How to Register a Business in Ontario: Steps & Costs
Updated: July 2026. Government fees and registry instructions were checked against Ontario and federal sources on July 13, 2026.
The usual Ontario business-name registration costs $60 online and lasts five years. That is the common route for a sole proprietor using a brand or operating name. If you do business only under your exact personal name, you generally do not need to register a sole proprietorship with the province.
Incorporation is a different process. An Ontario business corporation costs $300 online before a NUANS report or professional help. It creates a separate legal entity and adds corporate records, annual returns and a T2 tax return. If that is your intended structure, use the separate Ontario incorporation guide.
Do you need to register in Ontario?
Register in the Ontario Business Registry when you operate under a name other than your own, form an Ontario corporation, register a limited partnership, or need to record an extra-provincial corporation that carries on business in Ontario.
The personal-name exception is narrow. Amira Patel may operate without registering a business name; Amira Patel Studio normally needs registration. A corporation using a second public-facing name also registers that operating name even though the corporation already exists.
Registration is not the same as a municipal business licence, a CRA account or permission from an industry regulator. Depending on what you do and where you operate, you may need all four.
Ontario business registration costs
| Online filing | Government fee | Duration or recurring filing |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietorship | $60 | Valid 5 years; $60 renewal |
| General partnership | $60 | Valid 5 years; $60 renewal |
| Business name for a corporation | $60 | Valid 5 years; $60 renewal |
| Ontario business corporation | $300 | Annual return currently $0 |
| Federal business corporation | $200 federally | $12 federal annual return; Ontario information filing also applies |
Ontario lists completed online business-name and corporation filings as immediate. Third-party service fees, NUANS reports and legal or accounting work are separate.
The corporation's government fee is not its real annual cost. A basic professionally prepared T2 often costs around $1,500 when the books are ready, and outsourced accounting, tax and record maintenance can put a small corporation near $2,000–$3,000 a year. A sole proprietorship avoids much of that administration.
Choose the right structure
| Structure | Usually a fit when | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietorship | One owner is testing an idea or wants simple administration. | The owner and business are the same legal person; business liabilities are personal liabilities. |
| General partnership | Two or more people operate together without incorporating. | Partners can expose one another to obligations; use a written agreement. |
| Ontario corporation | A separate entity, investor-ready shares or retaining profit in a company matters. | More setup, records, tax filings and professional cost. |
| Federal corporation | Canada-wide name review or moving the registered-office province matters. | It still has federal and Ontario filings and usually needs a resident-Canadian director. |
There is no single income number at which everyone should incorporate. Tax deferral may help when profit can stay in the company, but it is not the same as a guaranteed tax saving. Consider liability, clients, ownership plans and administrative cost together.
Ontario does not form a domestic LLC. For most founders seeking limited liability, the comparable local entity is an Ontario or federal corporation. A US LLC carrying on business in Ontario faces a different extra-provincial and cross-border-tax analysis.
How to register a sole proprietorship in Ontario
- Choose the name. Decide whether the exact personal-name exception applies or you need a registered business name.
- Search for conflicts. Use the Ontario Business Registry search and the Canadian Trademarks Database. Ontario can register identical or similar business names; the filing does not clear trademark risk.
- Create the current online account. Ontario now uses an Ontario.ca Login and Ontario Business Account flow. Ignore old instructions that send you to ONe-key.
- Select the business-name registration. Enter the owner's legal name and address, principal place of business, activity and chosen business name.
- Pay $60 and submit. Save the registration document, Business Identification Number and account access details.
- Record the five-year expiry. Renewal is not annual, but missing it can interrupt banking, contracting and other proof-of-registration needs.
Ontario no longer issues the old document commonly called a Master Business Licence for new filings. Current registry documents prove the registration. Guides that still require ONe-key or promise a new Master Business Licence are describing the retired system.
Registering an operating name for a corporation
A corporation can conduct business under a name different from its legal corporate name. It registers that operating name for $60 and renews it every five years. The registration does not create a second entity: contracts, invoices and tax accounts should still identify the corporation appropriately.
Do not use Inc., Ltd. or Corp. to make an unincorporated business look incorporated. Corporate legal elements belong to incorporated entities.
When you want to incorporate
An Ontario corporation needs Articles of Incorporation, an Ontario registered office, at least one qualified director, a share structure and post-filing organization. A named corporation also needs an Ontario-biased or weighted NUANS report; a numbered corporation does not.
Ontario incorporation has no resident-Canadian-director minimum, which can make it practical for a non-resident founding team. A federal corporation normally needs at least 25% resident-Canadian directors, or one resident Canadian when it has fewer than four directors.
The complete filing, named-versus-numbered decision, share setup and annual obligations are in How to Incorporate in Ontario.
Business numbers: BIN, BN and corporation number
These identifiers are easy to mix up:
- Ontario BIN: the nine-digit Business Identification Number on an Ontario business-name registration.
- CRA BN: the nine-digit federal Business Number, extended with program identifiers such as
RT 0001for GST/HST orRP 0001for payroll. - Ontario corporation number: the identifier assigned when an Ontario corporation is created.
A sole proprietor does not need a BN merely because they registered a business name. They need one when opening a CRA program account. Ontario corporations are connected to the CRA BN and corporation-income-tax account through the incorporation process.
Tax and employer accounts
- GST/HST: register when taxable supplies exceed the small-supplier threshold—generally $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over four consecutive calendar quarters—or voluntarily before then. Ontario charges 13% HST on taxable supplies.
- Payroll: open a payroll program account before the first remittance is due if you have employees. An incorporated owner paying themself salary may need one too.
- Import/export: add the applicable program account when commercial importing or exporting requires it.
- WSIB: determine whether your business must register for workplace-insurance coverage. Rules depend on industry and workers.
- Employer Health Tax: larger Ontario payrolls can trigger a separate provincial account and return.
If you incorporate an existing sole proprietorship, the corporation is a new legal person. Do not assume the proprietor's GST/HST, payroll, contracts or bank account automatically transfer.
Licences and permits
Ontario business registration does not authorize a regulated activity or location. Use BizPaL for a combined federal, provincial and municipal checklist, then confirm requirements with the relevant municipality and regulator.
A Toronto restaurant, Ottawa contractor, home-based therapist and online retailer may all have different zoning, health, professional, signage and municipal-licence requirements. There is no single Ontario business-licence fee.
Stay compliant
For a sole proprietorship:
- renew the Ontario business name every five years;
- report business income and expenses on the owner's T1 return;
- file every active GST/HST, payroll and other program return;
- keep source records and separate business finances; and
- update the registry when filed information changes.
For a corporation, add a yearly Ontario annual return, a T2 return, corporate resolutions, share and director records, an internal register of individuals with significant control, and current registered-office information. The Ontario annual return currently has no government filing fee, but it is still mandatory.
Frequently asked questions
Can I register an Ontario business online?
Yes. The Ontario Business Registry handles sole-proprietorship, partnership, operating-name and business-corporation filings online. Use the current Ontario.ca Login flow, not legacy ONe-key instructions.
Does registration protect my business name?
No. A business-name registration records the name but does not grant exclusive ownership. Search existing registry and trademark records and get legal advice when the brand is important.
Can a non-resident register in Ontario?
Ontario corporations have no resident-Canadian-director minimum. Tax residency, immigration, banking, registered-office and sector rules are separate issues, so non-resident founders should get cross-border advice.
Register the right thing
For a simple owner-operated business, the $60 sole-proprietorship registration is often the right starting point. Choose incorporation because the entity, ownership and tax features justify the permanent extra work—not because the certificate looks more official.