ITC Documentation Requirements

Definition

Under ETA s.169(4) a registrant cannot claim an Input Tax Credit unless, before filing the return, it has obtained sufficient documentary evidence to support the claim. The specific contents required are prescribed by the Input Tax Credit Information (GST/HST) Regulations ("Reg 3501"), which sets three tiers based on the total sale amount including tax. CRA auditors apply this rule strictly: a claim without the required documentation is disallowed even if the ITC would otherwise be valid.

Key rules

• Reg 3501 prescribes the information, which is normally obtained from the supplier's invoice, receipt, agreement, or credit-card slip.
• Three tiers based on the total consideration (before tax is added) plus tax:

• The supplier's nine-digit BN with the RT extension must appear on receipts in the middle and upper tiers. A receipt without the BN fails the test at $100 or more.
• The registrant should be able to cross-reference the documentation to a specific accounting record. CRA may request to see the tie-back during audit.
• Credit-card and debit-card receipts alone are generally not sufficient at $100 or more because they typically lack the supplier BN.
• For imported goods, the import documentation (B3-3 or Form K84) is the supporting document rather than a supplier invoice.
• Agents and auctioneers, non-resident suppliers, and certain other intermediaries have modified rules in Reg 3501(2).

Example

A BC corporation has three expense receipts in Q2 2026. Evaluate whether each supports an ITC claim.

Receipt A, coffee and lunch meeting: $38.72 including tax
  Tier: under $100
  Required: supplier name, date, total   All present
  ITC status: eligible (subject to 50% meals limit)

Receipt B. SaaS subscription invoice:  $265.50 including tax
  Tier: $100 to $499.99
  Required: supplier name, date, total, BN, tax amount
  BN on invoice: YES (123456789 RT 0001)
  Tax shown:     $12.64 GST
  ITC status: eligible

Receipt C, contractor invoice:        $2,260.00 including tax
  Tier: $500 or more
  Required: all of the above plus purchaser name, terms, description
  Missing:   purchaser name (invoice made out to a personal email only)
  ITC status: not eligible until a corrected invoice is obtained

The $2,260 invoice can still be fixed before filing: a supplementary invoice or a corrected version naming the corporation as purchaser will restore the ITC claim.

Common mistakes

• Relying on a credit-card statement alone at the $100 or higher tiers. The statement rarely includes the supplier's BN.
• Missing the supplier's BN on a $250 receipt. No BN, no ITC.
• Listing a personal name as purchaser on invoices $500 or more where the registrant is the corporation. The corporate name must appear.
• Throwing away the paper receipt after entering it into bookkeeping software. Keep the source document for six years per record-keeping rules.
• Ignoring Reg 3501 when using the Simplified ITC Method. The simplified method reduces the math, not the documentary requirements.

Related concepts

Documentation is the audit backbone of an ITC claim. The Simplified Method changes the calculation but not the records. Switching to the Quick Method removes most ITC documentation requirements because ITCs are not claimed on most operating expenses.