Running a business
Invoice total calculator
Rate, hours, expenses and GST/HST — the number to put at the bottom.
A starting point, not tax advice. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Keep in mind. Shows GST/HST only. If you also sell in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Quebec, provincial sales tax may apply to some sales and is registered for separately with the province.
How this works
What the number means
The taxable subtotal is rate times quantity, plus the expenses you bill back as part of your service. If you are registered, GST/HST applies to that whole subtotal at the rate for the province where the sale is made.
Costs you paid purely as your client's agent are different. The CRA's position is that a disbursement incurred as the client's agent is not part of your fee, so no GST/HST is charged when the client reimburses it. Whether a cost was incurred as an agent depends on the facts, and the CRA sets out the tests in its policy statements on agency and disbursements.
If you are not registered you must not charge GST/HST. Charging it before you are registered, or continuing to charge after your number is closed, both create problems that take longer to fix than they took to cause.
Worked example. In Ontario, 12 hours at $85 plus $150 of materials is $1,170. With 13% HST the invoice totals $1,322.10, of which $152.10 is tax you are holding for the CRA. Add a $50 filing fee paid as the client's agent and the total is $1,372.10 — the $50 carries no HST.
Sources
- CRA — Charge and collect the GST/HST: which rate to charge — modified 8 April 2026
- CRA — When to register for and start charging the GST/HST — modified 16 June 2026
- CRA — GST/HST Policy Statement P-182R, Agency — read 28 September 2026
- CRA — GST/HST Policy Statement P-209R, disbursements incurred as agent — read 28 September 2026
Rates change. The CRA page is the authority, and these are reviewed every January.
Questions
When do I have to register for GST/HST?
Once your taxable revenue passes $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters. If you pass $30,000 within a single quarter, you must register within 29 days of the sale that took you over. The CRA sets both rules.
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