Accountant in Oshawa for owner-run businesses

What an Oshawa business actually files

Durham businesses file mostly federally. A corporation files a T2 within six months of year-end, with Ontario corporate tax on the same return. The balance owing is due earlier, two or three months after year-end, and that gap is where penalties and interest start: paying at filing rather than the due date means interest on money already set aside.

The corporation also files an Ontario Business Registry annual return within six months of year-end, which the CRA never reminds you about. Employers add payroll, WSIB and possibly Employer Health Tax. Sales past $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters require HST registration. Our Ontario tax facts page lists current provincial rates with sources.

The services, one page each

Every service below has its own Oshawa page, written for how Durham owners use it:

• Bookkeeping in Oshawa: monthly reconciliations and HST filing, from $325 a month.
• Corporate tax (T2) in Oshawa: the year-end return, statements and the registry annual return.
• Personal tax in Oshawa: T1 returns from $125 for a simple file, and self-employed returns with schedules.
• Payroll services in Oshawa: source deductions, WSIB, Employer Health Tax and T4s.

Most owner-run companies need more than one of these, and they work better together: the books feed the HST return, the HST return feeds the year-end, and the year-end decides what the owner’s personal return looks like. Choosing an accountant Oshawa owners can keep for all of these means one firm handles the books, the HST return and the year-end together.

Durham’s main industries, and a page for each

Oshawa and the towns around it have a recognisable business mix, and each part of it carries its own accounting problems:

• Construction contractors: new subdivisions across Whitby, Oshawa and Clarington mean holdbacks, progress billing, T5018 slips and WSIB.
• Manufacturers: the automotive heritage left a base of machine shops and parts suppliers that live on inventory, job costing and equipment.
• Trucking and logistics: the 401 and 407 corridor puts carriers and owner-operators here, with IFTA, IRP and heavy equipment on the books.
• Restaurants: tips, cash, food cost and HST on every bill.
• Realtors: commission income, HST on commissions and the Ontario personal real estate corporation.

Incorporating in Durham, and what changes after

Many Oshawa owners incorporate once profit builds. That adds returns, a registry filing, a separate bank account and a yearly salary-versus-dividend choice. It also creates the shareholder loan account: personal costs paid on the company card and not repaid within one year after the company’s year-end are generally taxed as your income.

We look at whether incorporation makes sense before you do it, not after. The when to incorporate guide sets out the trade-offs, and the salary vs dividends calculator shows how the pay decision moves between the two returns.

What it costs

Fees are fixed in writing first; published pricing shows where each service starts. Personal returns from $125; monthly bookkeeping from $325 a month with HST filing; a typical trades corporation with bookkeeping, payroll and a year-end T2, $500 to $700 a month. A standalone T2 is quoted after we review your enquiry, since the books drive the work.

If you only need one decision made, a 45-minute Advice Call costs a flat $225 + GST, with no ongoing engagement attached.

Remote

EverStone serves Oshawa remotely: a cloud ledger you hold the login to, a secure upload link and electronic signatures. Returns and the Ontario registry filing are made online, so nothing depends on being in Durham.

Enquiries are answered by email, and the same firm that quotes the work is the one who does it and answers the follow-up questions in the months after. If you have never used an accountant at a distance, working with a CPA outside your province covers what changes and what does not.

Remote accounting for Oshawa

Accounting for Oshawa and Durham Region businesses is delivered remotely. There is no Oshawa office and no local team. Meetings are virtual, documents are signed electronically, and you deal with the CPA directly rather than a front desk.