An Ontario consultant invoicing a Quebec client. A Vancouver designer billing a Calgary startup. A freelance accountant in Halifax sending the same invoice format to clients in five different provinces. None of these scenarios have the same tax answer — and the difference between getting it right and wrong is the difference between a clean invoice and a CRA reassessment. Canada runs five distinct sales tax structures across its provinces and territories, and most freelancers learn the rules one billing dispute at a time. Here is the map.
The five Canadian sales tax structures
There are four acronyms in regular use — GST, HST, PST, QST — and they combine into five different invoice structures depending on the province. Knowing which structure applies to your home province and to each client's province is the foundation.
- GST (Goods and Services Tax): 5% federal tax administered by CRA. Applies in every Canadian province and territory. In Alberta, NWT, Nunavut, and Yukon, it is the only sales tax — no provincial layer.
- HST (Harmonized Sales Tax): Combines GST and provincial sales tax into a single rate administered by CRA. Used in Ontario (13%), Nova Scotia (14% as of April 1, 2025), New Brunswick (15%), Newfoundland and Labrador (15%), and Prince Edward Island (15%). Single rate, single return, single registration.
- PST (Provincial Sales Tax): Provincial-only tax, administered by the province (not CRA). Applies in British Columbia (7%), Saskatchewan (6%), and Manitoba (7%, called RST). On invoices in PST provinces, you show GST and PST as separate lines.
- QST (Quebec Sales Tax): Quebec's provincial sales tax (9.975%), administered by Revenu Québec. Calculated on the pre-GST subtotal (does not stack on top of GST). Quebec invoices show GST and QST as separate lines and require separate registration with Revenu Québec.
- Zero-rated and exempt supplies: Zero-rated supplies (basic groceries, exports, most international services) charge 0% GST/HST but are still 'taxable supplies' for input tax credit purposes. Exempt supplies (most healthcare, most education, certain financial services) charge no tax and do not generate input tax credits.
Current rates by province and territory
Verified against the CRA's official rate table as of 2026. Rates do change occasionally — Nova Scotia dropped from 15% to 14% on April 1, 2025, the most recent change.
- Alberta: 5% GST only. No provincial sales tax.
- British Columbia: 5% GST + 7% PST (PST applies to a narrower set of supplies; expanding to accounting, architectural, engineering, security, and non-residential real estate services on October 1, 2026).
- Manitoba: 5% GST + 7% RST (Manitoba calls its provincial tax RST — Retail Sales Tax — but it functions like PST).
- New Brunswick: 15% HST.
- Newfoundland and Labrador: 15% HST.
- Northwest Territories: 5% GST only. No territorial sales tax.
- Nova Scotia: 14% HST (decreased from 15% on April 1, 2025).
- Nunavut: 5% GST only. No territorial sales tax.
- Ontario: 13% HST.
- Prince Edward Island: 15% HST.
- Quebec: 5% GST + 9.975% QST. QST calculated on the pre-GST subtotal.
- Saskatchewan: 5% GST + 6% PST.
- Yukon: 5% GST only. No territorial sales tax.
Place-of-supply rules: the customer's province sets the rate
The most important rule for cross-province billing: under CRA's place-of-supply rules, you charge the rate of the customer's province (or the province where the service is consumed), not your own. An Ontario freelancer invoicing an Alberta client charges 5% GST — not 13% Ontario HST. A BC consultant invoicing a Quebec client charges 5% GST + 9.975% QST — not 5% GST + 7% BC PST.
For services, the place of supply is generally the province where the customer is located (or where the customer's address is for billing purposes). For goods, the place of supply is the province where the goods are delivered. For most freelance and consulting work, the customer's billing province is the operative answer.
Quebec is the special case
Quebec is the only province with its own provincial sales tax administered independently of CRA. Revenu Québec runs QST registration, returns, and remittance separately from CRA's GST/HST system. Quebec invoices show GST and QST as two separate lines, calculated on the same pre-tax subtotal (QST does not stack on top of GST).
