Expert Tax Accountants in Norfolk County

No. Ontario folded its former retail sales tax into the harmonised sales tax, so a single HST replaces the old GST plus PST pair on most sales, and registered businesses charge it, remit it and claim input tax credits on their own purchases. A narrow provincial retail sales tax still applies in a few places, notably certain insurance premiums and benefit plans and private vehicle sales between individuals. Those are administered by Ontario rather than the CRA.

The Ontario HST rate is 13% for 2026, and it has been 13% since 1 July 2010. That single rate carries a 5% federal component and an 8% Ontario component, and the CRA collects and administers all of it. Place-of-supply rules decide which province's rate applies, so goods delivered in Ontario take 13% and a delivery into Nova Scotia takes 14%. Basic groceries are zero-rated at 0%, while exempt supplies such as most long-term residential rent carry no HST and no input tax recovery.

Call the individual or business enquiries line published on the CRA contact page at canada.ca. Have your social insurance number or business number, your date of birth and a figure from a recent return ready, because the agent verifies your identity before discussing anything. Lines are busiest just after filing season opens and near deadlines, so early morning usually connects faster. You can also send a secure message from My Account, or authorise a representative to call on your behalf.

No single legal definition exists. The CRA does not publish a low-income line; instead each benefit and credit has its own income test, and payments such as the GST/HST credit, the Canada workers benefit and the Ontario Trillium Benefit phase out as family net income rises. Statistics Canada's low-income measures vary by household size and community. File a return even on very little income, because those benefits are calculated from the return.

The business number is the single identifier the CRA uses for your business, with a separate programme account opened under it for each obligation: GST/HST, payroll deductions, corporate income tax, import and export. Register through Business Registration Online, by phone or by mail, or receive one automatically when you incorporate federally. You need it before you can remit payroll or file GST/HST. Provincial registration is separate in some provinces, notably Quebec, where Revenu Québec administers its own accounts.

If you are incorporated, you can take salary, dividends, or a mix of both. Salary is deductible to the corporation, builds RRSP room and CPP entitlement, and requires payroll registration and regular remittances. Dividends need no payroll but come out of after-tax corporate income and create no RRSP room. Sole proprietors and partners simply draw money and pay tax on the business profit. The right mix depends on your cash needs and the corporation's tax position, so model both.

In your bank's bill payment screen, search the payee list for the Canada Revenue Agency and pick the entry that matches the debt: personal income tax owing, personal instalments, GST/HST, corporation tax, or payroll source deductions. The account number is your social insurance number for personal tax, or your business number with the correct program identifier for a business account. Paying the wrong payee parks the money in the wrong account while interest runs, so ask the CRA to transfer it.

Usually yes. Severance, retiring allowances, bonuses, back pay, commuted pensions and RRSP withdrawals are taxable in the year received, and the payer withholds at a flat lump-sum rate that may be higher or lower than your real marginal rate, so a refund or balance can appear at filing. A qualifying retroactive lump sum covering earlier years can be spread back over them on request. Amounts transferred directly to an RRSP defer the tax.

Get a social insurance number, then gather every slip, including T4, T4A, T5, tuition and rent receipts, and file a T1 return for the year. Tax software approved by the CRA for electronic filing can send it, and a first-time filer can usually file online, though the CRA sometimes requires a paper return until it has a record of you. For the 2025 year the deadline was 30 April 2026, or 15 June for self-employment with payment still due 30 April.

Federal tax for 2026 starts at 14% on the lowest bracket and rises through 20.5%, 26% and 29% to 33% on the highest, and your province adds its own bracketed rate on top. Only the income above each threshold is taxed at that higher rate. The federal basic personal amount of $16,452 for 2026 shelters the first slice, tapering for high earners. Sales tax, CPP and EI are charged separately.

There is no legal way to opt out of property tax on a taxable property; it funds municipal services and is owed by the registered owner. Relief is what actually exists. Seniors and low-income or disabled owners can defer payment or claim rebates in several provinces, farm and managed forest land can be taxed in a lower class, and a successful assessment appeal reduces the bill. Programmes differ, so apply through your municipality or province.

Yes. For an unpaid tax debt the CRA can issue a requirement to pay straight to your employer, bank or a client who owes you money, without a court order, and the recipient must send part of what they owe you to the CRA until the debt clears. The CRA is expected to try to reach you first. Once it is issued, the way out is to pay the balance, file any outstanding returns, or negotiate a payment arrangement.