--- title: "Tech Startup Accountant in Toronto | SR&ED, Options, HST" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/tech-startup-accountant-toronto description: "Toronto tech startups: SR&ED on Form T661, the enhanced refundable credit, founder pay, CCPC stock options and 13% HST, done remotely. Send an enquiry." type: service-in-a-city updated: 2026-10-02 summary: "A Toronto tech startup that is a Canadian-controlled private corporation can claim SR&ED on Form T661 and may earn the enhanced refundable credit. Grants and other government help usually reduce the spending the credit is based on. Options granted by a CCPC are generally taxed when the shares are sold, not when the option is exercised. EverStone prepares the claim, the T2 and the HST filings remotely." 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/) [Accountant in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-toronto) Tech startups Tech startups & SaaS · Toronto # Tech startup accountant in *Toronto* A Toronto software company usually has three money questions at once: how to claim its development work, how to pay founders who are still building, and how to keep equity promises from turning into tax surprises. The books have to answer all three. EverStone is a remote CPA serving Toronto founders, and the [Toronto small business accountant page](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-toronto) covers the wider Ontario picture. Fixed fees, online. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online)[Ask a Free Question](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **Quick answer:** A Toronto tech startup that is a Canadian-controlled private corporation can claim SR&ED on Form T661 and may earn the enhanced refundable credit. Grants and other government help usually reduce the spending the credit is based on. Options granted by a CCPC are generally taxed when the shares are sold, not when the option is exercised. EverStone prepares the claim, the T2 and the HST filings remotely. Published fees start at $325 a month for bookkeeping and $125 for a personal return. For a one-owner Toronto tech startup, monthly bookkeeping, payroll and the year-end T2 with statements usually cost from $500 to $700 a month all-in. If you are still deciding whether to incorporate, start with [should I incorporate](https://www.everstonecpa.com/should-i-incorporate). If the company exists and has a first year-end coming, the [just-incorporated checklist](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/just-incorporated-now-what-canada-checklist) lists what to set up before the first return. ## SR&ED starts in the bookkeeping, not the claim SR&ED is claimed on [Form T661](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/scientific-research-experimental-development-tax-incentive-program.html) with the corporate return, describing the technological uncertainty, the work to resolve it, and the salaries, contractor costs and materials involved. Toronto startups lose money on that cost side. Time logged against features during the year makes eligible wages traceable; otherwise the claim is rebuilt from memory eighteen months later and trimmed. A CCPC’s enhanced refundable credit pays cash even without taxable profit, often the T2’s most valuable line. Ontario research credits use the same records. See the [SR&ED expenditure limit update](https://www.everstonecpa.com/tax-update/sred-expenditure-limit). ## Grants, the SR&ED base and the order of operations Founders often stack grants, accelerator awards, research partnerships and SR&ED. Government and non-government assistance generally reduces the SR&ED expenditure base. It does not disqualify the project. Tag each grant to its project and period when it arrives. Booked as revenue, it inflates the base; omitted, a reviewer finds it. ## Founders’ pay while the company has no profit Founders often start by lending the company money, then take salary, dividends or both. Salary for qualifying development work can count as an SR&ED wage; dividends cannot. Salary also builds RRSP room and CPP, with payroll remittances and a T4 due by the last day of February. A shareholder loan unpaid one year after the corporation’s year-end is generally taxed as income. Track advances on a [shareholder loan schedule](https://www.everstonecpa.com/shareholder-loan-tracker); try the [salary-versus-dividends calculator](https://www.everstonecpa.com/salary-vs-dividends-calculator). ## Stock options in a CCPC Equity helps startups hire engineers. For a Canadian-controlled private corporation, tax on an employee stock option benefit is generally deferred until the shares are sold. Still record grants, vesting, exercises and prices, and report the benefit on the T4 in the year of sale. Option plans also collide with the SR&ED claim. The option benefit is not a cash wage and is not treated as one in the claim. Keep the cap table and the payroll records reconciled, because an acquirer or investor will ask for both. ## HST on software sold from Toronto Ontario charges a single [13% HST](https://www.everstonecpa.com/ontario-tax-facts), but startups must know where customers are. Ontario business subscriptions carry 13%, other provinces their own rate, and many supplies to non-residents are zero-rated, so billing must record location. Registration is mandatory above $30,000 in four consecutive quarters, though early registration recovers HST on development costs. Ontario Employer Health Tax applies above the exemption; see the [Toronto payroll page](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-toronto). ## What EverStone handles for you One CPA, one fixed fee agreed up front: - T2 corporate return with the SR&ED schedules and Form T661 - Development time and cost tracking set up in the books - Grant and assistance tracking by project - Founder salary, dividend and shareholder loan planning - Stock option records and T4 reporting on sale - HST registration, place-of-supply and filings - Board and investor reporting from the monthly close ## Fixed fees, fully online EverStone serves Toronto founders online. Bookkeeping starts at $325 a month with HST filing, fractional CFO work at $2,750 a month once raising, and T2 and SR&ED work is quoted. See [what it costs](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing). 