Practically, this means Quebec freelancers maintain two registration numbers (one for GST through CRA, one for QST through Revenu Québec), file two separate returns, and remit to two separate agencies. Non-Quebec freelancers billing Quebec clients above certain thresholds must also register for QST with Revenu Québec — the rules are stricter for digital services and non-resident suppliers as of the 2018 reforms.
On the math: a $1,000 invoice in Quebec generates $50 GST (5% of $1,000) plus $99.75 QST (9.975% of $1,000, calculated on the pre-GST subtotal). Total: $1,149.75. The QST is not 9.975% of $1,050; it is 9.975% of $1,000.
British Columbia's PST is expanding (October 1, 2026)
BC has historically applied PST to a narrower set of supplies than other provincial taxes — tangible goods, telecommunications, accommodation, certain software, with most professional services exempt. That changes on October 1, 2026. BC Budget 2026 adds five service categories to the PST-taxable list at 7%:
- Accounting services (including bookkeeping and assurance)
- Architectural services
- Engineering and geoscience services (PST applies to 30% of the purchase price for these three professional service categories)
- Security services (including private investigation)
- Non-residential real estate services (trading, rental property management, strata management)
BC freelancers in these categories need PST registration by October 1, 2026. Registration is already open (up to six months pre-effective-date) through eTaxBC. BC freelancers in other categories — management consulting, marketing, writing, design, web development — remain PST-exempt.
HST provinces are the simplest to invoice from
If you operate from an HST province (Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, PEI), your invoicing is structurally simpler than from PST or QST provinces. Single combined rate, single registration through CRA, single return. The HST is administered entirely federally — provinces opt in to the harmonized structure and the provincial portion is rebated to them by Ottawa.
The complication: when invoicing across provinces, you still need to apply the customer's province rate. An Ontario freelancer is not immune from QST registration if billing significant Quebec revenue. The HST simplicity only applies to in-province invoicing.
Registration: when, where, and how
The federal $30,000 small supplier threshold determines when GST/HST registration becomes mandatory — see our guide to the $30K threshold for the precise mechanics. Provincial PST registration thresholds vary: BC is $10,000 in PST-taxable sales, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have their own thresholds. Quebec QST registration generally follows the federal $30,000 threshold but is administered by Revenu Québec.
- GST/HST: Register through CRA's Business Registration Online (BRO). Receive 15-character number (e.g., 123456789 RT0001) immediately.
- QST: Register through Revenu Québec. Receive separate 10-digit + TQ0001 format number. Required if you are a Quebec business or selling significant volume into Quebec.
- BC PST: Register through eTaxBC. Separate provincial number. Required if you sell PST-taxable goods or services above $10,000/year.
- Saskatchewan PST: Register through Saskatchewan Revenue. Separate provincial number.
- Manitoba RST: Register through Manitoba Finance. Separate provincial number.
Input tax credits: the upside of being registered
Once registered for GST/HST, you claim input tax credits (ITCs) on the GST/HST you paid on business expenses — software subscriptions, computer equipment, professional services, home office expenses, internet, mobile phone, business travel. The ITC reduces your GST/HST remittance directly. A registered freelancer with $5,000 in annual business expenses recovers roughly $250–$650 per year depending on the rate (5% GST vs 13–15% HST).
QST and PST have parallel input tax credit (or rebate) mechanisms — QST has full ITCs, BC PST has limited rebates for some inputs, Saskatchewan and Manitoba PST generally do not allow input credits. The math usually works out in favor of registering for any tax that supports ITCs once business expenses cross a meaningful threshold (~$3,000/year).
The bottom line
Canadian sales tax is more complex than most freelancers expect because five distinct structures coexist across thirteen provinces and territories. The simplifying rules: HST provinces are the cleanest to operate from in-province; cross-province billing always uses the customer's province rate; Quebec needs separate QST handling; BC's PST scope is expanding October 1, 2026 to several professional services. For most freelancers, the practical answer is to maintain GST/HST registration (CRA), add QST registration if you bill Quebec clients regularly, and use invoicing software that tracks per-client province rates automatically. Verify current rates at canada.ca and provincial websites before billing.