Starting a Business

First steps for starting a business in Canada: structure, registration, accounts and records.

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Starting a business in Canada involves a few federal steps and a few provincial ones. Start with the order to do them in.

Starting a Business

How to Start a Business in Canada

A step-by-step guide to starting a business in Canada: choosing a structure, registering a name, getting a CRA Business Number, licences, banking and bookkeeping.

7 min readUpdated Sep 29, 2026
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Key topics

Choosing a structure

Sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation, and what changes with each.

Registering your business

Business names, your Business Number and CRA program accounts.

Separating your money

Opening a business bank account from day one.

Read: Opening a Business Bank Account

Setting up your books

The records to keep from your first sale.

Read: Accounting Fundamentals for Business Owners

Guides in this topic

Tools and resources

Business Budget Calculator

A monthly budget with net income and expense mix.

Cash Flow Calculator

Project six months of cash from inflows and outflows.

Break-even Calculator

Units and revenue needed to cover fixed costs.

Free resources

Related topics

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