Do you need to register for and charge PST?

Which provinces charge PST, and which use HST instead?

British Columbia and Saskatchewan call their separate retail taxes PST. Manitoba calls its tax RST. Quebec has QST, while Ontario and the Atlantic HST provinces use HST instead of a separate provincial sales tax. Alberta and the territories have no general provincial sales tax. The CRA rate table shows the current split.

PST registration is separate from GST/HST registration. See when to register for GST/HST for the federal decision.

When does a BC business have to register, and who is a small seller?

A business located in BC generally registers if it sells taxable goods, leases goods, or supplies taxable software or services there in the ordinary course of business. The exception for a small seller is narrower than a sales limit: every condition must be met. BC's registration guide and small seller bulletin set them out.

A maintained shop or customer-facing home studio can defeat the exception. So can selling from a market stall or other established commercial premises on four or more occasions in a 12-month period, even when sales are low. An online sale from home does not automatically defeat it, but BC's bulletin says to check the premises and every other condition. An unregistered small seller pays PST on goods bought for resale and does not charge PST on its sales. If it registers voluntarily, it must collect PST.

Track eligible sales over each rolling 12-month period, not just the calendar year. If actual sales exceed the limit, BC says to register.

When does a Saskatchewan business need a PST licence?

A business operating or making retail sales in Saskatchewan generally needs a PST number; a seller making taxable retail sales receives a vendor's licence. A business making only non-taxable services may instead receive a registered consumer number to report tax on its own purchases. Bulletin PST-5 explains both.

Saskatchewan's small trader exception covers an individual making and selling goods from home to other individuals on a small, non-commercial scale, with annual sales below $10,000 and PST paid on production equipment and supplies. It also covers some home-based services to non-commercial customers. Selling at a farmers' market or online marketplace, serving commercial customers, or advertising in competition with licensed retailers removes the exception. It does not cover non-resident vendors. The conditions come from Bulletin PST-5.

When does a Manitoba business have to register for RST?

A business carrying on business in Manitoba generally needs an RST number before taxable sales. Manitoba's vendor bulletin allows a small business with annual taxable sales below $30,000 to pay RST on its purchases instead of collecting it on sales. Its invoice must say RST is included in the price and must not list RST separately.

The exception does not apply to a business using out-of-province suppliers that do not collect Manitoba RST, or one selling tobacco or liquor. An out-of-province business must also have paid Manitoba RST on all taxable goods and services bought for resale in Manitoba to use it. Once annual taxable sales exceed the limit, the bulletin gives the business one month to register and begin collecting RST. Check purchase invoices before relying on the exception.

A Manitoba business without an RST number must also register if it brings into or receives in Manitoba goods bought outside the province with a fair value of at least $800 in each of two or more months in the same calendar year. This purchase rule can apply even without taxable sales. Manitoba's vendor bulletin explains it.

Do services attract PST, or only goods?

Services can be taxable, but each province defines them differently. A service's GST/HST treatment does not decide its PST treatment.

BC announced a delay to its planned PST expansion to accounting, architectural, engineering, geoscience, non-residential real estate and security services through a temporary regulation. Its earlier notice still describes an October start. Check the current rule before invoicing these services.

I'm a contractor: do I charge PST or pay it on materials?

For a BC or Manitoba contract to supply and install materials that become part of real property, the contractor generally pays provincial tax on the materials and does not charge provincial tax on the contract. Selling materials without installation changes who collects tax. BC's contractor guidance and Manitoba's contractor bulletin distinguish these transactions.

BC permits an agreed transfer of PST liability to the customer only with qualifying evidence, such as an agreement or invoice signed by both parties, or a declaration completed by both. The contractor must register before supplying the goods and charge PST on the greater of its purchase price and the agreed goods price under BC's transfer rules. The ordinary rule still has the contractor paying. A contractor buying materials outside BC for use in BC may need to self-assess PST even without a PST number. BC's purchase guidance explains this. In Saskatchewan, a contractor providing taxable services to real property generally charges PST on the full customer invoice, including labour and incorporated materials. It may buy those materials exempt for resale by quoting its vendor's licence, but pays PST on tools and consumables used in the job. See Saskatchewan's contractor bulletin. Manitoba treats some installed mechanical and electrical systems as taxable goods even when attached to a building; RST can apply to the full installation contract. Check Manitoba's taxable-goods bulletin before treating such work as real property.

