GST, HST and QST on Shopify

You must register for GST/HST once your taxable sales pass $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, or in a single quarter. In Quebec the same $30,000 threshold applies to the QST. Once registered, you turn on tax collection in Shopify under Settings > Taxes and duties > Canada, add each province where you're registered and enter your tax numbers. Shopify then calculates the right rate at checkout from the customer's delivery address. This guide was checked against the CRA, Revenu Québec and the Shopify Help Center on November 10, 2026. It explains how the setup works; it isn't tax advice.

Do you need to register?

The CRA calls a business under the threshold a small supplier. You stay a small supplier as long as your worldwide taxable sales don't exceed $30,000 over the last four consecutive calendar quarters. There are two ways to cross it:

• In a single calendar quarter. If you pass $30,000 within one quarter, you stop being a small supplier right away. You must charge GST/HST starting with the sale that took you over.
• Over four quarters. If you pass $30,000 over four quarters without doing it in any single one, you stop being a small supplier at the end of the month after the quarter in which you crossed it.

In the CRA's examples, you then have 29 days from your effective date to register. Small suppliers may also register voluntarily, which lets you claim back the GST/HST you pay on business expenses. Many new stores choose this, because the invoices from their own suppliers carry tax too.

Quebec businesses

If your business is in Quebec, you register for both the GST and the QST with Revenu Québec, which administers the GST in the province. The $30,000 small supplier threshold applies the same way. Businesses outside Quebec that sell to consumers in Quebec fall under a separate, simplified QST registration once those sales pass $30,000.

Rates by province and territory

The rate depends on where the goods are delivered, not where your business is. An Ontario store shipping to Nova Scotia charges Nova Scotia's 14% HST. These are the rates in effect on November 10, 2026:

Nova Scotia's HST dropped from 15% to 14% on April 1, 2025, so older guides may show the wrong figure. The QST is calculated on the price before GST, which is why Quebec's total is exactly 14.975%. In provinces with a separate provincial tax, the invoice shows two tax lines and the provincial part is remitted to that province.

Provincial sales tax in BC, Manitoba and Saskatchewan

GST/HST registration doesn't cover the provincial taxes in these three provinces. Each has its own rules, and some have no minimum threshold at all:

• British Columbia (7% PST): most sellers have no minimum, so liability can start with the first taxable sale. A $10,000 small-seller threshold applies only to BC residents without an established commercial location in BC. Sellers outside BC may need to register if they solicit BC customers and deliver taxable goods there.
• Manitoba (7% RST): no minimum sales threshold. RST applies only when all of the province's listed conditions are met.
• Saskatchewan (6% PST): no minimum sales threshold. The question is whether your products are taxable there.

If you're unsure, contact the province's finance ministry before registering, as Shopify's own tax reference recommends.

Setting it up in Shopify, step by step

1. Register with the CRA (and Revenu Québec if you're in Quebec) and have your numbers ready.
2. In your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Taxes and duties.
3. Under Tax regions, click Canada.
4. In the Sales tax section, click Collect sales tax.
5. Select a region where you're registered.
6. Enter your tax number. If you've applied and are still waiting for it, you can leave the box blank and add it later.
7. Click Collect sales tax to save, then repeat for each other region where you're registered.
8. Place a test order to an address in each of those provinces and check the tax lines on the order.

To change or remove a registration later, use the menu button next to it and choose Edit or Delete.

Shopify Tax or Basic Tax?

Shopify's older Basic Tax service is only available in Canada to stores that were set up to collect Canadian tax before May 13, 2026. A store created today uses Shopify Tax or manual tax settings. Shopify Tax adds tax liability insights: it watches your Shopify sales in Canada and in each province and flags when you may need to register. Two cautions: it only counts sales made through Shopify, so add your other channels before comparing totals with a threshold; and in provinces with no minimum, an insight can appear after your very first taxable sale.

Taxes on shipping charges

Shipping isn't treated the same everywhere. In BC, shipping is generally taxable when the goods are. In Manitoba and Saskatchewan, provincial tax applies to shipping when the delivery starts outside the province. In Quebec, delivery charges are taxed for sales that originate in and ship to Quebec. Shopify's tax settings handle this from your registrations, which is one more reason to register the right regions rather than entering a flat rate.

Filing and remitting

Shopify calculates and collects tax at checkout. It doesn't file returns or send the money to the CRA or Revenu Québec for you; that stays your job or your accountant's. If you use Shopify Tax with CAD as your store currency, the Canada sales tax report gives you the totals by province for each filing period.

Common mistakes we fix

• Charging GST/HST before the business is registered, or forgetting to enter the tax number afterwards.
• Registering only the home province and charging the wrong rate on out-of-province orders.
• Charging QST from outside Quebec without a QST registration.
• Comparing Shopify's tax insights to the threshold while forgetting market, wholesale or Amazon sales.

In our free setup, GST/HST and QST configuration is included: we register the regions from your numbers, test an order to each, and show you where the report lives. See the free Shopify setup page, read what Shopify costs in Canada, or request your free setup.