Tax & International Structuring in Canada

Essentials guide · Source-checked research98% of statements checked against a source48 checked against an official source1 checked against a secondary sourceChecked 2026-10-19Not yet professionally reviewed

• The federal corporate income tax rate is 15 percent of taxable income after the federal abatement and general tax reduction, and 9 percent for Canadian-controlled private corporations on income eligible for the small business deduction.

  Federal. Provincial or territorial corporate tax is added on top (see ca-tax-002). Reduced rates apply to qualifying zero-emission technology manufacturers.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

• Provincial corporate tax is charged in addition to federal tax; for example the higher (general) rate is 11.5 percent in Ontario and 12 percent in British Columbia, with lower rates of 3.2 percent and 2 percent on income eligible for the small business deduction up to a CAD 500,000 business limit.

  Provincial. Quebec and Alberta do not have corporation tax collection agreements with the CRA and administer their own corporate tax, so their rates are not on the CRA page.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

• GST is 5 percent; in the harmonised provinces HST applies instead at 13 percent in Ontario, 14 percent in Nova Scotia and 15 percent in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island.

  Federal GST and harmonised HST, rates on or after 1 April 2025. Quebec, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba levy separate provincial sales taxes not administered by the CRA.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

• A business making taxable supplies in Canada must register for GST/HST once its taxable supplies exceed CAD 30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, and a non-resident carrying on business in Canada is subject to the same rule even without a permanent establishment.

  Federal. Different thresholds apply to charities, public institutions and public service bodies. Non-residents without a permanent establishment generally must post security. Separate simplified rules for non-resident digital-economy businesses were not reviewed.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

• Non-residents pay 25 percent Part XIII tax on amounts taxable under Part XIII of the Income Tax Act, which the payer must withhold; the rate can be reduced or eliminated under the Act or a tax treaty in force.

  Federal. Applies to payments such as those listed in Part XIII of the Income Tax Act; the CRA page does not list the payment types. Treaty rates require the payee to be the beneficial owner and resident in the treaty country.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

• A non-resident corporation must file a T2 return if it carried on business in Canada or disposed of taxable Canadian property in the year, even if it claims a treaty exemption, and T2 returns are due within six months of the end of the tax year.

  Federal. Treaty-exempt profits are claimed on Schedule 91. Non-resident corporations subject to Part XIV additional (branch) tax compute it on Schedule 20.Canada Revenue Agency · checked 2026-10-19

Read the full guide: Tax, accounting and statutory reporting