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) ## What a tech startup has to get right What a tech startup has to get right The items that decide a startup’s year-end — for a business operating in Toronto, Ontario | Item | Why it matters | | Development time | Time records are what turn salaries into an SR&ED claim | | Grants and assistance | Assistance for the same work generally reduces the SR&ED base | | Founder pay | Salary can be a qualifying wage; a dividend cannot | | Stock options | A CCPC option benefit is generally taxed when the shares are sold | | Sales tax where you operate | 13% HST, a single registration and a single return | Source: [Corporate tax hub](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-hub). General information, not advice. Other services for Toronto businesses: [personal tax](https://www.everstonecpa.com/personal-tax-accountant-toronto). ## Remote startup accounting EverStone is a sole practitioner working online. **There is no Toronto office and no local staff.** Meetings are by video or phone and documents by secure upload and e-signature. Development time, grants and cap-table changes share one monthly file for SR&ED. Common questions ## Toronto accounting for tech startups FAQ **Can a pre-revenue Toronto startup get money back from SR&ED?** Often. A CCPC’s enhanced refundable credit can pay out even in a loss year, but only with time tracking and cost coding kept during the year. [Ask about your case →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **Does a government grant stop us claiming SR&ED?** No, but it usually reduces the expenditures the credit is calculated on. Record each grant against the project and period it funded so the claim uses the right base. **Should founders take salary or dividends?** It depends on the year. Salary paid for qualifying development work can count toward SR&ED, creates RRSP room and brings CPP. Dividends are simpler to administer but add nothing to the claim. Many founders use a mix and revisit it at each year-end. **When are employee stock options taxed in a CCPC?** Generally when the shares are sold, not when the option is exercised. The benefit is reported on the employee’s T4 for the year of sale, so the company needs clean records of grant, exercise and price. **Do we charge HST to customers outside Ontario?** It depends where the customer is. Other provinces use their own rate, and many supplies to non-residents are zero-rated. Set your billing system to capture customer location so each invoice carries the right tax. **Can a CPA in British Columbia handle a Toronto startup?** Yes. Corporate tax and SR&ED are federal, with an Ontario layer handled on the same return. The work runs by video, secure upload and e-signature, and there is no Toronto office. **Do you work with businesses outside Toronto itself?** Yes. Tech startups in Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Markham and the rest of the GTA are served the same way as those in Toronto, remotely and at the same fixed fees. ## Related services and local guides Nearby cities, the rest of what we do for Toronto businesses, and the reference pages behind this one. [Fractional CFO support in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/cfo-services-toronto) [Accountant for Toronto agencies and studios](https://www.everstonecpa.com/agency-accountant-toronto) [Tech startup accountant in Vancouver](https://www.everstonecpa.com/tech-startup-accountant-vancouver) [Starting a business](https://www.everstonecpa.com/starting-a-business-hub) [Accounting & CPA services in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-toronto) [Bookkeeping in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-toronto) [Corporate tax (T2) in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-toronto) [GST/HST filing in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/gst-hst-filing-toronto) [Payroll in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-toronto) [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) [Financial statements in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/financial-statements-toronto) Fees are fixed in writing before work starts; see [the published fees](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing). ### What clients say Rated 5.0 on Google across 21 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 ★★★★★ “…We switched to him last year for both our personal and small-business taxes — responsive, knowledgeable and quick.” Heather Powers Verified Google review ### Starting fees Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins. - **Monthly bookkeeping, HST 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 GST [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/tech-startup-accountant-toronto Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online