Expert Tax Accountants in Sudbury

Ontario HST is 13% for 2026: the 5% federal GST plus an 8% provincial component, unchanged since 1 July 2010, and the CRA collects all of it. A $100 taxable purchase therefore carries $13 of HST. The rate follows the place of supply, so an Ontario delivery takes 13% even if you invoice from another province. Basic groceries and prescription drugs are zero-rated; most long-term residential rent is exempt and carries no HST.

An Ontario resident pays federal tax of 14% to 33% for 2026 plus a separate Ontario calculation on the same taxable income, so your combined marginal rate is the federal rate for your band added to the Ontario rate for its band. Ontario also layers surtaxes onto the provincial portion at higher incomes and collects the Ontario Health Premium through the return. Take the current Ontario bracket, surtax and premium figures from the CRA's Ontario tax page.

CRA online filing for 2025 returns opened 23 February 2026 and closes 29 January 2027. Most people file between late February and the 30 April 2026 deadline, and that stretch is what tax season refers to. You can gather documents and prepare a return earlier, but it cannot be sent electronically before the system opens. Employment and investment slips such as T4 and T5 are issued by payers early in the year, and the CRA's Auto-fill service can pull the ones it already holds once you have set up My Account.

Ontario charges land transfer tax on the value of the consideration, normally the purchase price, when the transfer is registered. The rates are graduated: each band of the price is taxed at its own rate, so the bill rises faster than the price. Toronto adds a second municipal land transfer tax on top. First-time buyers may claim a rebate, and buyers who are neither citizens nor permanent residents can face an extra non-resident charge. Run your actual price through the province's calculator before closing.

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.

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.

Your refund is the tax already withheld or paid by instalments minus the tax you actually owe after credits and deductions, so the amount depends entirely on your own numbers - there is no standard figure. Timing is more predictable: the CRA aims to process an online return in about two weeks, and up to 16 weeks for a non-resident return. Direct deposit is faster than a cheque, and amounts owing to government can be offset.

The loan portion is not income, so it is never taxed; borrowed money is not something you report. Grants and bursaries are different. They are reported to you as income, but the scholarship exemption removes most or all of the tax for a student enrolled in a qualifying program. Interest you pay on a government student loan can give you a non-refundable credit. See the CRA's guidance on scholarships, bursaries and student aid.

Yes, and you should file straight away. Returns can be filed long after the due date, and online filing for the 2025 tax year stays open until 29 January 2027. If you owe, a late-filing penalty is charged as a percentage of the balance plus a monthly amount, and interest runs from the payment due date, which was 30 April 2026 for 2025. If you are owed a refund or benefits, nothing is lost by filing late.

Canada has no measure by that name; the low income tax offset is an Australian credit. The Canadian equivalents are the federal basic personal amount, which for the 2026 tax year is $16,452 and tapers down to $14,829 at higher net incomes, plus refundable credits such as the Canada workers benefit and the GST/HST credit. Together they leave many low-income filers with no federal tax. You still have to file a return to receive the refundable credits.

Anyone whose taxable revenue passes $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, or within a single quarter, has to register. The threshold is unchanged for 2025 and 2026 and counts worldwide taxable sales, not only Ontario ones. Crossing it inside one quarter ends small-supplier status on the sale that takes you over, and HST applies from that sale onward. Below the threshold registration is voluntary, which can pay when your input tax credits are large.

Unpaid property tax attracts interest and penalties set by the municipality, and the arrears attach to the property rather than to you personally. A municipality can register a tax arrears certificate and, if the account stays unpaid long enough, sell the property through a tax sale. A lender holding your mortgage may pay the arrears and add them to the loan. Contact the municipality early, because most will agree to a payment arrangement.