From October 1, 2026, British Columbia charges 7% PST on accounting services. Bookkeeping, payroll, year end, tax returns and tax advice are all inside the rule. For most BC businesses this is a straight increase in the cost of being compliant, and unlike GST, you do not get it back.
Based on the Province of B.C. guidance for accounting services as updated 31 July 2026, and Notice 2026-001. Earlier summaries written before that update predate the exemption, registration and transitional detail set out below.
Key takeaways
- 7% from October 1, 2026, on the full purchase price of accounting services.
- It is not recoverable. There is no PST equivalent of the GST input tax credit, so this is a cost, not a timing difference.
- Five service categories are caught, and architectural, engineering and geoscience are taxed on only 30% of the price. Accounting is taxed on all of it.
- Four exemptions exist, and they are narrow.
- The transitional rule leaves a real window: paid or due before October 1, work finished before December 1, no PST.
- An out-of-province accountant does not avoid it. The BC buyer self-assesses.
- Providers must register, CPA or not, and must file electronically.
The part that costs you: PST is not recoverable
Most owners have learned to treat sales tax on business purchases as a wash. You pay GST on an expense, you claim the input tax credit, and the money comes back. That instinct is wrong here.
BC PST has no general equivalent of the GST input tax credit. Unless a specific exemption applies, the 7% you pay on accounting services stays paid. It is an increase in the cost of the service, not a timing difference.
That is what makes this worth planning around rather than absorbing. On a $6,000 annual accounting engagement the tax is $420. On $1,500 a month of bookkeeping, $18,000 a year, it is $1,260 a year. Those are not recoverable figures, they are additions to the cost base.
| Annual spend on accounting services | PST at 7% | Recoverable? |
|---|---|---|
| $3,000 | $210 | No |
| $6,000 | $420 | No |
| $12,000 | $840 | No |
| $25,000 | $1,750 | No |
If your budget for next year was set before this was announced, it is short by roughly 7% of whatever line covers bookkeeping, corporate tax and year end.
Which services are caught
Accounting is one of five categories. The others matter if you buy them, and the tax base is not the same for all of them.
| Service category | Taxed on |
|---|---|
| Accounting, including bookkeeping and assurance | Full purchase price |
| Architectural services | 30% of the purchase price |
| Engineering and geoscience services | 30% of the purchase price |
| Security services, including private investigation | Full purchase price |
| Non-residential real estate services, including trading, rental property management and strata management | Full purchase price |
The 30% base for architectural, engineering and geoscience work is easy to miss and materially changes the number on a construction or development project.
Inside accounting, what counts
| Service | Treatment |
|---|---|
| Bookkeeping | Taxable |
| Financial statements and notes | Taxable |
| Journal entries and account reconciliation | Taxable |
| Payroll preparation | Taxable |
| Budgets, invoices, bills, statements of account | Taxable |
| Tax and information returns, and records relating to them | Taxable |
| Applications for a tax credit, rebate or refund | Taxable |
| Assurance work, audits and reviews | Taxable |
| Cost, financial, forensic, management and tax accounting | Taxable |
| Tax advice, documents or representation, including appeals | Taxable |
| Work an employee does for their own employer | Not an accounting service |
| In-person accounting training or professional development | Not an accounting service |
The transitional rule, and the window it leaves open
This is the one place where timing still changes the answer, and it is set out in the province’s transitional rules rather than being an aggressive reading. Two dates matter, not one.
If the amount is paid or becomes due before October 1, 2026, and the work is provided entirely before December 1, 2026, no PST applies. If any part of the work lands on or after December 1, PST applies to the share attributable to work provided on or after October 1.
The province’s own worked example: an amount paid or becoming due on September 15, 2026 for accounting work provided in October and November 2026 carries no PST. Note the rule runs the other way too. Once an amount is paid or becomes due on or after October 1, PST applies regardless of when the work was done, so leaving an invoice unissued does not help.
If a year end, a cleanup, or a catch-up bookkeeping project was already likely this autumn, the sequencing of the engagement and the invoice is now worth deciding deliberately. See the BC small business tax deadline calendar for how that sits with your filing dates.
