Amazon FBA and Shopify Seller GST/HST Calculator
Work out whether you have crossed the $30,000 threshold, which registration path applies once your stock sits in a Canadian fulfilment centre, the rate to charge in every province, what you actually remit after input tax credits, and who is accounting for your marketplace sales.
net remittance
—
—
—
—
Rate and Tax by Province
| Province | Rate | Your Sales | Tax |
|---|
Which Registration Path Applies
| Factor | Your Position | Effect |
|---|
What You Actually Remit
| Item | Basis | Amount |
|---|
Back Period Exposure
| Item | Basis | Result |
|---|
Points That Catch Sellers Out
What to Do Next
—
Disclaimer: Rates used are 13% in Ontario, 14% in Nova Scotia since 1 April 2025, 15% in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island, and 5% GST elsewhere, with Quebec sales tax shown separately at 9.975%. The small supplier threshold is CAD $30,000 measured over four consecutive calendar quarters. Provincial sales taxes in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba are flagged but not calculated, because they depend on a provincial split this calculator does not collect. The back period estimate applies your current tax profile to the months since you started selling, capped at four years, and is an indication rather than a computation. Whether a non-resident carries on business in Canada, and whether fulfilment inventory creates a permanent establishment, are questions of fact. This page is general information, not tax advice.
Two Facts Decide Almost Everything
E-commerce sales tax in Canada looks complicated and mostly is not. Two answers settle the position: whether you have crossed $30,000 of Canadian sales, and whether your stock sits in a Canadian fulfilment centre.
| Situation | What Applies |
|---|---|
| Under $30,000, no Canadian inventory | Registration optional, though often worth doing |
| Over $30,000, non-resident, no Canadian inventory, digital or shipped from abroad | Simplified registration may be available |
| Stock in a Canadian fulfilment centre | Normal registration, whatever else is true |
| Canadian resident over the threshold | Normal registration |
What FBA Inventory Changes
Sending stock into a Canadian fulfilment centre is the single most consequential thing an e-commerce seller does for tax purposes. It takes a non-resident out of the simplified regime entirely and forces full registration. The fulfilment business itself has to notify the CRA and keep records of the non-residents whose goods it holds, so the arrangement is visible whether or not you register.
It also raises a second and larger question. Inventory held in Canada, combined with fulfilment activity carried on here, can create a permanent establishment for income tax. That is a corporate filing obligation and potentially Canadian tax on profit, and it is a far bigger issue than the sales tax that brought you to this page. It should be looked at at the same time.
The Rate Follows the Customer
Not where you are, not where the inventory sits, not where the marketplace is incorporated. The place of supply rules point at the customer’s province.
| Rate | Provinces and Territories |
|---|---|
| 5% GST | Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon |
| 13% HST | Ontario |
| 14% HST | Nova Scotia, reduced from 15% on 1 April 2025 |
| 15% HST | New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island |
A seller with a heavy Ontario and Atlantic mix carries a far higher blended rate than one selling mostly into Alberta and British Columbia. Getting the mapping right in your storefront settings is the practical work, and it is where most sellers lose money in both directions.
Four Separate Sales Taxes, Not One
This is the part that catches almost everyone. GST and HST are federal and cover most of the country. Three provinces plus Quebec run their own systems with their own registrations.
| Tax | Rate | Administered By |
|---|---|---|
| GST and HST | 5% to 15% | The CRA |
| Quebec sales tax | 9.975% | Revenu Quebec, a separate registration |
| British Columbia PST | 7% | Province of British Columbia |
| Saskatchewan PST | 6% | Province of Saskatchewan |
| Manitoba RST | 7% | Province of Manitoba |
Each has its own out-of-province seller rules and its own thresholds. A federally registered seller shipping into all four is not covered for any of them by that registration.
The Marketplace Does Not Always Collect
Sellers believe Amazon handles the tax. Sometimes it does and sometimes it stops, and the switch is your own registration.
| Your Position | Marketplace Sales | Your Own Website |
|---|---|---|
| Non-resident, not registered normally | The platform accounts for it | Yours |
| Registered under the normal regime | Yours | Yours |
| Canadian resident, registered | Yours | Yours |
Read the second row carefully. The moment you register under the normal regime, the platform stops being deemed the supplier and every marketplace sale becomes yours to account for. Sellers who register to recover their input tax credits and assume Amazon still handles the output side discover the gap at their first return, by which time several quarters have passed.
Input Tax Credits Are Where the Money Is
For a seller with real volume, the credits are frequently worth more than the compliance costs several times over.
- Marketplace fees. Referral fees, FBA fulfilment fees and storage fees all carry tax.
- Advertising. Sponsored product spend is a large recoverable cost for most sellers.
- Tax paid at the border. The 5% GST paid on imported inventory is fully recoverable where you are the importer of record and registered.
- Canadian suppliers, software, professional fees and everything else bought here.
The border tax is the one most often lost. A seller who lets a broker or the platform act as importer of record does not get the credit, because the credit belongs to the importer. On a growing inventory position that can run into tens of thousands a year, and it is recoverable simply by being named correctly on the customs paperwork.
Note also that the simplified regime gives no input tax credits at all. For a seller with any real Canadian cost base, normal registration is usually the better answer even where the simplified route is technically open.
What Happens If You Should Have Registered
The tax you failed to charge is still owed. You cannot realistically go back to hundreds of consumers months later and ask for it, so it comes out of your margin, with interest and penalties for the unfiled returns on top.
A voluntary disclosure made before the CRA contacts you removes the penalties and most of the interest. The CRA does look: marketplace reporting, payment processor data and customs records all point at sellers with Canadian revenue, and fulfilment businesses report the non-residents whose goods they hold.
Practical Order of Work
- Pull the provincial split from your marketplace reports. Every number here depends on it.
- Register federally, and normally rather than simplified if you have any Canadian cost base.
- Fix the storefront tax settings province by province, including the Nova Scotia change.
- Get named as importer of record so the border tax becomes recoverable.
- Deal with Quebec, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba separately.
- Settle the income tax question if inventory sits in Canada, because that is the larger exposure.
What This Calculator Does Not Cover
- Provincial sales tax amounts in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba
- The Quick Method, which can help smaller sellers with few input tax credits
- Customs duty and the value for duty on imported goods
- Zero-rated and exempt products, including most basic groceries and certain books
- Your income tax position and whether a permanent establishment exists
- United States sales tax and economic nexus, which is a separate exercise
Registration takes days. The back period and the lost credits are what cost money. Deal with both at once rather than registering and hoping nobody looks backwards. Our GST/HST registration service covers the application, the provincial mapping and the returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions from FBA and Shopify sellers.
Related Calculators and Guides
More tools for e-commerce sellers.
Register, Map the Provinces, Claim the Credits
Send us your marketplace reports and your Canadian cost base. We confirm the registration path, set up the provincial mapping, get the border tax recoverable, and prepare a disclosure where an unregistered period exists.