The Canada Revenue Agency provides registration requirements, guides and resources for Business Registration Online (BRO) as well as information and resources on the Business Number.
Services are also available from provincial, territorial and federal governments. As a prospective entrepreneur or new business owner, you are no doubt aware of the importance of spreading the word about your organization. In addition to informing potential customers about your business, you must let the government know about your plans.
You may need to register with several different levels of government for many different reasons. This document provides an overview of the key registration requirements that may apply to your business.
Before registering
Before registering your business, you must think about what form of business you want to start and what you want to call your business.
Business Number
Provincial and territorial business registration
Most provincial and territorial governments require that you register your business with them.
- Corporate RegistryTo conduct business in Alberta, register your cooperative, corporation, extra-provincial company, non-profit company, society, trade name and/or partnership.
- New West Partnership Trade AgreementIf your business is located in British Columbia, Alberta, or Saskatchewan, this agreement can save you time as it allows for a seamless business registration between provinces.
British Columbia
- BC Business RegistryThis website will guide you through the steps of registering your sole proprietorship or general partnership business in BC.
- Corporate OnlineThis website will take you through the steps to incorporate your business in BC or to register an extraprovincial business in BC.
- Community Contribution CompanyFind out how this business structure allows you to pursue social goals while making a profit and providing opportunities to like-minded investors.
- New West Partnership Trade AgreementIf your business is located in British Columbia, Alberta, or Saskatchewan, this agreement can save you time as it allows for a seamless business registration between provinces.
- Name Requests OnlineSubmit a business or corporate name for approval by B.C. Registry Services.
Manitoba
- Companies Office – Business name registration and provincial incorporation (Manitoba)How do you register your business, and what do you need to know about provincial incorporation?
Ontario
- Business name registration information (Ontario)Register your business name online, in person or by mail.
- Extra-provincial domestic corporations operating in OntarioIf your business was incorporated federally or in another province/territory, you must inform the Ontario government you are doing business in Ontario.
- Limited partnerships (Ontario)Find out if a limited partnership is right for your business.
- Collection agency licensingFind out how to register and license your collection agency in Ontario.
Saskatchewan
- Forming a co-operative in SaskatchewanFind out how to register a co-operative in Saskatchewan, including information on fees and required forms.
- Registering a sole proprietorship or partnership in SaskatchewanFind out how to register your business name as a sole proprietorship or partnership in Saskatchewan, including the fees, the forms required and the turn-around time.
- New West Partnership Trade AgreementIf your business is located in British Columbia, Alberta, or Saskatchewan, this agreement can save you time as it allows for a seamless business registration between provinces.
Incorporation
If you decide to incorporate your business, you can incorporate federally or provincially.
Federal incorporation allows you to do business under the same name in all provinces and territories, although you may still need to register your business in individual provinces and territories. If you do plan to do business in more than one province or territory now or in the future, you should consider incorporating federally. Before doing so, you need to complete a NUANS name search.
- NUANS Corporate name search
Compare your proposed business name to the names of existing businesses to see if it is unique.
Federal incorporation
- Federal business incorporation
- Guide to Federal Incorporation
- Create/Maintain a Cooperative
- Keeping your corporation in good standing: Reporting obligations
- Steps to follow to revive a corporation
Provincial or territorial incorporation
- Corporate RegistryTo conduct business in Alberta, register your cooperative, corporation, extra-provincial company, non-profit company, society, trade name and/or partnership.
British Columbia
- BC Business RegistryThis website will guide you through the steps of registering your sole proprietorship or general partnership business in BC.
Manitoba
- Companies Office – Business name registration and provincial incorporation (Manitoba)How do you register your business, and what do you need to know about provincial incorporation?
Ontario
- Ontario Business IncorporationIncorporate your Ontario business online, in person, or by mail.
- Professional corporationsFind out how you can incorporate your practice in Ontario for specific regulated professions.
- Making changes to your corporate informationFind out how to make changes to the information about your Ontario corporation, including its name, address and number of directors.
- Reviving your corporationYou may be able to revive your Ontario corporation if it was involuntarily dissolved within the past 20 years.
Saskatchewan
- Incorporating your business in SaskatchewanFind out how to incorporate your business in Saskatchewan, including the fees, the forms required and the turn-around time.
- Registering an extra-provincial corporation in SaskatchewanIf you own an out-of-province corporation and are doing business in Saskatchewan, you will have to extra-provincially incorporate your business in Saskatchewan.
- Forming a non-profit corporation in SaskatchewanFind out how to register your non-profit corporation in Saskatchewan, including the fees, the forms required and the turn-around time.
Permits and licences
You may also require specific permits and licences from the federal, provincial or municipal governments, depending on your location, industry sector, and specific activities that you plan to conduct. Use our permits and licences search to find out which permits and licences might apply to your business.