Do I charge PST to customers in another province?

The customer's delivery or use province can create a registration and collection duty even if your business is elsewhere in Canada. Do not assume the seller's home-province tax applies to an out-of-province shipment.

For goods shipped out of a province, keep delivery evidence. Saskatchewan's vendor bulletin and Manitoba's vendor bulletin require records for out-of-province sales. A US or other foreign seller has separate issues covered in non-resident and digital sellers.

Does an online marketplace collect PST for me?

Often, but only for a sale covered by that province's marketplace rule and actually collected by the operator. Check marketplace tax reports against your direct sales rather than assuming every platform sale is covered.

Do I pay PST on things my business buys?

Usually, yes, when the business uses taxable goods or services itself. A PST, RST or vendor number does not make office equipment, tools or supplies tax free. Goods bought solely for resale may be exempt with the province's required number or documentation; goods removed from resale inventory for business use may then require tax. See BC's contractor purchase rules, Saskatchewan's vendor guidance and Manitoba's vendor guidance.

If a supplier did not charge the provincial tax on a taxable business purchase, check whether you must self-assess it. Keep the invoice, delivery location and intended use. A BC small seller and a Manitoba business using its small-business exception pay tax on resale purchases under those exceptions.

What about Quebec's QST?

Quebec administers QST alongside GST through Revenu Québec, not as BC-style PST. A business carrying on commercial activities in Quebec generally registers for both when worldwide taxable supplies, including associates' supplies, exceed the small-supplier limit of $30,000 in a calendar quarter or the preceding four quarters. Some activities require registration regardless of sales. See Revenu Québec's registration page for the exceptions. Foreign and digital sellers should use non-resident and digital sellers.

How do I file PST returns, and what if I should have been charging it?

Each registered business files with the province on its assigned schedule, including a nil return when required. First identify the date registration was required, then reconstruct taxable sales and purchases by province and filing period. Registration after that date does not erase tax that should have been collected: BC says an unregistered required collector still owes its collection duties.

Gather sales by destination and product or service, customer invoices, marketplace tax statements, purchase invoices, delivery evidence and contract terms. Reconcile tax already collected before correcting a period. If an unregistered seller collected Manitoba RST, it must immediately remit the tax with a reconciliation letter; Manitoba's bulletin also requires registration if more taxable sales are expected. Saskatchewan warns that uncollected PST can be assessed with penalty and interest in an audit (Bulletin PST-5). Missed periods across provinces, or contractor contracts that assigned tax to the wrong party, merit a review before filing corrections.

Example

Illustrative Canadian dollars. A BC corporation has $8,000 in total eligible retail sales, including any outside BC, from its home office through its own website, with no customer visits or storefront. It forecasts another $8,000 over the next 12 months, has made no wholesale sales and sells no excluded products. If every other BC condition is met, it may be a small seller: it pays PST on goods bought for resale and does not charge PST to customers. If the same corporation sells from a market stall on four or more occasions in a 12-month period, low sales alone no longer protect its small seller status. Sales to Saskatchewan businesses also count toward the BC limit; separately test Saskatchewan registration.

Different for you?

• You sell in several provinces, or have missed PST or RST periods: assemble sales, delivery and marketplace records by province and get bookkeeping help before correcting returns.
• You provide a BC professional service in the planned expansion: check the BC announcement and current rule before invoicing; use bookkeeping help if earlier invoices need correction.
• You are a US or other foreign seller: see non-resident and digital sellers.
• You need to register or file GST/HST: see when to register or filing and input tax credits.
• You sell to US customers or keep stock in a US warehouse: see US sales tax for foreign sellers or Canadian sellers with US inventory.