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Most accounting tasks a small business owner can do alone are the routine ones: recording sales and expenses, keeping receipts, reconciling the bank account and filing a simple GST/HST return. The two jobs usually worth handing off are a corporate tax return and payroll once you have staff. Here is how we would split it.
Which accounting tasks can you safely do yourself?
Bookkeeping first. Every sale, every purchase, every bank fee goes in a spreadsheet or an accounting app, with the date, the amount and who was on the other side. That’s it. It’s repetitive but not hard, and since nobody knows what a given payment was for better than you do, nobody else will do it faster or with fewer questions back to you.
Receipts come next. The CRA says income records need the date, the amount and the source, and expense records need the date, the seller and what you bought. Keep the originals or a clear scan. And keep them for at least six years after the last tax year they relate to.
Reconciling means checking your books against the bank statement once a month. If a deposit or a charge doesn’t match, you find out in weeks and not at year end. Most owners can do this in under an hour.
Invoicing and chasing late payers are also yours. Nobody else has the relationship.
What about GST/HST?
You can file it yourself, and many owners do. The first question is if you must register at all. The CRA sets the small supplier threshold at $30,000 in taxable sales, and it’s tested two ways: in any single calendar quarter and over the last four consecutive quarters. Below that, registering is a choice. Above it, you have a short window to register.
A small supplier means a person whose revenue (along with the revenue of all persons associated with that person) from worldwide taxable supplies was equal to or less than $30,000 ($50,000 for public service bodies) in a single calendar quarter and over the last four consecutive calendar quarters.
General Information for GST/HST Registrants, Canada.ca, canada.ca
Lena, a freelance designer in Regina, found that out the hard way. One big client pushed a single quarter past $30,000 even though her year looked modest. The sale that tipped her over already needed tax on it, and she had 29 days to register. Watch your quarterly totals, not only the annual one.
Once you charge tax, the arithmetic is simple. In Ontario the rate is 13%, so a $2,000 job means $260 of tax on top and a $2,260 invoice. The GST/HST calculator handles other provinces, and the HST reverse calculator pulls the tax back out of a price that already includes it. The real work is tracking the tax you paid on purchases so you can claim it back.
When does DIY start to cost you?
Some jobs are legal to do yourself but easy to get wrong. Here’s a quick map.
| Task | Reasonable to do yourself? |
|---|---|
| Bookkeeping and receipts | Yes |
| Bank reconciliation | Yes |
| GST/HST return | Yes, once you understand input tax credits |
| Sole proprietor tax return | Yes, with tax software |
| Payroll remittances | Yes for one employee, harder as staff grows |
| Corporate tax return (T2) | Ask an accountant, especially the first year |
That last row is a judgement call, not a rule. A corporation’s return has schedules for shareholders, related companies and the small business limit, and mistakes there change the rate you pay. We couldn’t confirm any accountant fee ranges, so ask for a quote before you decide.
A decent test for any task is the “what if I’m wrong” question. If a slip costs you ten minutes to fix, do it yourself. If it can change the rate you’re taxed at, or trigger a penalty, a second pair of eyes for an hour is cheap insurance.
What GST/HST records does the CRA expect?
If you file the return yourself, the records are your job too. The CRA’s page on GST/HST records says to keep invoices for sales and purchases and the other documents tied to your business activities and to the tax. If you file electronically, keep working copies of the return. The general period is six years from the end of the year the records relate to, and the CRA may ask you to keep invoices longer.
Purchase invoices matter most, because they support your input tax credits. A supplier invoice that lacks the information the CRA requires can put the credit at risk. To destroy records early you need to send a written request to your tax services office and wait for approval. A weekly ten minute habit, described in our bookkeeping schedule guide, keeps this easy, and the page on whether bookkeeping is mandatory covers the basics.
Taxes you can estimate on your own
If you’re a sole proprietor, the numbers are yours to work out. Try the self-employed tax calculator for income tax and CPP on your profit. It doesn’t include EI, and its deductions lower income tax but not CPP, so treat the result as a ballpark starting point. If the bill will be big, the tax instalments calculator shows how to spread it. Instalments apply when net tax owing passes $3,000 and it did in earlier years too.
Dates matter more than most people think. For the 2025 return, a self-employed person had until 15 June 2026 to file, but any tax owing was still due 30 April 2026. For the 2026 return the usual dates are 15 June 2027 to file and 30 April 2027 to pay, but we haven’t seen the CRA print them yet, so check before you rely on them.
Once you hire someone, the payroll remittance calculator gives you a feel for what you’ll hold back and send in.
Common mistakes with DIY books
Mixing personal and business spending is the big one. Open a separate account on day one. Then there’s the shoebox problem: receipts pile up and you reconstruct a year in a weekend. Ten minutes a week beats ten hours in March.
Another: treating the bank balance as profit. It includes sales tax you owe and tax you’ll owe later.
Last, don’t lean on an app’s categories without checking them. Software guesses.
Our sources
The small supplier threshold comes from the CRA page on when to register for and charge GST/HST, and the GST/HST record rules from its GST/HST records page. Record retention follows the CRA guidance on where to keep your records. Instalment thresholds and return dates come from the CRA instalments and filing dates pages. We read the registration, record and retention pages in November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Can I do my own bookkeeping in Canada?
Yes. Record every sale and expense with the date, the amount and the other party, and keep the receipts. The CRA says income records need the date, amount and source, and expense records need the date, the seller and what you bought. Reconcile against the bank statement once a month so mistakes show up in weeks, not at year end.
Do I have to charge GST/HST?
Once your taxable sales pass $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, you must register. Pass it in a single quarter and tax applies from the sale that crossed the line, with 29 days to register. Below the threshold, registering is optional, so check your quarterly totals and not only the annual number.
Should I hire an accountant for a corporation?
Many owners do for the T2 return, at least in the first year, because the schedules for shareholders, related companies and the small business limit can change the rate you pay. We could not confirm typical fees from an official source, so ask for a written quote before you decide.
When did self-employed people file the 2025 return?
By 15 June 2026, though any tax owing was still due 30 April 2026. For the 2026 return the usual dates are 15 June 2027 to file and 30 April 2027 to pay, but we had not seen the CRA print them when we checked in November 2026, so confirm before you rely on them.
How long do I keep my accounting records?
Generally six years from the end of the last tax year the records relate to. For GST/HST the CRA gives the same general period and says it may ask you to keep invoices longer. To destroy anything earlier you need the CRA’s written permission, so do not clear out the shoebox after two years.
- Self-employed taxes in Canada: income, CPP and GST
How tax works when you are self-employed in Canada: reporting income and expenses, paying both halves of CPP, instalments and when to register for GST