--- title: "Accountant for Contractors in Alberta: CPA, T2, AT1, T5018" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant-alberta description: "Accountant for contractors in Alberta: one CPA firm for the T2 and AT1, T5018 slips, holdbacks, payroll and WCB, with bookkeeping from $325. Get a quote." type: service-or-info updated: 2026-10-02 summary: "A CPA for Alberta contractors handles three things a general accountant often does not. The first is the provincial AT1, filed with Alberta Tax and Revenue Administration alongside the federal T2. The others are T5018 slips for every subcontractor paid for construction services and the statutory lien holdback on each progress draw." faq_count: 7 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/) [Contractor accounting](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant) Alberta Construction & trades · Alberta # CPA for contractors in *Alberta* An Alberta contractor files two corporate returns, pays one sales tax, and answers to a lien act that sets the payment clock on every job. EverStone is an [accountant for incorporated contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant) and an [online accountant for Alberta business](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-alberta), handling the T2 and the AT1, T5018s, payroll and equipment at fixed fees, fully online. [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:** A CPA for Alberta contractors handles three things a general accountant often does not. The first is the provincial AT1, filed with Alberta Tax and Revenue Administration alongside the federal T2. The others are [T5018](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/forms/t5018.html) slips for every subcontractor paid for construction services and the statutory lien holdback on each progress draw. Alberta has no provincial sales tax, so sales tax is 5% GST alone — until a job crosses into BC or Saskatchewan. EverStone handles all of it at a fixed fee quoted before work begins. For a one-owner Alberta contractor, monthly bookkeeping, payroll and the year-end T2 with statements usually cost from $500 to $700 a month all-in. Three obligations an Alberta contractor carries that a general file does not. Accountant for contractors in Alberta, wherever the work is: Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, Lethbridge, Grande Prairie, Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, Airdrie and the towns between. The [Edmonton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant-edmonton) and [Calgary](https://www.everstonecpa.com/trades-accountant-calgary) pages cover each city’s market; this page is what every Alberta contractor shares. ## Two corporate returns from one year-end Alberta is one of two provinces that administers its own corporate income tax. Your corporation files a federal T2 with the CRA and a separate AT1 with Alberta Tax and Revenue Administration, each with its own deadline, its own instalment rules and its own set of schedules. They are prepared from one year-end file, and they have to agree: the taxable income on the AT1 is the federal figure with Alberta’s adjustments, so a change on one return moves the other. [Corporate tax for Calgary corporations](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-calgary) covers the mechanics of the pair. ## T5018s and the question underneath them A construction business that pays subcontractors for construction services generally files T5018 information returns for those payments. That is the easy half. The hard half is whether a given worker is a subcontractor at all. The test is the substance of the arrangement, not the heading on the invoice. It asks who controls the work, who supplies the tools, who carries profit and loss, and whether the worker can send someone else. Getting it wrong brings CPP and EI exposure with interest. It tends to be found by comparison, one crew treated as employees beside a similar crew treated as subs. [Subcontractor versus employee](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/subcontractor-vs-employee-cra) works through the tests; [the T5018 form page](https://www.everstonecpa.com/forms/t5018) covers the slip itself. ## The lien act sets the payment clock Alberta’s prompt-payment and lien legislation times invoicing and payment down the contracting chain and requires a statutory holdback to be retained from each progress draw until the lien period runs. For the books, the holdback is money billed, earned and not yet usable. A job straddling the year-end has to be reviewed for work in progress and holdbacks both ways, or the return puts profit in the wrong year. GST does not always follow the invoice date either. ## No PST, and the sales-tax risk that replaces it Alberta contractors charge 5% GST and nothing else on Alberta jobs. That simplicity ends at the border. A job in BC brings 7% PST on materials installed into real property, generally as the contractor’s own cost. A job in Saskatchewan brings PST at a different rate on a different base and can require a separate registration. A job in Ontario brings HST at 13%. Place-of-supply rules decide which applies, based on where the work is performed rather than where the corporation is registered, so settle the tax before pricing the job. [Place of supply](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/gst-hst-place-of-supply-rules-canada) sets out the rules; [Alberta tax facts](https://www.everstonecpa.com/alberta-tax-facts) tables the rates. ## Payroll once you carry crew Carrying employees is the biggest single change in a trades file, and it usually arrives because a contract required it. From the first pay run there are [source deductions](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/payroll/remitting-source-deductions.html) on a remittance schedule set by your average monthly withholding, year-end slips, and WCB Alberta coverage with clearance letters to collect before releasing a subcontractor’s final payment. Penalties attach to the deduction rather than the tax, which makes a missed remittance date expensive out of proportion to the amount. [Payroll, handled](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-canada) covers the engagement; [the remittance calendar](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-remittance-calendar) keeps the dates. ## Equipment, CCA and the timing of a purchase Trucks, trailers, tooling and shop equipment are capital assets recovered through [capital cost allowance](https://www.everstonecpa.com/glossary#cca), and for a contractor the schedule is often the largest single deduction on the return. The half-year rule generally halves the first claim on an asset in the year it becomes available for use; the accelerated investment incentive can suspend that for eligible property and allow a substantially larger first-year deduction. Timing a large purchase around the year-end is real planning, but only where the year’s income can absorb the deduction; the work-in-progress review answers that. [CCA classes](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/capital-cost-allowance-cca-classes-canada) tables the classes a contractor meets most often. The same review is where instalments get planned. Construction income concentrates into part of the year, yet both the CRA and Alberta expect corporate instalments through all of it. A flat projection of last year’s tax lands the largest payments in the months with the least cash. [The instalment calculator](https://www.everstonecpa.com/tax-instalment-calculator) shows whether they apply to you at all. If you are asking