--- title: "Hamilton, ON Bookkeeping Services at a Fixed Monthly Fee" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-hamilton description: "Monthly bookkeeping for Hamilton businesses: job costing, 13% HST, holdbacks and inventory, from $325 a month. Send an enquiry to a CPA today." type: service-in-a-city updated: 2026-10-02 summary: "Hamilton books carry one fully recoverable 13% HST, and most of the work sits around it: costing jobs, tracking Construction Act holdbacks, counting inventory, and accruing employer health tax and WSIB as payroll runs. EverStone keeps those books monthly and remotely, from $325 a month with GST/HST filing included, and the same firm prepares the year end from them." faq_count: 6 publisher: EverStone CPA Inc., a Chartered Professional Accountant firm registered with CPA British Columbia and CPA Alberta service_area: British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba language: en-CA contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online --- [Home](https://www.everstonecpa.com/) [Bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-bookkeeping-services) Hamilton Bookkeeping · Hamilton # Bookkeeping for *Hamilton* businesses A Hamilton ledger is rarely just a bank feed. Steel bought for one job, a holdback owed on another, a walk-in cooler full of stock at year end. EverStone keeps the books for [Hamilton businesses](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-hamilton) remotely, at a fixed monthly fee with the HST return included. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form)[Ask a Free Question](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **Quick answer:** Hamilton books carry one fully recoverable 13% HST, and most of the work sits around it: costing jobs, tracking Construction Act holdbacks, counting inventory, and accruing employer health tax and WSIB as payroll runs. EverStone keeps those books monthly and remotely, from $325 a month with GST/HST filing included, and the same firm prepares the year end from them. ## Books that follow the job, not just the bank Many Hamilton businesses sell work, not products: an east-end fabrication shop quotes brackets, a contractor on the Mountain bids a basement, a trucking outfit off the QEW prices a lane. The bank feed shows money moving, not which job it belonged to. Monthly bookkeeping that codes materials, subcontracts and hours to jobs shows which work carries the business and which is losing money, while there is still time to change the price. That is a set-up decision, not a year-end one. Classes, projects or tracking categories get built into the chart of accounts once, and every bill after that lands in the right place. The [chart of accounts guide](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/chart-of-accounts-small-business-canada) shows how the structure is usually laid out. ## One HST account, and what a Hamilton business actually buys Ontario harmonized its sales tax with the GST, so the ledger carries a single 13% HST account and the provincial part is recovered the same way as the federal part. For a business buying steel, fuel, tooling and equipment, those [input tax credits](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/input-tax-credits-itc-canada-guide) are large, and a missed one is real money rather than rounding. That same purchasing profile is why the quick method rarely suits a Hamilton manufacturer or contractor. It trades away input tax credits for a simpler remittance, which helps a consultant with few purchases and hurts a shop that buys most of what it sells. We look at the numbers once, record the choice, and code every month to match it. ## Holdbacks and progress draws in the receivables ledger Under Ontario’s Construction Act the payer holds back 10% of the value of work until the holdback period ends. For a contractor or trade, that money is earned and invoiced but not yet payable. Left in ordinary receivables, it makes the aged listing look worse and hides holdbacks that are due but unchased. We track holdback receivable in its own account, job by job, so release dates are visible and release invoices go out on time. ## The shareholder loan account, kept honest In an owner-managed Hamilton company the owner’s own spending and the company’s spending tend to meet on one card. A truck payment from the personal account, groceries on the company card, a draw taken in a slow month. Each one belongs in the shareholder loan account, and it only stays accurate if it is recorded as it happens. A balance owed to the company that is not repaid within one year after the year end is generally taxed as the owner’s income, so a loan account nobody watched can become a personal tax bill. We post those entries monthly and flag the balance well before the year end, while salary, a dividend or a repayment can still clear it. [The shareholder loan tracker](https://www.everstonecpa.com/shareholder-loan-tracker) shows how the running balance works. ## Inventory counted, not guessed Food processors, fabricators and restaurants carry stock, and stock is where Hamilton books most often go wrong. Raw steel, packaging, finished goods and a kitchen’s dry storage sit on the balance sheet at cost until used. A properly valued year-end count reconciled to the ledger keeps profit honest. Monthly, we track purchases and cost of sales against expected stock so the count confirms the books rather than rewriting them. [The year-end inventory count](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/year-end-inventory-count-canada) covers what the CRA expects. ## Employer health tax and WSIB as monthly costs Ontario employer health tax and WSIB premiums are employer costs on top of wages, not deductions from pay, so they never appear in the payroll register unless someone puts them there. We accrue both with each payroll run. That prevents an unbudgeted year-end charge for an employer nearing the employer health tax exemption, and keeps margins on labour-heavy jobs honest. ## The registry return on the same calendar Every Ontario corporation files an annual return through the Ontario Business Registry within six months of fiscal year-end. It is a registry filing, not a tax filing, so no CRA letter reminds you. We put it on the same calendar as the T2 and balance-due date, so a lender asking for a certificate of status does not find a lapsed file. ## How the monthly close runs online EverStone is a CPA firm that