Quick answer: Quick answer: A corporation formed elsewhere can operate in BC two ways: register extra-provincially (it stays an Alberta/Ontario/etc. corporation doing business here) or continue into BC (it legally becomes a BC corporation). The paperwork is a lawyer’s job; the tax side is ours: federal CRA accounts follow the corporation either way, but provincial obligations, which province’s corporate tax, BC’s PST, payroll-related registrations — turn on where business is actually carried on, not on the certificate.
Door one: extra-provincial registration
The corporation keeps its home jurisdiction and registers to operate in BC. Simpler, faster, and common for a transition year. The subtlety: provincial income allocation follows where you have a permanent establishment — move yourself and the operation here, and BC becomes where the income is taxed regardless of what the incorporation certificate says.
Door two: continuance into BC
The corporation legally emigrates: it becomes a BC corporation, same legal person, history intact. Cleaner long-term when the move is permanent — one registry, one annual report, no dual maintenance. It requires authorization from the home jurisdiction and is precisely the kind of step to run through a corporate lawyer; we work alongside — our lawyer-partner page describes how.
The tax-side checklist, either door
- CRA program accounts continue, but addresses, and payroll’s provincial dimension, need updating so remittances and slips report the right province of employment.
- PST is new to most arrivals: BC’s PST is its own system, not an HST — registration turns on what you sell and to whom. Coming from Alberta (no PST) or an HST province, this is the trap. Start at the BC tax facts.
- The year of the move allocates income between provinces by the rules, not by vibes — worth doing deliberately in the first year-end after the move.
- WorkSafeBC and other province-tied registrations restart here even though federal accounts do not.
Fastest first step: email what you’re facing to info@everstonecpa.com — reply within one business day, and we book the consult from there.
General information, not tax advice. The document in your hand and its own dates govern.
Common questions about moving to BC
Do I need to incorporate a new company in BC?+
Does my corporation’s tax rate change?+
Can EverStone handle the whole move?+
When in the move should I involve an accountant?+
If you are moving or registering a corporation
Other business advisory work
The rest of what this covers, and the page each one is on.
Moving is the easy part
Email the shape of your move — we will map what changes on the tax side before the date is set.
Email us — info@everstonecpa.comOr book directly“Sunny and his team have been completing my bookkeeping, taxes and financials for the last 2 years and they have been amazing. Thank you!”