GST/HST When Selling Across Canada: Which Rate Do You Collect?
When you sell goods or services to a customer in another Canadian province, the GST/HST rate you collect depends on where your customer is not where your business is located. This is the single most common mistake Ontario businesses make when selling interprovincially: charging Ontario’s 13% HST to a customer in Alberta, who should only be paying 5% GST.
The rules are governed by the place of supply framework under the federal Excise Tax Act. The rules differ for goods, services, and digital products, and they’re not always intuitive.
Canadian Sales Tax Rates at a Glance
The rate you charge a customer depends entirely on their province or territory. Here’s a current reference:
| Province / Territory | GST | Provincial Tax | Total |
| Ontario | 5% | 8% HST | 13% HST |
| Nova Scotia | 5% | 10% HST | 15% HST |
| New Brunswick | 5% | 10% HST | 15% HST |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | 5% | 10% HST | 15% HST |
| Prince Edward Island | 5% | 10% HST | 15% HST |
| Alberta | 5% | None | 5% GST |
| Yukon | 5% | None | 5% GST |
| Northwest Territories | 5% | None | 5% GST |
| Nunavut | 5% | None | 5% GST |
| British Columbia | 5% | 7% PST | 12% combined |
| Saskatchewan | 5% | 6% PST | 11% combined |
| Manitoba | 5% | 7% RST | 12% combined |
| Quebec | 5% | 9.975% QST | 14.975% combined |
PST/RST/QST rates are set provincially and subject to change. Confirm current rates with the relevant provincial authority before filing.
HST is administered federally by the CRA. PST, RST (Manitoba), and QST (Quebec) are administered separately by each province, which means registration, collection, and remittance obligations are separate from your GST/HST account.
Place of Supply Rules for Goods
For tangible personal property (physical goods), the place of supply is generally where physical delivery occurs. If you ship a product to a customer’s address in British Columbia, the supply is made in BC, and you apply BC’s GST rate plus PST obligations if you meet the registration threshold.
For most goods, the rule is mechanical: follow the delivery address. Where it gets complicated is drop-shipping, consignment arrangements, and goods that are delivered through third-party couriers the Excise Tax Act has specific deeming rules for each scenario.
HST provinces: If your customer is in Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland & Labrador, or Prince Edward Island, collect the applicable HST rate and remit it as part of your regular GST/HST return to CRA.
GST-only provinces and territories: Alberta, Yukon, NWT, and Nunavut have no provincial sales tax. Collect 5% GST only and include it in your GST/HST return.
PST provinces: British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec charge GST separately from their provincial taxes. You collect and remit 5% GST through your CRA account as usual. Provincial registration and remittance are separate obligations, governed by each province’s own rules.
Place of Supply Rules for Services
The rules for services are more complex than for goods, and this is where many businesses get it wrong.
The general place of supply rule for most services is where the service is performed, not where the customer is located or where the invoice is sent. If your business is in Ontario and you perform the service in Ontario, the supply is generally made in Ontario, and Ontario’s 13% HST applies regardless of where the customer lives.
But there are important exceptions. For services that are performed substantially in a specific location and the customer can reasonably be expected to receive the service at that location, the place of supply shifts to the customer’s province. Legal services, accounting services, and consulting work performed at the client’s location are common examples.
For real property services maintenance, renovation, and cleaning, the place of supply is where the property is situated, not where either party is located.
Because the rules vary significantly by service type, businesses that deliver services across provincial lines should confirm their place of supply treatment with a tax advisor before applying rates across multiple provinces.
Digital Products and Electronic Services
If your business sells software, subscriptions, streaming content, SaaS products, digital downloads, or other electronic services, different rules apply. The CRA GST/HST and Digital Economy rules in force since July 1, 2021, extended GST/HST registration and collection obligations to non-resident digital platform operators. Canadian businesses selling digital products are generally subject to the same place of supply framework as services, but the specific rules depend on how your product is classified.
