Basic Bookkeeping and Taxes for a New PEI Business

1. HST at a Glance

PEI charges 15% HST (5% federal GST plus 10% provincial), the standard Atlantic rate shared with New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador. You must register for an HST account once your worldwide taxable supplies exceed $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters; below that, registration is voluntary, but voluntary registration lets you claim input tax credits on business expenses.

2. Filing Frequency Is Assigned, Not Chosen

Most PEI small businesses land in the annual tier by default. If your prior year's net tax owing exceeded $3,000, the CRA will still require quarterly instalment payments even as an annual filer, so budget for that even if you only file once a year.

3. Get Your Business Number Early

A single federal Business Number, issued by the CRA's Charlottetown Tax Services Office, covers corporate income tax, HST, and payroll deductions together. Apply for it as soon as your OCBR registration is complete, since you'll need it before your first HST remittance or your first payroll run.

4. Payroll Basics Once You Hire

Once you have employees, you're responsible for withholding CPP, EI, and income tax from every paycheque, remitting those amounts to the CRA on schedule, and issuing T4 slips at year-end. Workers Compensation Board coverage and filing are also mandatory obligations tracked separately from your HST account.

5. Local, Free-ish Financing and Advisory Help

Community Business Development Corporations (CBDCs) are independent, community-based organizations spread across PEI regions, offering financing and advisory support specifically to small and medium-sized businesses:

• CBDC Central PEI, Summerside
• CBDC West Prince Ventures, Alberton
• CBDC PEI East, Montague

These are worth contacting before you approach a bank, particularly for a first loan or line of credit, since their mandate is specifically to support small, local businesses that traditional lenders sometimes pass on.