Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
There’s no VAT in Canada. The federal sales tax is the GST, 5% everywhere, and in some provinces it’s blended into an HST or sits next to a provincial tax. On a $1,000 purchase before tax, you pay $130 in Ontario, $50 in Alberta and $149.75 in Quebec.
Is the GST the same as VAT in Canada?
It does the same job under a different name. Like a VAT, it’s charged at each step of a sale, and a business that registers can claim back the tax it paid on what it bought. The CRA calls those claims input tax credits. Visitors from countries with a VAT tend to look for a VAT number, and Canadian invoices don’t have one. They show a GST/HST registration number instead.
Which rate applies depends on the place of supply, which the CRA describes as where you make the sale, lease or other supply. So a seller in one province can charge different rates to buyers in different places.
What are the sales tax rates in Canada?
Here’s what our GST/HST calculator gives on a $1,000 purchase before tax in five places. We left out provinces where we couldn’t settle the rate from one consistent source. The full list is in the calculator and on the CRA’s page on which rate to charge.
| Place | Tax charged | Rate | Tax on $1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | HST | 13% | $130.00 |
| Nova Scotia | HST | 14% | $140.00 |
| Alberta | GST only | 5% | $50.00 |
| British Columbia | GST plus 7% PST | 12% | $120.00 |
| Quebec | GST plus 9.975% QST | 14.975% | $149.75 |
Nova Scotia’s HST fell from 15% to 14% on April 1, 2025, and the CRA’s page reflects the lower rate. No 2026 change to these rates turned up, but check the CRA table before you invoice.
What isn’t taxed at all?
Some things carry 0% tax and some carry none. The CRA separates zero-rated supplies from exempt ones. Basic groceries and most exports are zero-rated, which means the rate is 0% across Canada.
A zero-rated supply has a 0% GST/HST rate throughout all of Canada.
Which rate to charge, canada.ca
Exempt supplies have no GST/HST applied at all. For the customer, the two look the same, since no tax is added. For the seller, they aren’t. On zero-rated sales you can still claim input tax credits on what you spent to make them. On exempt sales you generally can’t.
A rate calculator can’t guess which category your item falls in. Ours applies one rate to the whole amount, so treat a result as an upper estimate for zero-rated items.
When does a business have to charge it?
The small supplier limit is $30,000 of taxable sales. If you go over it in a single calendar quarter, you stop being a small supplier on the sale that put you over. If you go over it across the previous four quarters, you lose small supplier status at the end of the month after that quarter. You then have 29 days from your effective date of registration to register, and you charge GST/HST from your date of registration. Registering gives you a business number and an RT account, and you can do it online.
Say Marie in Hamilton sells handmade furniture and has a big summer: a $12,000 commission lands in July, and with her other sales she’s over the limit that quarter. Her effective date of registration is no later than the day of that sale, and she has 29 days from that date to register. Waiting until she “feels” like a real business is how people end up owing tax they never collected.
Here’s a worked example for a registered business. An Ontario firm sells $10,000 of services and collects $1,300 HST. It also bought $3,000 of supplies, paying $390 of HST on them. It claims that $390 back, so it sends the CRA $910. The maths is only the rate applied twice. Your real return also depends on which purchases qualify.
If you only have the total price, use the HST reverse calculator to pull the tax back out. For Quebec, use the GST and QST calculator, and for the western provinces with a separate PST, the GST and PST calculator. Note that in BC, that tool applies 12% to everything, so it overstates tax on items that carry only GST or none.
What mistakes cost sellers money?
The first is charging the wrong rate. If you ship from Ontario to Alberta, the place of supply rules decide, and using your home rate isn’t safe. The second is treating zero-rated and exempt as the same thing when you claim credits.
And there’s the plain one. Someone sees “VAT” on an old form or a foreign template, and copies the wrong wording onto a Canadian invoice. Use the tax names above and put your registration number on every invoice.
Where did we check these figures?
The rates and rules come from the Canada Revenue Agency‘s pages on charging and collecting the GST/HST, types of supply and business registration, plus its general information guide for registrants, read in October and November 2026. The dollar amounts come from our calculators. Revenu Québec states the QST at 9.975%, worked out on the price before GST. The CRA rate page and the small supplier rules were read again in November 2026. This site has no tie to any tax authority.
Frequently asked questions
Does Canada have VAT?
No. The federal sales tax is called the GST, and some provinces blend it into an HST or add a separate PST or QST. The GST/HST works like a VAT because registered businesses recover the tax they pay on costs through input tax credits, but a Canadian invoice shows a GST/HST number, not a VAT number.
What is the GST rate in Canada?
The GST is 5%. In HST provinces the combined rate is higher: 13% in Ontario, 14% in Nova Scotia since April 1, 2025, and 15% in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island. British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan add a provincial tax to the GST, and Quebec adds the QST.
Is food taxed in Canada?
Basic groceries are zero-rated, so the rate is 0% across Canada. Restaurant meals, snacks and many prepared foods are taxable, and the exact line between them is set out by the CRA, so check the CRA page for the item. In BC, restaurant meals carry GST but no PST.
When do I have to register for GST/HST?
You must register once your taxable sales go over the $30,000 small supplier threshold. That happens on the supply that takes you over $30,000 in a single calendar quarter, or at the end of the month after the quarter when the total over four quarters passes it. You then have 29 days to register.
What is the difference between zero-rated and exempt?
Neither adds tax for the customer. A seller of zero-rated goods, such as basic groceries and most exports, can still claim input tax credits on the costs of making them. A seller of exempt supplies generally cannot claim those credits, so the choice matters for the business, not for the shopper.
- GST, HST, PST and QST explained for every province
Which GST, HST, PST or QST applies where you shop or sell in Canada, the 2026 rates for every province, who must register and how to add or remove tax