Opening a company in Canada: locals, foreigners, freelancers and digital nomads

At a glance: Federal (CBCA) or provincial corporation with no minimum capital, filed online in about a day for CAD 200 (about 130 euros), 15 percent federal corporate tax plus 8 to 16 percent provincial (9 percent federal small-business rate on the first CAD 500,000), GST/HST registration from CAD 30,000 of sales, no digital nomad visa. Legal forms. Sole proprietorship: no capital, unlimited liability, a provincial business-name registration unless you trade under your own name. Corporation: federal under the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA) or provincial; no minimum share capital. A Canadian-controlled private corporation (CCPC) gets the small-business rate. Registration. Federal: Corporations Canada online filing centre, CAD 200, a NUANS name search of about CAD 15 to 100, certificate usually within one business day; the CRA business number comes automatically. Provincial fees about CAD 300 in Ontario, CAD 350 in British Columbia, about CAD 390 in Quebec. No notary. Lawyers charge CAD 1,000 to 2,500. Total excluding capital: roughly CAD 200 to 3,000 (about 130 to 2,000 euros). Taxes 2026. Federal corporate tax 15 percent, 9 percent on the first CAD 500,000 of a CCPC's active income; provinces add 8 (Alberta) to 16 percent (Prince Edward Island), so about 23 to 31 percent combined. Non-resident shareholders pay 25 percent dividend withholding, 5 or 15 under most treaties. GST 5 percent, HST 13 percent in Ontario and 14 to 15 in the Atlantic provinces, Quebec adds 9.975 percent QST; registration is mandatory above CAD 30,000 of taxable sales in four consecutive quarters. Top federal personal rate 33 percent above about CAD 258,000, 44 to 55 percent combined by province; residents are taxed on worldwide income, no remittance regime. Freelancers and the self-employed. A freelancer is a sole proprietor: register a business name with the province unless using your own name, and register for GST/HST once sales pass CAD 30,000. Net business income goes on the personal return (form T2125) at personal rates; there is no flat or turnover regime. Canada Pension Plan contributions are mandatory on net self-employment income above CAD 3,500: 11.9 percent up to the 2026 ceiling of about CAD 74,600, a maximum of roughly CAD 9,000 a year. Foreigners. 100 percent foreign ownership; a new business by a non-Canadian is only notified under the Investment Canada Act. A federal corporation needs at least 25 percent resident Canadian directors; Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and most other provinces have no residency rule, though non-resident control forfeits the 9 percent CCPC rate. Routes: the Start-up Visa (permanent residence with a letter of support from a designated incubator or fund), the C11 entrepreneur work permit (LMIA-exempt, CAD 155 fee) and provincial entrepreneur streams. Presence is not needed to incorporate, but banks want signing officers in person. Branch of a foreign company. A foreign corporation registers extra-provincially in each province (about CAD 330 in Ontario) with certified articles, a certificate of status and an agent for service resident in the province; there is no representative-office form. The branch pays 15 percent federal plus provincial tax on Canadian profits (no small-business rate) and a 25 percent branch tax on after-tax profits not reinvested in Canada, cut to 5 percent under most treaties. A subsidiary is the usual choice. Digital nomads. No digital nomad visa. Under the 2023 Tech Talent Strategy a remote worker employed abroad may stay as a visitor for up to six months, extendable, and work for the foreign employer without a work permit as long as no Canadian employer or clients are involved. Longer routes are the C11 permit or the Start-up Visa. Staying 183 days or more in a calendar year makes you a deemed resident taxed on worldwide income unless a treaty tie-breaker applies. Changed recently. Public register of individuals with significant control for federal corporations (January 2024); lowest federal personal rate cut from 15 to 14 percent (July 2025); capital gains inclusion rate increase cancelled (March 2025); Nova Scotia HST cut from 15 to 14 percent (April 2025); CPP ceiling raised to about CAD 74,600 (2026). Figures checked October 2026 from Corporations Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, provincial registries and Big Four tax summaries; thresholds and fees change yearly. Confirm with a licensed adviser in Canada before you file.