What is Canada's digital GST/HST threshold?

CAD $30,000 in any 12-month period of applicable Canadian taxable digital supplies

Federal GST is 5%; charge HST at the provincial combined rate where HST applies

Is a Canadian tax representative mandatory?

Not generally for simplified digital-economy GST/HST registration

No. This page summarises official VAT/GST rules for foreign digital sellers. It is not tax or legal advice

Compendium · Americas · Canada

Canada: GST/HST on digital services

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Supported (free threshold) · Local term: GST/HST

Last verified: 2026-10-29

Non-resident digital-economy businesses must register under CRA's simplified GST/HST framework when taxable supplies of cross-border digital products/services to Canadian consumers exceed CAD $30,000 in any 12-month period. File quarterly NETFILE returns. Federal GST 5%; HST applies in participating provinces

Supported (free threshold)

CAD 30k federal simplified GST/HST threshold

Spot a mistake in Canada’s rules?

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Threshold and rates (GST/HST)

Free threshold?: Yes — CAD 30k federal simplified GST/HST threshold
Amount / measure: CAD 30,000
CAD $30,000 of applicable Canadian taxable digital supplies in any 12-month period (CRA digital-economy cross-border threshold)
Window: Any 12-month period
Standard rate: 5.0%
Federal GST 5%. Harmonised Sales Tax (HST) rates apply instead in participating provinces (combined rates vary by province). Charge the rate for the consumer's province
Who must register: Non-resident suppliers and distribution platform operators meeting the CAD $30,000 cross-border digital threshold for Canadian consumers
Evidence of location: CRA digital-economy guidance focuses on whether the recipient is in Canada. A codified two-evidence list like EU 282/2011 is not the CRA framing as of 2026-10-29; use billing address, payment indicators and IP/geolocation from business systems to determine that the consumer is in Canada / which province, and keep that evidence
Invoicing: Simplified registrants charge GST/HST; follow CRA digital-economy invoicing / disclosure rules for non-resident simplified registrants
Filing: Simplified GST/HST registrants file quarterly returns electronically (NETFILE) and remit in CAD
Effective: CRA digital-economy GST/HST measures for cross-border digital products and services
Authority: Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)

What Botchannels returns

Ruleset version: 2026-10-22.v1
Decision summary: Botchannels allows sales under a free threshold of CAD 30,000 (Any 12-month period). Above that, destination tax and local registration apply.
Product class: Digital service
Support status: Supported (free threshold) — CAD 30k federal simplified GST/HST threshold

How to register

Self-register online?: Yes — non-resident digital-economy businesses register online via CRA's Non-Resident Business Registration form for a BN and simplified GST/HST (RT). No Canadian fiscal representative is required for the simplified digital-economy path
Resident representative / fiscal agent: Not generally required for CRA simplified digital-economy GST/HST registration
Regime: CRA GST/HST simplified registration for non-resident digital-economy businesses (cross-border digital products and services). Threshold: CAD $30,000 of applicable revenues in any 12-month period

Steps (in order)

Track Canadian taxable digital supplies against the CAD $30,000 / 12-month threshold for specified supplies to specified Canadian recipients
When the threshold is exceeded, register online via CRA Non-Resident Business Registration for a BN and GST/HST (RT), selecting the simplified digital-economy path — https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/non-resident.html
Read CRA's digital-economy registration guide before starting (session times out; cannot save mid-form) — https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/digital-economy-gsthst/register-gst-hst.html
After approval, charge GST or HST at the consumer's provincial rate; file quarterly NETFILE returns and remit in CAD (foreign-currency designation may be available on application)

Documents

Non-Resident Business Registration online form — BN + GST/HST (RT) including digital economy
Business / owner / books-and-records addresses — Physical, mailing, and books-and-records addresses as CRA lists
Supporting documents CRA may request after submission — CRA may phone to validate

Official processing time: CRA does not publish a single English service-level time for simplified digital-economy GST/HST registration on the pages reviewed as of 2026-10-29. You receive a reference number on submit; BN follows after review/validation (often with a phone contact)
Official fees: No CRA registration fee for the BN / GST/HST account on materials reviewed; adviser fees are commercial
Portal: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/digital-economy-gsthst/register-gst-hst.html
Local bank account: Not required; remit to CRA electronically in CAD (or an approved foreign currency if designated)
Filing frequency: Quarterly for simplified digital-economy registrants (NETFILE)
Payment currency: CAD (foreign-currency designation may be available)
Input VAT recovery: Simplified digital-economy registration is generally a remittance regime; ITCs are restricted compared with regular GST/HST — confirm on CRA simplified-registrant pages
Portal language: English / French
Penalties: Failure to register, late filing and late remittance attract CRA penalties and interest

Firms offering this service

Non-exhaustive. Not an endorsement. Links checked live on 2026-10-29; confirm current offerings, licences, and fees directly with each firm before engaging

KPMG Canada — Member firm
Deloitte Canada — Member firm
EY Canada — Member firm

Official sources

CRA — Cross-border digital threshold amounts
CRA — Find out if you need to register
CRA — Complete and file a return

Last verified: 2026-10-29.

FAQ

What is Canada's digital GST/HST threshold?: CAD $30,000 in any 12-month period of applicable Canadian taxable digital supplies
Is GST always 5%?: Federal GST is 5%; charge HST at the provincial combined rate where HST applies
Is a Canadian tax representative mandatory?: Not generally for simplified digital-economy GST/HST registration
Is this tax advice?: No. This page summarises official VAT/GST rules for foreign digital sellers. It is not tax or legal advice