Business Registration & Incorporation

Business registration in Ontario is rarely a single form. A new business usually deals with the province, sometimes the federal government, the Canada Revenue Agency and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, each with its own numbers and its own timing. Infoetax helps people in Hamilton and the GTA with the registrations and paperwork on this page: business registration, Federal and Ontario incorporation, the CRA business number, HST, payroll and WSIB registration.

We help with the filings, not the legal decisions behind them. Questions about personal liability, shareholder agreements or how shares should be split belong with a lawyer. What follows is general information to help you see the whole picture before you start.

Sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation

A sole proprietorship is the simplest structure. In law you and the business are the same person, and business income is reported on your own personal return. Ontario’s business name rules generally apply when you trade under a name other than your own legal name, and those names are registered through the Ontario Business Registry. A business name registration expires every five years, so it has to be renewed to stay current.

A partnership is two or more people carrying on a business together. General partnerships, limited partnerships and limited liability partnerships are registered through the same provincial registry, each with its own form.

A corporation is a separate legal person. It owns its own assets, signs its own contracts and files its own T2 corporate return every year, which is where our corporate tax return service comes in. Corporations also file an annual return with the province through the registry.

Ontario or federal incorporation

An Ontario corporation is formed through the Ontario Business Registry. You can choose a word name, which generally has to be supported by an Ontario NUANS search report, or a numbered name assigned when the articles are filed.

A federal corporation is formed with Corporations Canada. Its steps include choosing a name or a number, preparing articles of incorporation, setting a registered office and a first board of directors, and filing information on individuals with significant control. A federal corporation that carries on business in Ontario generally has to register in the province as well, and Corporations Canada suggests confirming that step directly with Ontario.

Which route suits you is a business and legal question we can’t answer for you, but we can walk you through what each one involves on paper. Our guide on how to incorporate in Ontario sets out the steps in more detail.

The CRA business number and its program accounts

The CRA identifies a business by a nine-digit business number (BN). When the business registers for a CRA program, a two-letter program identifier and a reference number are added to that BN. The three most new businesses meet are:

• RT for GST/HST, used once the business collects HST.
• RP for payroll deductions, used by employers and other payers of employment amounts.
• RC for corporation income tax, used by incorporated businesses.

According to the CRA, a corporation formed federally or in Ontario receives its BN and its RC account as part of incorporating. An unincorporated business only needs a BN when it registers for a CRA program account. The nine-digit Ontario Business Identification Number that ServiceOntario issues is a different number from the CRA business number, which surprises a lot of people.

The order things usually happen in

Every business is different, but registrations tend to fall in a familiar sequence:

1. Settle on a structure, with legal advice where you need it.
2. Register the business name, or incorporate provincially or federally.
3. Get a CRA business number, which a new corporation receives automatically.
4. Open a GST/HST account when the business must register or chooses to. See HST reporting for how the small supplier threshold works.
5. Open a payroll account before the first payday. Our payroll services page covers what follows.
6. Register with the WSIB if your industry is covered. The WSIB says employers have 10 calendar days from hiring their first employee, and our WSIB reporting page explains the ongoing side.
7. Set up the books from day one, which is where bookkeeping and accounting fits.

What we help with

• Business name registration for sole proprietors and partnerships.
• Ontario incorporation and federal incorporation paperwork.
• Applying for the CRA business number.
• HST registration.
• Payroll account registration.
• WSIB registration.

Government fees for these filings are set by the province, Corporations Canada and other agencies, and they change from time to time, so check the current amounts on the official pages before you file.

To talk about a new business, phone 905-393-7664 between 10:00 AM and 5:00 PM on a weekday, or send us the details through the consultation form. Our office is at 537 Queenston Rd. in east Hamilton.