For SaaS businesses or subscription platforms operating across multiple provinces, the distinction between a “service” and a “supply of intangible personal property” matters; they follow different place of supply rules under the Excise Tax Act.
When You Need to Register to Collect PST
GST and HST registration is determined by your GST/HST registration status (required once you exceed the $30,000 small supplier threshold in a calendar quarter or four consecutive quarters). PST is a separate question.
British Columbia: If your business regularly sells taxable goods to BC customers, accepts orders from BC customers, delivers taxable goods to a BC location, or solicits BC customers through advertising, you are generally required to register for BC PST and collect it on taxable sales. Registration is administered by the BC Ministry of Finance.
Saskatchewan: Saskatchewan encourages out-of-province sellers to register for PST if they regularly sell tangible property to SK customers, cause goods to be delivered to SK, or solicit orders from SK customers. Registration is administered by Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Finance.
Manitoba: The Manitoba Retail Sales Tax Act requires out-of-province businesses to register if they regularly sell tangible property to MB customers, cause goods to be delivered to MB, or solicit orders originating in MB. Manitoba calls its tax RST (Retail Sales Tax), administered by the Manitoba Tax Assistance Office.
Quebec: Quebec requires out-of-province sellers who regularly sell goods or services to QC customers to register for and collect QST. Unlike other PST provinces, QST administration mirrors federal GST closely registration through Revenu Québec, with similar input tax credit mechanics.
Each province sets its own registration thresholds, and some have introduced expanded registration requirements for online businesses in recent years. If you’re scaling across multiple provinces, it’s worth auditing your PST exposure province by province rather than assuming your federal GST registration covers everything.
Related GST/HST Rules for Specific Business Situations
If your business transacts primarily with other GST/HST-registered businesses rather than retail consumers there are additional planning considerations worth knowing.
Related corporation elections. Under Section 156 of the Excise Tax Act, closely related Canadian corporations can elect to treat certain supplies between them as having been made for nil consideration, eliminating the need to collect and remit GST/HST on intercompany transactions. This election is commonly used in holding company structures and related corporate groups. For more detail, see our article on the Section 156 GST/HST election.
Business acquisitions. The Section 167 election allows a seller and buyer to jointly elect that a sale of a business where substantially all of the assets are being acquired is outside the scope of GST/HST. This prevents the buyer from having to finance the tax on the purchase price while waiting to claim the input tax credit.
Both elections have specific eligibility requirements and filing deadlines. If you’re buying or selling a business or restructuring a corporate group, confirming your GST/HST election options is part of good corporate tax planning.
When to Get Legal Advice on GST/HST
The place of supply rules are fact-specific, and the stakes are real. Collecting the wrong rate, whether too low or too high, creates refund obligations, penalties, and the administrative burden of correcting multiple filings. For businesses operating across several provinces, especially in services or digital products, the right approach is to map out your place of supply treatment for each revenue stream before assuming the rules that apply in Ontario apply everywhere.
Kalfa Law Firm advises incorporated businesses on GST/HST compliance questions as part of broader corporate tax planning and business structuring work. If you’re expanding sales across Canada and need to confirm your obligations, contact us to speak with a lawyer.
This article is general information and not legal advice. GST/HST and PST rules are complex and fact-specific. For advice specific to your business, contact Kalfa Law Firm.
Speak With a Tax Lawyer at Kalfa Law Firm
Kalfa Law Firm advises Canadian businesses on GST/HST compliance, intercompany elections, and business structuring across Ontario and Canada.
FAQs:
Shira Kalfa, BA, JD, Partner and Founder
Shira Kalfa is the founding partner of Kalfa Law Firm. Shira’s practice is focused in corporate-commercial and private M&A law including corporate reorganizations, corporate restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, commercial financing, secured lending and transactional law.
© Kalfa Law Firm | August 26, 2026
The above provides information of a general nature only. This does not constitute legal or accounting advice. All transactions or circumstances vary, and specified legal advice is required to meet your particular needs. If you have a legal question you should consult with a lawyer.
