territory sets its own version. On Form TD1 you claim it so your employer withholds less; claim it with one employer only, or too little tax is withheld.

There is no general tax exemption card. A certificate of Indian status held by a person registered under the Indian Act supports GST/HST relief on qualifying purchases and Ontario point-of-sale relief. Foreign diplomats and certain international organisations carry their own federal relief documents. Charities and non-profits register with the CRA rather than hold a card, and businesses buying for resale use registration numbers and exemption certificates. The vendor decides on the document shown, so verify the rules first.

Box 14 is gross employment income, not net. It shows total pay before income tax, CPP and EI were withheld, and it already includes most taxable benefits and any tips the employer controlled and paid out. The amounts withheld sit in their own boxes further along the slip. Net income is something you calculate on the T1 after deductions such as RRSP contributions and union dues, so it will not match box 14.

Child support received under the current rules is not taxable to the recipient and not deductible to the payer, so the paying parent carries the tax on that money. Orders and written agreements made before May 1997 can still follow the old treatment, where payments were deductible and taxable, so check the date on the order — and note that a later variation of the child support amount, or a joint election filed by both parents, ends the old treatment from that point and brings the order under the current rules. Spousal support is separate: periodic spousal support under a court order or written agreement is generally deductible to the payer and taxable to the recipient.

Other employment income is employment-related money that does not show up in the employment income box of a T4. Common examples are tips and gratuities, employment income earned outside Canada, net research grants, wage-loss replacement benefits, royalties from your own work, and certain amounts allocated by a partnership. You report it on the other employment income line of the T1 even when no slip was issued, and you keep your own records supporting the figure.

No. Canada has no joint return. Each spouse or common-law partner files a separate T1 reporting only their own income. What changes is the identification page: you tick married or common-law and give your partner's name, social insurance number and net income, which opens up couple-level credits and sets the income used for benefits. Most couples still prepare the two returns side by side so donations, medical expenses and pension splitting land on the better return.

Yes. Dividends and most other investment income are taxable in the year received, but interest is reported as it accrues each year, so a compound GIC or strip bond produces taxable interest annually even though nothing is paid out until maturity; the amounts usually appear on a T5 slip, and income below the slip-issuing threshold still has to be reported. A share's rise in value is taxed only when you sell, and only part of the resulting capital gain is included in income.

Drugs prescribed by a medical practitioner and recorded by a pharmacist are eligible medical expenses. Over-the-counter products are not eligible even when a doctor recommends them, and most vitamins and supplements fall outside the rules too. Ask the pharmacy for an annual printout instead of saving till receipts, because it shows the prescribing detail the CRA expects. Only the total above an income-based floor produces a credit, and reimbursed amounts must be excluded.

Taxable wages are the part of an employee's pay that income tax is calculated on: salary, hourly wages, overtime, bonuses, commissions, most allowances and the value of taxable benefits such as personal use of a company vehicle. They are not the same as gross pay, and they differ again from pensionable and insurable earnings, which drive CPP and EI. Box 14 of the T4 reports employment income for the calendar year.