After incorporating, register your CRA Business Number and the program accounts you need, open a dedicated corporate bank account, start a minute book, pick your fiscal year-end, decide on GST/HST registration, set up payroll if you'll pay yourself a salary, choose a bookkeeping system, and mark your first T2 filing deadline — six months after your year-end. Work through these in roughly this order and nothing falls through the cracks.
Key takeaways
- Register the CRA program accounts your corporation actually needs (RC, and RT/RP/RZ if applicable).
- Never mix personal and business money — open a separate corporate account immediately.
- GST/HST registration is only mandatory once revenue passes $30,000.
- Your first T2 is due six months after year-end; balance owing is due sooner (2 or 3 months).
- Decide your salary vs. dividend mix before you take your first payment from the company.
The paperwork to incorporate is the easy part. What actually protects the liability shield and keeps you offside with the CRA is what you do in the weeks after. Here's the order we walk new incorporated clients through.
1. Get your CRA Business Number and program accounts
Your Business Number (BN) is your corporation's master identifier with the CRA. Once you have it, you register the specific program accounts that apply to your situation:
- RC — corporate income tax (every corporation needs this)
- RT — GST/HST, once you're registered or required to be
- RP — payroll, if you or any employee will be paid a salary
- RZ — information returns, needed if you'll issue T4A or T5 slips
You don't need every account on day one — only add RT, RP or RZ when they actually apply, so you're not filing empty returns.
2. Open a dedicated corporate bank account
Your corporation is a separate legal person, and its money needs to stay separate from yours. Running personal expenses through the business account (or vice versa) muddies your bookkeeping, makes CRA reviews harder to defend, and can undermine the liability protection incorporation is supposed to give you. Open the account before your first invoice goes out.
3. Start and maintain your minute book
Your minute book is the corporation's official paper trail: articles of incorporation, share issuances, director and officer appointments, annual resolutions, and banking authorizations. It's a legal requirement in every province, and it's the first thing a lender, buyer, or the CRA will ask for if there's ever a dispute or a sale. Keep it current every year, not just at incorporation.
4. Choose your fiscal year-end
Unlike individuals, a corporation isn't locked to December 31 — you can choose a fiscal year-end that suits your business, as long as your first year doesn't exceed 53 weeks. Many owner-managers align it with a slow season to make year-end work and tax planning easier.
5. Decide on GST/HST registration
Registration is mandatory once your taxable revenue exceeds $30,000 over any four consecutive calendar quarters, or in a single quarter. Below that, you're a small supplier and it's optional — though many new corporations register early anyway to recover GST/HST on startup costs through input tax credits. See our full GST/HST registration guide for the details.
6. Set up payroll if you're paying yourself a salary
If you plan to draw a salary rather than (or alongside) dividends, you'll need the RP payroll account, source deductions set up correctly, and T4 slips issued at year-end. This needs to be running before your first paycheque, not reconstructed after the fact.
7. Choose a bookkeeping system
Clean, real-time books make every other item on this list easier — your GST/HST filings, your T2, your ability to see cash flow, and your defence if the CRA ever asks questions. Set this up in month one, not in a panic before your first filing deadline.
8. Know your first T2 deadline
Your T2 corporate income tax return is due six months after your fiscal year-end. The balance owing, however, is typically due sooner: two months after year-end for most corporations, or three months after year-end for a Canadian-controlled private corporation (CCPC) that claims the small business deduction and meets the other conditions. Missing the balance-due date triggers interest even if you file the return itself on time.
9. Plan how you'll pay yourself
Salary and dividends are taxed differently for both you and the corporation, and the right mix depends on your personal cash needs, whether you want RRSP room and CPP contributions, and your total combined tax rate. Decide this with your accountant before your first payment — changing course later is harder than planning it up front.
The bottom line
None of these nine steps is complicated on its own — the risk is doing them out of order or not at all. Most of our new-incorporation clients hand us this whole list on day one so nothing gets missed while they focus on running the business. Our incorporation calculator is a good starting point if you're still deciding whether to incorporate at all.
Founder of EverStone CPA, a family-owned Abbotsford firm, and a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC). Sunny works with incorporated contractors and small business owners across Canada on tax, bookkeeping and advisory. More about Sunny →
This article is general information, not tax or legal advice for your specific situation. Confirm your registration requirements and deadlines with the CRA or with us.
Frequently asked questions
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