Provincial Sales Tax Rules: When PST Applies to Your Business

Canada's sales taxes use different rules for different provinces. Alberta and the territories have GST only; five provinces use HST; Quebec has GST and QST; and British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba levy a separate provincial retail sales tax alongside GST. A service that is exempt in one province may be taxable in another.

The Canadian Sales Tax Map

These are the general rates in 2026. Exemptions and special rates mean the combined rate does not apply to every purchase. Nova Scotia's HST has been 14% since April 1, 2025. See CRA's GST/HST rate table.

QST is calculated on the price before GST, rather than on a GST-inclusive amount. It has its own registration and input tax refund rules; see Revenu Québec's calculation guidance.

BC PST and the paused professional services expansion

BC generally taxes goods, software, telecommunication services and legal services, subject to exemptions. Short-term accommodation generally attracts 8% PST, rather than the standard 7%, and additional accommodation levies may apply. Accommodation for at least 27 continuous days qualifies for the long-term exemption. BC's PST overview explains the categories and special rates.

On September 18, 2026, BC paused the planned October 1 expansion to accounting, architectural, engineering, geoscience, non-residential real estate and security services. The pause means those services do not become taxable under that expansion on October 1. Existing PST on independently taxable goods, software or services still applies. PST Notice 2026-001 is the current status source.

The announced proposal would have taxed accounting, security and specified non-residential real estate services on their full purchase price. Architecture, engineering and geoscience would have used 30% of the price as the tax base. Thus a proposed $10,000 engineering charge would have produced $10,000 × 30% × 7% = $210 of PST, compared with $700 on a $10,000 accounting charge. These are explanations of the paused proposal, not taxes to start collecting.

Management consulting, advertising and design services can be non-taxable in BC, but selling taxable goods or software as part of an engagement can change the result. The contract and what is supplied matter, not just the invoice label. See BC's advertising agency bulletin and bundled sales rules.

When registration is required

BC: A seller making taxable sales generally must register unless an exception applies. BC's small seller exception is real, but it is narrower than the GST/HST small supplier rule: it includes a $10,000 revenue test, location and selling-method conditions, and exclusions for specified goods and activities. Qualifying small sellers pay PST on their purchases for resale rather than collecting it from customers. Out-of-province registration rules depend on the seller's location and the supplies; the $10,000 threshold used in certain remote-seller rules is not a universal exemption. Check BC registration requirements and PST 003, Small Sellers.

Saskatchewan: A business making taxable sales needs to check Saskatchewan's vendor licensing rules even when it is not required to register for GST/HST. Service businesses should consult the province's taxable service categories.

Manitoba: A qualifying small business with annual taxable sales under $30,000 may use the registration exception, but must meet all its conditions and pay RST on its own purchases and goods for resale. The exception is unavailable in specified cases, including tobacco or liquor sales and purchases from out-of-province suppliers that do not collect Manitoba RST. Read Notice RST 24-01 before relying on it.

Registration and returns are separate from CRA's GST/HST account. BC uses eTaxBC, Saskatchewan uses SETS, and Manitoba uses TAXcess.

Comparing taxable services and software

There is no general rule that professional services are exempt in Saskatchewan or Manitoba. Saskatchewan's lawyer bulletin and Manitoba's taxable services regulation describe the respective scope and exceptions.

For software, use the actual licence and service arrangement. BC's software bulletin, Saskatchewan's computer services bulletin, and Manitoba's January 2026 software bulletin distinguish taxable licences from qualifying exemptions. Manitoba's custom-software exemption means it is incorrect to describe all software there as taxable.

Self-assessing tax on business purchases

If taxable goods or software are used in a PST province and the seller has not collected the applicable tax, the purchaser may have to self-assess it. The supplier's home province does not remove that obligation. Check exemptions, delivery and use before calculating tax.

For example, a BC corporation buys a $2,000 taxable desk delivered to its BC office. A registered Alberta or Ontario supplier normally charges 5% GST for that delivery, not Ontario's 13% HST merely because the supplier is in Ontario. If no BC PST was collected and no exemption applies, the purchaser owes $2,000 × 7% = $140 of BC PST. See CRA's place-of-supply guidance and BC's self-assessment rules.

Filing and recovering tax

Use the frequency assigned to your account. BC can assign monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual returns. Saskatchewan and Manitoba use monthly, quarterly or annual reporting. Check the period and due date shown on your account, including any zero-return obligation. Sources: BC filing frequency, Saskatchewan filing, and Manitoba vendor bulletin.

PST and RST do not have GST/HST-style input tax credits. That does not eliminate purchase exemptions or refunds for tax paid in error. Unrecoverable PST generally becomes part of the relevant expense or asset cost, rather than always being an immediate expense.

How Ledg helps

Ledg records GST and PST as separate amounts on every entry, and in most provinces it can work them out from the total. Quarterly totals for GST/HST collected, input tax credits, and PST collected and paid come out in the accountant handoff pack, so nobody is adding up PST line by line at filing time.

Self-assessment is the part worth automating. On the Solo plan you can connect the AI agent you already use and ask it which purchases have no PST recorded. It answers with your self-assessment candidates in one list, instead of you scrolling the ledger looking for out-of-province suppliers.