Canadian taxes — registering for GST + provincial PST/HST

Canada uses a two-layer tax model: a 5% federal GST that applies to almost every taxable sale, plus provincial sales tax (PST in BC/SK, RST in MB, QST in QC) that stacks on top. Five provinces (ON, NB, NS, PE, NL) use HST, which is a single blended rate that combines both. Sync handles all four cases automatically — you register once per jurisdiction, and the calc engine picks the right rate based on the buyer's ship-to province.

Before you register: am I above the small-supplier threshold?

You must register with the CRA for GST/HST once your worldwide taxable revenue passes CAD $30,000 in any 12-month period. Below that, registration is optional. Register at canada.ca then "Register for a GST/HST account" (about 5 minutes online if you already have a Business Number).

Setting up Canada in Sync

1. Go to Settings → Taxes → Canada.
2. Click the + next to "Canada" to register your federal GST/HST number (format: 9-digit BN + RT + 4-digit suffix, e.g. 123456789RT0001).
3. Click "Region" to add each province where you have nexus or have voluntarily registered. Pick from the dropdown — Sync shows the combined rate (e.g. Manitoba 12% = GST 5% + RST 7%).
4. Add the provincial tax ID for non-HST provinces if you have one (BC PST, SK PST, MB RST, QC QST registration numbers are stored separately from your federal BN).
5. For HST provinces (ON, NB, NS, PE, NL) you don't need a separate provincial number — your federal GST/HST number is what the merchant remits.

How the calc engine stacks tax

• Buyer ships to Manitoba: GST 5% + RST 7% = 12% total. Two separate lines on the invoice.
• Buyer ships to Ontario: HST 13% as a single line.
• Buyer ships to Quebec: GST 5% + QST 9.975% = 14.975% total. Two lines.
• Buyer ships to Alberta: GST 5% only (Alberta has no provincial sales tax). One line.
• Buyer ships to a province where you have NO registration: zero tax (you can't collect tax in a province where you're not registered).

Tax-exempt customers (wholesale buyers)

For wholesale buyers with a valid resale certificate, mark the customer as tax-exempt in their Customers profile. Sync skips tax calculation entirely for those orders, regardless of the buyer's shipping address.

Tax-exempt products (services, zero-rated items)

Some items are zero-rated by the CRA — basic groceries, prescription drugs, certain medical devices, most services. Toggle them off in the Tax tab → Product overrides panel, or from the product detail page. Services default to non-taxable.

Shipping is taxable in every Canadian province

By default, the calc engine adds shipping to the taxable base in every province. If you have a specific reason to override (e.g. you bill shipping separately as an expense reimbursement), use the Shipping overrides panel on the Canada page to flip it per province.

Filing your tax return

Settings → Taxes → "Tax report" downloads a CSV of tax collected per jurisdiction for any given month. Use it to file your GST/HST return (quarterly or annual depending on your CRA filing frequency) and your provincial PST/RST/QST returns separately.

How tax appears on invoices

Every order invoice (PDF) prints the tax breakdown line-by-line so the buyer sees exactly what they were charged: "GST (5%): $5.00", "RST (7%): $7.00". If you have "Show tax registrations" enabled, your federal BN and provincial tax IDs are printed at the bottom for the buyer's records.