Working for yourself
Income, receipts, GST/HST and the everyday decisions that come with working for yourself in Canada.
Working for yourself
34 articles · 2 / 6

Working for yourself 2 min
Before you clear out the tax folder
The six-year rule has a starting point and exceptions. A compact retention checklist for sole proprietors, including electronic records.
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Working for yourself 2 min
The client was in Alberta. I was in Ottawa.
Malik checks the place-of-supply rules before copying Ontario's HST rate onto an Alberta client's design invoice.
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Working for yourself 2 min
My first invoice was not my first business record
Malik reconstructs the months before his first design client, separating a business launch from personal experimentation.
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Working for yourself 2 min
Zero-rated and exempt are different categories
Both can show no tax charged, but the input tax credit and registration consequences are different.
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Working for yourself 2 min
The new machine and the box of staples
A sewing machine and a box of staples arrive on the same invoice. Camille learns why they need different questions before a deduction is calculated.
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Working for yourself 3 min
I sold the chairs. Then I counted the invoices.
Camille's busiest month raises a better question than profit: when does a small Ottawa business have to register for HST? Two timelines, one useful sales check.
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