What is GST and PST filing?
Filing GST and PST means reporting the sales tax you charged, subtracting what you can recover, and paying the difference on time. In British Columbia that is two separate returns: GST to the Canada Revenue Agency, PST to the BC Ministry of Finance.
The return is the easy part; the errors happen upstream. A realtor's PREC books a commission deposit net of the brokerage split. A Shopify store run from a Burke Mountain basement posts marketplace payouts as one lump. A North Road restaurant records delivery-app payouts net of commission. We set the tax treatment as each transaction is booked, so filing week is a check.
What does Coquitlam Bookkeeping include in GST and PST filing?
- A tax code set up in QuickBooks Online or Xero for every type of sale and expense you have
- GST charged and input tax credits matched to the general ledger before any return is drafted
- GST returns filed on the reporting period the CRA set for you: monthly, quarterly or annual
- PST returns filed in eTaxBC, with PST self-assessed on taxable items bought online or out of province without it
- A running four-quarter sales total for unregistered clients, so crossing $30,000 is planned, not discovered
Which software and portals do we use for GST and PST returns?
Tax codes live in your QuickBooks Online or Xero ledger, so each return comes straight from the books. GST returns are filed electronically with the CRA through Represent a Client; electronic filing is now mandatory for almost every registrant. PST returns are filed and paid in eTaxBC. The accounts stay in your name, and we're added as your representative.
How is GST different from BC PST?
GST is a federal value-added tax that registrants largely recover on their own purchases; BC PST is a separate provincial retail tax with its own rules:
| Point of difference | GST | BC PST |
|---|---|---|
| Administered by | Canada Revenue Agency | BC Ministry of Finance |
| BC rate | 5% | Generally 7%, with some exceptions |
| You must register when | Worldwide taxable sales, with associates, pass $30,000 in one calendar quarter or over four in a row | You sell or lease taxable goods, software or taxable services in B.C. (small sellers excepted) |
| Default filing frequency | Annual at $1,500,000 or less of annual taxable supplies; quarterly or monthly above | Set by yearly PST collectable; monthly only above $12,000 |
| Due date | 1 month after a monthly or quarterly period; 3 months after year-end for most annual filers | Last day of the month following the reporting period |
| Where it is filed | CRA online services | eTaxBC |
| Tax on your purchases | Mostly recovered as input tax credits | Self-assessed on taxable goods brought in without PST |
A firm selling only non-taxable services may have nothing to collect for PST. A café selling soda, or a licensed restaurant, usually registers for both.
What is not included in GST and PST filing?
Our job is preparing and filing returns. How a contested sale should be taxed is a call for your CPA or a tax lawyer, and locally that usually means real estate: GST on a new Burke Mountain home, GST on a presale assignment, the GST new housing rebate, or whether a rental-condo HoldCo should register. We gather the contracts and statements they need, then book their answer.
In a CRA or provincial audit, your CPA or lawyer leads and we supply the records. Sales tax in other provinces is out of scope. Years of unfiled returns start as catch-up and clean-up.
What does GST and PST filing cost in Coquitlam?
For most clients, GST returns are folded into monthly bookkeeping. PST returns are an add-on, priced only for businesses that make taxable BC sales. Most single-entity businesses sit on Steady, at $500 to $750 per month CAD.
| Tier | Monthly transactions | Monthly fee (CAD) | Typical shape |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steady | 0 to 50 | $500 to $750 | Monthly bookkeeping for single-entity businesses with straightforward transaction volume. |
| Considered | 50 to 150 | $800 to $1,200 | Monthly bookkeeping with payroll, AP, and quarterly review calls for businesses with more moving parts. |
| Bespoke | 150 or more | $1,250 to $2,000 | Holding companies, multi-entity structures, and fractional controller engagements. |
Price moves with transaction volume, one return or two, filing frequency and the number of tax codes. If someone else keeps your ledger and you only want returns prepared, we review the books and quote a fixed fee. All fees are plus applicable taxes.
Do Coquitlam home-based and online businesses need to register for GST?
Yes, once taxable sales pass $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over four consecutive calendar quarters. The total is revenue before expenses, counts worldwide taxable sales, and includes any associated businesses. Below that line you're a small supplier and registration is optional.
Across the Tri-Cities, online stores, tutors and side consultancies often cross it from a spare room. Timing depends on how:
- A big quarter. Pass $30,000 within one calendar quarter and you stop being a small supplier on the sale that takes you over. That sale carries GST, and you have 29 days to register.
- A gradual climb. If four consecutive quarters together pass $30,000 but no single one does, you stay a small supplier until the end of the following month. GST starts with your next sale; register within 29 days.
- Registering early. Voluntary registration below $30,000 lets you claim input tax credits on business purchases. In return you charge GST and file every period, nil returns included.
PST is a separate test. On sales through an online marketplace, the marketplace facilitator generally collects and remits the PST, not you; sales from your own website may still require registration. A home-based seller with no storefront can qualify as a small seller if retail sales of eligible goods, software and services were $10,000 or less over the previous 12 months and are expected to stay at or under $10,000 for the next 12.
Further reading
To see how sales tax fits with payroll, year-end and software, read The Coquitlam owner-operator's guide to bookkeeping.
- When does a home-based or online business in BC need to register for GST?: both threshold tests, voluntary registration, and PST for marketplace sellers.
- Presales and assignments: the records BC investors need to keep: the deposit and contract paper trail your CPA will ask for.
- How much does bookkeeping cost in Coquitlam in 2026?: price bands and the factors that move them.
A good fit if
- You collect GST, PST or both, and expect every return to start from books that are already reconciled
- Your sales are nearing $30,000 and you want registration timed, not discovered late
- You run a PREC, an online store or a restaurant, where one miscoded item repeats all quarter
Probably not the right fit if
- You're a small supplier comfortably under the threshold with no reason to register
- You need sales tax registered and filed in several provinces
- You want returns keyed in from totals you've worked out yourself, with no one checking the ledger