works online, serving Hamilton remotely. There is no Hamilton office. Bank and card feeds connect to cloud accounting software you own the login to, bills and receipts come in through a secure upload link, and questions go by email or a short video call. The books close monthly, the HST return files on its own cycle, and nothing waits for a box of paper in April. ## What it costs Monthly bookkeeping starts at $325 a month, with the GST/HST return included. A Hamilton trades corporation that wants bookkeeping, payroll and the year-end T2 with statements in one engagement typically pays $500–$700 a month. Every fee is fixed in writing before work starts. [Published pricing](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing) sets out what each service covers, and books that have fallen behind can be caught up first through [catch-up work](https://www.everstonecpa.com/catch-up-bookkeeping). Where there are employees, [payroll in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-hamilton) covers the remittances and T4s. The year end this ledger feeds is [corporate tax in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-hamilton). About this article **EverStone CPA** Prepared and reviewed by a CPA at EverStone CPA, serving businesses in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba. Updated September 2026 . [About the firm](https://www.everstonecpa.com/about) · [Send an enquiry](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) ## What gets done, and when What gets done, and when A monthly engagement, not a shoebox in March — for a business operating in Hamilton, Ontario | Cadence | What we do | | Monthly | Transactions coded to jobs where you need it, bank and card accounts reconciled, holdbacks tracked | | Quarterly | GST/HST return prepared and filed, where you report quarterly | | Annually | Inventory count reconciled, books closed and handed to the year-end file | | Ongoing | Employer health tax and WSIB accrued as payroll runs | | Sales tax where you operate | 13% HST, a single registration and a single return | Source: [How often to do the books](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-vs-annual-bookkeeping). General information, not advice. In Hamilton, EverStone also works with [realtors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-hamilton). Common questions ## Hamilton bookkeeping questions **Can you code costs to individual jobs?** Yes. Materials, subcontract costs and hours are coded to jobs or projects in the ledger, so you can see job margins monthly rather than guessing at them when the year closes. [Ask about your case →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **How should I record a Construction Act holdback?** As its own receivable, job by job, separate from ordinary accounts receivable. That shows what is held, when each holdback is due for release, and which releases have not been invoiced. **Is the quick method right for a Hamilton shop?** Usually not for a business that buys most of what it sells. The quick method gives up input tax credits, and a fabricator or contractor buying steel, fuel and equipment generally recovers more by claiming them in full. **Do you do the year-end inventory count?** You count; we value and reconcile. We send a count sheet in advance, value the stock at cost, and adjust the books so the balance sheet and cost of sales agree with what was actually on hand. **Is there a Hamilton office?** No. EverStone works online, and keeps Hamilton books remotely. Feeds arrive electronically and documents come in through a secure upload link, so no visit is needed. **Do you work with businesses outside Hamilton itself?** Yes. Books for businesses in Stoney Creek, Ancaster, Dundas, Burlington and Grimsby are kept exactly as Hamilton ones are: bank feeds, receipts through a secure upload link, and the same fixed monthly fee. ## Related services and local guides Nearby cities, the rest of what we do for Hamilton businesses, and the reference pages behind this one. [Contractor accountant in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant-hamilton) [Manufacturer accountant in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/manufacturer-accountant-hamilton) [Bookkeeping in St. Catharines](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-st-catharines) [Bookkeeping in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-toronto) [Bookkeeping in London](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-london-ontario) [Personal tax (T1) in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/personal-tax-accountant-hamilton) [Monthly bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-bookkeeping-services) [Monthly vs annual bookkeeping Which cadence actually costs less](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-vs-annual-bookkeeping) [QuickBooks vs Xero in Canada](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quickbooks-vs-xero-canada) [Accountants across Ontario](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-ontario) [Ontario tax facts Current rates and thresholds for Ontario](https://www.everstonecpa.com/ontario-tax-facts) [A real fixed quote, line by line](https://www.everstonecpa.com/sample-quote) ### What clients say Rated 5.0 on Google across 26 client reviews. [Read all reviews](https://www.everstonecpa.com/reviews) ★★★★★ “Personal. Professional. Responsive. Plus he saved me a bundle!” Corrin Skalbeck Verified Google Local Guide ★★★★★ “…He is very knowledgeable and has saved me tons in taxes by restructuring my group of companies — the best accountant I've worked with in the last 10 years, after switching from three different firms.” Matt Hildebrandt Verified Google review ### Starting fees Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins. - **Monthly bookkeeping, HST filing included** from $325 a month *This page* - **Payroll, remittances, T4s and ROEs** included in monthly bookkeeping - **Books, payroll and the year-end T2 together** $500–$700 a month - **Corporate year-end and T2 return** fixed fee, quoted in writing - **Personal tax return (T1)** from $125; self-employed or rental $275–$500 - **Catch-up bookkeeping** from $2,200 per year of records - **Controller or CFO support** controller from $1,650, CFO from $2,750 a month - **One-off advice call with a CPA** $225 plus applicable tax [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-hamilton Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online