Accountant for Canmore hospitality, tourism and rental businesses
EverStone CPA serves Canmore businesses entirely online: bookkeeping, seasonal payroll, GST, and the T2 and Alberta AT1, at a fixed fee agreed first. Owners in Banff, Exshaw and the Bow Valley are served the same way.
Who we help here: restaurants and cafés, hotels and lodges, guiding and rental outfits, and owners of condos rented by the night. Most have two busy seasons and uneven cash.
Quick answer: A Canmore business charges 5% GST and no provincial sales tax, and an incorporated one files the federal T2 and the Alberta AT1. EverStone handles the books, seasonal payroll, GST and year-end for Canmore hospitality and rental businesses online, at a fixed fee. Published fees start at $125 for a personal return and $325 a month for bookkeeping.
Updated .
Canmore fees match the rest of Alberta, including a fractional controller from $1,650 a month.
On this page
- An Alberta CPA for Canmore, entirely online
- Which return applies to you
- What Alberta adds for a Canmore business
- Accounting and tax services for Canmore businesses
- Built for a visitor-driven mountain town
- Restaurants and hospitality: tips, cash and the books
- Seasonal staff and payroll
- Cash flow through the shoulder seasons
- Short-term rental owners in Canmore
- Year-end and the owner’s pay
- Getting set up, without a drive
- Common questions from Canmore owners
An Alberta CPA for Canmore, entirely online
Peak season leaves Canmore owners little time for an accountant’s schedule. We work by email, secure upload, e-signature and short video calls.
One Chartered Professional Accountant knows your numbers year-round, from the summer reconciliation to the year-end plan.
Get My Fixed QuoteWhat Canmore owners get
- Corporate tax: the T2 and the Alberta AT1
- Personal tax (T1), including rental income
- Monthly bookkeeping & POS reconciliation
- Seasonal payroll, tips, ROEs & T4s
- GST filed — no PST return required
- Fixed fees, confirmed up front
Which return applies to you
| If you are | You file |
|---|---|
| A sole proprietor | A T1 personal return with form T2125 for the business |
| An incorporated business | A federal T2 with the CRA and an Alberta AT1 with Tax and Revenue Administration |
| An owner renting a unit by the night | A T1 with form T776, or a T2125 where you provide hotel-style services |
| A partnership | A T5013 partnership return where required, plus each partner’s own return |
| Sales tax where you operate | 5% GST only. Alberta levies no provincial sales tax |
Source: Alberta tax facts. General information, not advice.
What Alberta adds for a Canmore business
The provincial picture is lighter than in most provinces, with one return that is easy to miss.
No provincial sales tax
Alberta charges no PST at all, so a Canmore business selling within the province deals only with the 5% federal GST. One registration, one return.
Corporate rates
Active business income eligible for the small business deduction is taxed at 11% combined (9% federal plus 2% Alberta) on a $500,000 limit. Above it the combined rate is 23%, built on Alberta’s 8% general rate. The figures are on the Alberta tax facts page.
Two corporate returns
A Canmore corporation files the AT1 with Alberta Tax and Revenue Administration as well as the T2 with the CRA.
Accounting and tax services for Canmore businesses
Everything an owner-managed Canmore business needs, delivered online.
Corporate Tax (T2 and AT1)
Both corporate returns from one closed year-end.
Personal Tax (T1)
Owner and family returns, T2125 and T776 schedules.
Bookkeeping
POS, card and cash deposits reconciled monthly.
Payroll
Seasonal pay runs, tips, ROEs and T4s.
GST Filing
Filed on your assigned period, with supported input tax credits.
Fractional CFO
Forecasting and financing support from $2,750 a month.
Built for a visitor-driven mountain town
Canmore sits in the Bow Valley on the Trans-Canada Highway, at the edge of Banff National Park and Kananaskis Country. Its economy runs on visitors: hotels, restaurants, guiding, shops, and the builders and property managers behind vacation homes.
Summer and ski season bring the revenue and the staff; spring and fall are quieter. The books, GST and payroll follow that rhythm.
Get My Fixed QuoteServing Canmore, entirely online
Email first, video meetings when they help, a secure upload link for documents and e-signature for returns.
Restaurants and hospitality: tips, cash and the books
POS sales, card settlements and cash deposits have to agree. We reconcile them monthly, so a short deposit shows up while it can still be traced, and track food and liquor cost separately.
Tips the employer controls generally go through payroll with CPP and EI; tips paid straight to staff do not. Our guide to tip reporting sets out the test, and the Alberta restaurant page covers the rest of the file.
Seasonal staff and payroll
Canmore employers hire before summer and ski season and let many go after. Each hire needs source deductions and WCB-Alberta coverage; each departure needs a record of employment.
Payroll also applies Alberta general holiday pay. Staff housing provided by the employer is usually a taxable benefit on the T4. See our record of employment guide and the first-employee checklist.
Cash flow through the shoulder seasons
GST collected in August, remittances and instalments fall due in the quiet months that follow. We set the tax aside as it is collected.
A twelve-month forecast shows when to draw on credit and how much the owner can take. Read cash flow for a seasonal business, or see our cash flow management service.
Short-term rental owners in Canmore
Many Canmore condos are rented by the night, often by owners living elsewhere. Stays under a month are generally taxable for GST; past the small supplier threshold you must register for GST. Platforms collect GST on some stays, and Alberta’s tourism levy can apply too.
Since 2024, federal rules deny expenses for a short-term rental that breaks provincial or municipal licensing or zoning rules, so the permit belongs in the file. We prepare the rental income return and split repairs from capital improvements.
Year-end and the owner’s pay
A seasonal business suits a year-end in a quiet month; see choosing a fiscal year-end. The T2 and AT1 are due six months after year-end, the balance generally three months after for a CCPC claiming the small business deduction.
We plan before year-end and model owner pay on Alberta numbers with the salary vs dividends calculator. If you are still a sole proprietor, our incorporation advice sets out when a corporation starts to pay. Behind? Catch-up bookkeeping comes first.
Getting set up, without a drive
The whole engagement runs online, from the first email to the signed return.
Send an enquiry
You get a fixed, written quote first.
Send your records securely
Secure upload, plus CRA and Alberta account access.
Stay current all year
Filings stay on schedule; email questions cost nothing extra.
EverStone works with Canmore businesses virtually. There is no Canmore office, and nobody on the ground there. For the provincial picture, see accounting in Alberta; nearby, we also serve Calgary, Cochrane and Airdrie.
Common questions from Canmore owners
How much does an accountant cost in Canmore?+
Do I charge PST on meals or rooms in Canmore?+
How should my restaurant handle tips in payroll?+
Do I need to register my Canmore rental for GST?+
What year-end suits a seasonal Canmore business?+
Does EverStone have a Canmore office?+
Related services and local guides
Nearby cities, the rest of what we do for Canmore businesses, and the reference pages behind this one.
Starting fees
Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins.
- Monthly bookkeeping, GST filing includedfrom $325 a month
- Payroll, remittances, T4s and ROEsincluded in monthly bookkeeping
- Books, payroll and the year-end T2 together$500–$700 a month
- Corporate year-end and T2 returnfixed fee, quoted in writing
- Personal tax return (T1)from $125; self-employed or rental $275–$500
- Catch-up bookkeepingfrom $2,200 per year of records
- Controller or CFO supportcontroller from $1,650, CFO from $2,750 a month
- One-off advice call with a CPA$225 plus GST