BC PST: who registers, what is taxable, and what changes in October 2026

BC runs a second sales tax beside GST, with its own rules and registration and no input credits. PST is a 7% retail sales tax on taxable goods and certain services, and whether it applies depends on what you sell, not your size. With PST reaching some professional services on October 1, 2026, this is the year to get it right. GST and PST filing for Fraser Valley businesses sets out which applies to what.

PST is not GST with a different name

GST and PST share a checkout line and nothing else. Federal GST refunds tax on inputs through credits; provincial PST has no ITC equivalent, so 7% on a work truck’s accessories, tools or software is simply cost. Registration is separate too: GST status says nothing about PST.

Who has to register

You must register if, in the ordinary course of business in BC, you:

• Sell taxable goods — retail inventory, building materials, vehicles, equipment, boats and most other tangible items;
• Lease taxable goods — equipment, vehicles, tools, artwork;
• Provide services to taxable goods — repair, installation and restoration work on things like vehicles and equipment;
• Provide software or telecommunication services in BC;
• Provide legal services, or — from October 1, 2026 — specified professional services including accounting, architectural, engineering and certain security and non-residential real estate services;
• Operate an online marketplace facilitating BC sales.

Location is not a shield: out-of-province sellers soliciting BC customers can be caught, and online sales into BC are squarely in scope.

The $10,000 small-seller exemption

If gross revenue from all retail sales was $10,000 or less in the previous 12 months and you expect $10,000 or less for the next 12, you can generally stay unregistered as a small seller, though some vendor types never qualify and small sellers pay PST on inventory. Voluntary registration lets you buy resale goods exempt, often worth it once margins matter.

What is taxable, what is not

Goods are taxable unless exempted; services historically exempt unless listed. Goods exemptions include most food, children’s clothing and some safety equipment. The services exemption for professional and personal services narrows in October 2026. Bundles of goods and services need careful allocation, since it decides how much carries 7%.

The October 1, 2026 change: professional services

BC’s extension of PST to specified professional services is the largest scope change in years. From October 1, 2026, accounting, architectural, engineering and certain security and non-residential real estate services become taxable. Two practical consequences for owners: your professional fees will start carrying 7% PST you cannot recover (unlike the GST on the same invoice). Second, if you provide one of those services, you have a registration and systems project to complete before the effective date — tax codes, invoices, contracts that straddle October 1, and quotes issued now for work delivered after it.

Related: CPA for plumbing, electrical and other trades contractors.

Contractors: the rule runs backwards

Trades improving real property, such as framing, plumbing, roofing and electrical, generally do not charge PST. As end user of the materials, the contractor pays PST at the supplier counter, and pricing must absorb that 7%. Supply-only sales, production machinery and other contract types can differ, so confirm them. It is standard in how we set up contractor files.

Filing and staying clean

Registered businesses file on the province’s schedule and remit everything collected. As in good bookkeeping, keep collected tax apart from revenue, reconcile before filing and never treat it as working capital. With no offsetting credit, every missed PST dollar is a whole dollar.

This article is general information for Canadian business owners and is current as of July 2026. PST scope, exemptions and the October 2026 professional-services expansion have detailed rules and transitional provisions — confirm your specific situation. It is not tax advice; please speak with a CPA before acting on anything here.

PST catches out businesses right across the Fraser Valley. We handle registration and filing for owners in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Langley, Mission, Maple Ridge and Surrey.