Do I charge BC PST on orders I ship to British Columbia

British Columbia's provincial sales tax is 7%, charged on most goods on top of the 5% GST. It is run by the BC Ministry of Finance, not the CRA, under its own registration: a GST/HST number does not cover it. Rates and thresholds here are as of the date below.

The published test for a business outside BC. BC's registration bulletin (PST 001) describes when a business located elsewhere in Canada is required to register. For goods, it describes a business that, in the ordinary course of business, sells taxable goods to customers in BC, accepts their orders (online orders included), and delivers the goods to them in BC, a courier counting as delivery. On top of those, one more condition completes the test:

• it solicits customers in BC, by advertising or any other means, targeted online ads included (the bulletin says a website that does not target BC customers is not soliciting); or
• its gross revenue from sales to BC customers is more than $10,000 over the previous 12 months, or is expected to be over the next 12.

The bulletin says registration has to be in place before goods are delivered into BC, and that PST then applies to all taxable sales to BC customers.

Marketplaces. Where an online marketplace collects payment from your customers, the bulletin puts the PST on those sales on the marketplace. Sales through your own store are not covered by that.

Where it gets specific to you

Whether your business meets that test, and from what date, depends on facts such as how you reach BC customers and where your stock sits, so it is a question for your accountant. TALISK_HQ raises a card when your sales into BC look like they meet the published rule and no registration is recorded, and once you record one it tracks that province's own filing period.