The four exemptions
| Situation | Treatment |
|---|---|
| Work as a custodian or trustee in bankruptcy | Exempt |
| Work as a trustee, executor or administrator of an estate | Exempt |
| Services purchased from a small seller | Exempt |
| Services purchased purely for resale to your own clients | Exempt, with a PST number or Form FIN 490 |
The resale exemption is the one that stops the tax applying twice when one firm subcontracts work to another. It does not apply where the purchaser is a small seller.
Disbursements, and the mark-up trap
Disbursements generally form part of the purchase price and are taxed with the fee. Travel, food and accommodation are carved out, but only where they reasonably reflect the actual cost of providing the service. Add a margin to mileage or meals and that amount comes back into the 7%.
Hiring outside BC does not avoid it
Accounting services provided outside BC are taxable where the buyer resides, ordinarily resides or carries on business in BC and the work relates to BC property, a physical or legal presence in BC, or an activity or transaction in BC. The province’s example is an Alberta accountant doing payroll for a Vancouver business, which is taxable.
The trap is what happens when the out-of-province firm does not charge it. The buyer must self-assess and pay the PST directly, through their PST return if they have a number, or a Casual Remittance Return if they do not. Not being charged the tax is not the same as not owing it.
If you provide any of these services
Registration is mandatory for anyone selling taxable services provided on or after October 1, 2026, and the province states plainly that this applies whether or not you are a CPA, so bookkeepers are inside the rule. Registration opened six months ahead, from April 1, 2026. Anyone selling taxable accounting services must also file and pay electronically or risk a penalty.
There is a billing trap worth planning for. If you bill before October 1 for work extending past November 30, the province recommends registering ahead of those sales and charging PST on the part provided from October 1. Monthly retainers span the date by design.
How this sits with the PST you already handle
This is a new tax on a service, not a change to the rules on goods. If you sell online, PST on online marketplace sales works as it did. If you are in the trades, PST on materials for contractors is unchanged. What is new is that the invoice from your accountant now carries 7% as well, and that one you cannot claim back.
Common questions
Does PST apply to accounting fees in BC?
From October 1, 2026, yes. PST applies at 7% to the purchase price of taxable accounting services, and the purchase price includes fees, charges and most disbursements. Before that date it does not apply.
Can I claim the PST back like I claim GST?
No, and this is the part that surprises people. GST paid on a business expense is generally recovered by a registrant through an input tax credit, so it is a timing matter. BC PST has no equivalent general credit. Unless a specific exemption applies, such as buying the service purely for resale, the 7% is a real cost to the business.
Can I pay early and avoid it?
In one defined case, and it is in the province’s own transitional rules rather than being a loophole. If the amount is paid or becomes due before October 1, 2026, and the work is provided entirely before December 1, 2026, PST does not apply. If any part of the work falls on or after December 1, PST applies to the portion attributable to work provided on or after October 1.
Which other professions are affected?
Accounting including bookkeeping and assurance, architectural services, engineering and geoscience services, security services including private investigation, and non-residential real estate services including trading, rental property management and strata management.
Is the whole fee taxed for every profession?
Not for all of them. Architectural, engineering and geoscience services are taxed on 30% of the purchase price. Accounting is taxed on the full purchase price.
Does using an accountant outside BC avoid it?
Generally no. Accounting services provided outside BC are taxable where the buyer resides or carries on business in BC and the work relates to BC property, a BC presence, or a BC activity. If the out-of-province firm does not charge PST, the buyer has to self-assess and pay it directly.
Are disbursements taxed?
Most are, because they form part of the purchase price. Travel, food and accommodation are excluded, but only where they reasonably reflect the actual cost. Marked up, they fall back into the taxable amount.
Do bookkeepers have to register, or only CPAs?
Bookkeeping is named in the rules as an accounting service, and the province states that registration is required whether or not you are a CPA. The test is the service, not the credential.
Planning around October 1
We are working through the transitional rule with clients now, so the timing of year ends and cleanup work gets decided before the date rather than after it. Offices in Abbotsford and Langley, working with businesses across B.C.
Sources: Province of British Columbia, PST on accounting services (updated 31 July 2026) and Notice 2026-001, Notice to providers of professional services (updated 5 May 2026). General information only, not advice for your situation.