Expert Tax Accountants in Victoria

Sales tax in British Columbia totals 12% for 2026: the 5% federal GST plus 7% provincial sales tax. BC is not harmonised, so the two run separately, with GST registered and filed with the CRA and PST with the province. A $100 taxable sale carries $5 GST and $7 PST. PST has its own exemptions, including most food for human consumption, so some sales take the 5% GST only.

A TD1 Personal Tax Credits Return tells your employer which personal credits to build into your income tax withholding, so the right amount comes off each pay. You normally complete a federal TD1 and a provincial or territorial TD1 when you start a job. File a fresh pair whenever your situation changes, for instance a new dependant, tuition, or a second employer, where you should not claim the basic personal amount twice.

The route depends on the structure. A sole proprietor or partner reports business income on Form T2125 and files it with the personal T1 return; for the 2025 year the self-employed filing deadline was 15 June 2026, while any balance owing was due 30 April 2026. An incorporated business files a separate T2 corporate return for each fiscal year, due six months after that year end, on top of whatever the owner reports personally.

Federal income tax is the share of income tax that goes to the federal government, calculated on taxable income using federal brackets and then reduced by federal credits. Your province or territory levies its own income tax on the same income, which is why a paycheque outside Quebec shows one blended deduction rather than two. Employers estimate both when withholding. For your own figure, read the federal tax line on your assessed T1 rather than a rate table.

Some services only. BC's 7% PST reaches legal services, telecommunication services, accommodation, and work performed on goods such as repair, maintenance and installation. Many other services, including most professional and consulting fees, fall outside PST, though the 5% GST still applies to them. Because the list is specific rather than general, check the province's PST bulletin for your line of work before you register, charge tax or price a quote.

Yes, where you owe. The late-filing penalty is 5% of the unpaid balance plus 1% for each full month the return is late, up to 12 months. It rises to 10% plus 2% a month, to 20 months, only where the CRA formally demanded the return and charged you a late-filing penalty in one of the three preceding years. Compound daily interest runs on the balance as well. With nothing owing, there is no penalty.

Sometimes. When a BC seller ships taxable goods to a buyer in the province, PST at 7% applies to the delivery or freight charge as part of the price of those goods. If the goods themselves are exempt, the related delivery charge is exempt too. Freight billed separately by an arm's-length carrier for a transportation service is not subject to PST. GST applies to the freight either way. Check the province's PST bulletin on delivery charges.

There is no age or milestone at which refunds stop. A refund only means more tax was withheld or paid by instalments during the year than the return finally calculates, so it turns on your income mix each year. Retirees often stop seeing refunds because pension, RRIF and investment income tends to be under-withheld, which produces a balance owing instead. You can ask a payer to withhold more, or pay instalments, to change that.

Your refund is the tax already withheld or paid minus the tax you actually owe once credits and deductions are applied, so there is no standard amount. Larger refunds usually come from over-withholding at source, RRSP contributions, tuition or medical claims, or a mid-year job change. Your notice of assessment shows the calculation. Online returns are typically processed in about two weeks; a non-resident return can take up to 16 weeks.

GST at 5% applies to paid parking in British Columbia. BC PST is not charged on parking, because parking is a service rather than a taxable good, so you should not see a 7% provincial line on the receipt. Metro Vancouver adds its own regional tax on parking rights, which is normally built into the posted price rather than shown as a sales tax. Compare the receipt with the operator's fee schedule if the total looks wrong.

Other income is the catch-all line on the T1 for taxable amounts that fit nowhere else: certain retiring allowances, death benefits, some scholarship, bursary or grant income, and various payments reported on a T4A that have no dedicated line of their own. It is ordinary income taxed at your marginal rate. Tax is often not withheld on these amounts, so they can leave a balance owing. Match the slip's box number to the CRA guide before choosing a line.

Sometimes. Many lenders collect property tax along with the mortgage payment, hold it in a tax account and remit it to the municipality for you, which is common on high-ratio insured mortgages. Other lenders leave you to pay the municipality directly. Your mortgage statement shows whether a tax portion is being collected. Where the lender pays, do not also set up a municipal plan, and review the tax account yearly for a shortfall.