who offers tax planning help for Alberta contractors, this year-end review is where EverStone plans both instalments and the timing of equipment purchases. ## What EverStone handles for an Alberta contractor One firm, one fixed fee agreed up front: - Federal T2 and Alberta AT1 from one year-end file, prepared to agree - Year-end statements a bonding company or lender will accept - T5018 returns, with the subcontractor positions behind them documented - Payroll remittances, year-end slips and WCB clearance tracking - Work-in-progress, holdback and progress-draw review at year-end - Equipment and vehicle CCA schedules - GST filed and reconciled; place of supply settled before an out-of-province bid The fee for all of it is fixed and agreed before any work starts; [the published fee page](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing) shows the starting points, and [a sample quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/sample-quote) shows what one looks like in writing. As a CPA for contractors Alberta corporations engage remotely, EverStone fixes that fee in writing after reviewing your enquiry. About this article **EverStone CPA** Prepared and reviewed by a Chartered Professional Accountant at EverStone CPA, a CPA firm working with small businesses and incorporated contractors 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 an incorporated Alberta contractor has to get right What an incorporated Alberta contractor has to get right The items that decide an incorporated contractor’s year — for a business operating in Alberta | Item | Why it matters | | Two corporate returns | The federal T2 and the Alberta AT1 are separate filings with separate deadlines, prepared from one file and required to agree | | T5018 slips | Payments to subcontractors for construction services are reported; the classification behind each slip has to hold up | | Statutory holdback | Billed and earned but not yet yours; it moves revenue across the year-end if the cut-off is not reviewed | | Personal services business risk | A corporation with one client that looks like employment is taxed far more harshly | | Sales tax where you operate | 5% GST only in Alberta. PST in BC and Saskatchewan and HST in Ontario apply the moment the work crosses the line | Source: [Accounting for contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accounting-hub). General information, not advice. ## Remote contractor accounting EverStone is a fully virtual CPA firm working with Alberta contractors online. **There is no Alberta office and no staff in the province.** Everything runs by video, phone, secure exchange and e-signature. Job records, progress claims, supplier invoices and holdback schedules already live in software, which suits construction. Where the aim is moving up a class of work, [fractional CFO support for Edmonton contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/cfo-services-edmonton) and [for Calgary companies](https://www.everstonecpa.com/cfo-services-calgary) covers bid discipline and the progress-billing cash curve. For [bookkeeping in Calgary](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-calgary) and [payroll in Edmonton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-edmonton), the scope and the fixed-fee approach are the same. Common questions ## Alberta contractor accounting FAQ **Why does my Alberta corporation file two returns?** Because Alberta administers its own corporate income tax. The federal T2 goes to the CRA and the AT1 goes to Alberta Tax and Revenue Administration. They are prepared from the same year-end and have to agree, which is why having one firm prepare both is the simplest protection against a provincial reassessment. [Ask about your case →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **Do Alberta contractors have to file T5018s?** If your construction business pays subcontractors for construction services, you generally file T5018 information returns for those payments. We prepare and file them with the year-end, and make sure the classifications behind them would stand up if examined. **How is the statutory holdback treated in my books?** As revenue earned and receivable, but separately from ordinary receivables, because it is not collectible until the lien period runs. The same applies in reverse to holdbacks you retain from your own subs. Both are reviewed at year-end so the return reflects what was genuinely earned in the year. **I am bidding a job in BC. What changes?** Sales tax, mainly. Materials installed into real property in BC generally carry 7% PST as your own cost, and GST is charged on the whole contract — so it belongs in the bid, not on the first invoice. **Does Alberta charge sales tax on my construction work?** No provincial sales tax applies in Alberta, so you charge 5% GST and nothing else on Alberta jobs. That changes the moment the work is in another province. **Do you work with contractors outside Calgary and Edmonton?** Yes — incorporated contractors anywhere in Alberta, from Grande Prairie to Lethbridge. **Which parts of Alberta do you serve?** All of it. The work is done remotely, so a business in Calgary, Edmonton and the rest of the province gets the same service, the same fixed fees and the same firm. ## Related services and local guides Alberta’s cities, the rest of what we do for Alberta contractors, and the reference pages behind this one. [Contractor accountant in Edmonton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant-edmonton) [Trades accountant in Calgary](https://www.everstonecpa.com/trades-accountant-calgary) [Online accountant for Alberta business](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-alberta) [Corporate tax accountant in Calgary](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-calgary) [Corporate tax accountant in Edmonton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-edmonton) [Financial statements for Edmonton contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/financial-statements-edmonton) [Fractional CFO in Calgary](https://www.everstonecpa.com/cfo-services-calgary) [Accountant for incorporated contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant) [Accounting for contractors](https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accounting-hub) [T5018 slips](https://www.everstonecpa.com/forms/t5018) [T5018 subcontractor tracker A free spreadsheet for the year’s subcontractor payments](https://www.everstonecpa.com/t5018-subcontractor-tracker) [Subcontractor versus employee](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/subcontractor-vs-employee-cra) [Construction holdbacks](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/construction-holdbacks-accounting-canada) [Alberta tax facts Current rates and thresholds for Alberta](https://www.everstonecpa.com/alberta-tax-facts) [Sample fixed-fee quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/sample-quote) ### Starting fees Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins. - **Monthly bookkeeping, GST filing included** from $325 a month - **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) ### Who this is for, and who it is not This fits an incorporated contractor or trades company anywhere in Alberta that wants both corporate returns, the T5018s, payroll and the year-end review handled by EverStone at one fixed fee. It is not the right fit for a sole proprietor filing on a T1, or for a company that wants a bookkeeper on site. --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/contractor-accountant-alberta Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online