# How to file a GST/HST return Filing a GST/HST return in Canada line by line: 101, 103, 105, 106, 108 and 109, with a worked example, NETFILE, access codes and deadlines. Published: 2026-10-04 · Spark --- A GST/HST return reports two numbers: the tax you charged your customers, and the tax you paid on what you bought for the business. You send the CRA the difference, or the CRA sends it to you. The rest of the form is there to show how you got to those two numbers. This guide walks through the regular method line by line, with a worked example, and then covers how to file and when. If you use the quick method, the lines are the same but filled in differently. See [the quick method explained](/guides/gst-hst-quick-method-explained). ## Before you start You need: - **Your business number** and the reporting period's start and end dates. Both show in your CRA account. - **Your sales for the period**, with the GST/HST you charged kept separate from the price. - **Your purchases for the period**, with the GST/HST you paid kept separate. - **Your access code**, only if you're filing outside your CRA account (more below). The big job happens before you open the form. If your books record each sale and purchase with the tax split out, the return takes ten minutes. If they don't, you'll spend those ten minutes, and the next few hours, going through receipts. One timing rule matters here. You're liable for the GST/HST you charge [on the day you're paid or the day payment is due, whichever comes first](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/complete-file-instructions.html), and the CRA usually treats an invoice as making payment due. So an invoice you issued in the period counts even if the customer hasn't paid yet. ## The lines, one at a time The CRA's [line-by-line instructions](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/complete-file-instructions.html) are the source for each of these. ### Line 101: Sales and other revenue All your revenue for the period, **including zero-rated and exempt supplies**, but **not** including the GST/HST or provincial sales tax, and nothing you reported on an earlier return. Round to the nearest dollar, and enter 0 if you had none. Line 101 doesn't feed into the tax you owe. The CRA uses it to check your reporting period and threshold. Get it right anyway, because it's the first thing that looks odd if it doesn't match your income tax return. ### Line 103: GST/HST collected or collectible All the GST/HST you charged, or were required to charge, in the period. That includes tax on invoices that haven't been paid yet. ### Line 104: Adjustments to be added Usually zero for a small business. It's for things that increase what you owe, such as GST/HST on a bad debt you'd written off and later recovered. ### Line 105: Total GST/HST and adjustments Line 103 plus line 104. Electronic filing calculates it for you. ### Line 106: Input tax credits (ITCs) The GST/HST you paid or owe on purchases and expenses used in your commercial activities. You can't claim tax on personal purchases or on things you bought to make exempt supplies. You don't have to claim every ITC in the period you made the purchase. For most registrants, an unclaimed ITC can be picked up on a later return, [generally up to four years later](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/calculate-prepare-report/input-tax-credit.html). You need documents to back each claim, and the CRA's requirements [step up for purchases of $100 or more, and again at $500 or more](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/calculate-prepare-report/input-tax-credit.html). Above $100 you need the supplier's GST/HST number. Above $500 you also need your name, a description and the terms. [GST/HST invoice requirements](/guides/gst-hst-invoice-requirements) has the full list by tier. ### Line 107: Adjustments to be deducted Also usually zero. It's for things that reduce what you owe, such as the GST/HST on a bad debt you've written off. ### Line 108: Total ITCs and adjustments Line 106 plus line 107. ### Line 109: Net tax Line 105 minus line 108. If it's positive, you owe that amount. If it's negative, it's a refund. If you file late and line 109 shows an amount owing, the CRA charges penalties and interest. Lines 110 to 115 deal with instalments you've already paid, rebates, and the final refund or amount owing. Most small businesses with no instalments go straight from 109 to 115. ## A worked example An Ontario landscaping company files quarterly. For July to September: **Sales** - Invoiced $42,000 of work, plus 13% HST of $5,460 - Some of it hasn't been paid yet. That doesn't matter, because it was invoiced in the quarter. **Purchases** - Equipment rental: $3,000 + $390 HST - Plants, soil and stone: $6,200 + $806 HST - Fuel: $1,100 + $143 HST - Business insurance: $900, with no HST because insurance is exempt - Bank fees: $45, with no HST charged **The return** - Line 101: **$42,000** - Line 103: **$5,460** - Line 104: 0 - Line 105: **$5,460** - Line 106: $390 + $806 + $143 = **$1,339** - Line 107: 0 - Line 108: **$1,339** - Line 109: $5,460 − $1,339 = **$4,121** owing Note what's missing from line 106. The insurance and bank fees are real business expenses, and they still go on the income tax return, but there's no GST/HST in them to claim. The quarter ends September 30, so the return and payment are both due **October 31**. ## Deadlines From the CRA's [reporting requirements and deadlines](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/file-gst-hst-return/reporting-requirements-deadlines.html): - **Monthly and quarterly filers:** return and payment are due one month after the end of the period. - **Annual filers:** generally three months after the fiscal year-end. - **Sole proprietors filing annually** with a December 31 year-end and business income for the year: payment by **April 30**, return by **June 15**. - **Weekend or holiday:** if the due date falls on one, you have until the next business day. You have to file **even if you had no sales**. A return with nothing to report is a nil return, and it's still required. How often you file depends on your revenue. The CRA [assigns annual reporting](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/rc4022/general-information-gst-hst-registrants.html) to businesses with $1,500,000 or less in annual taxable supplies, quarterly above that up to $6,000,000, and monthly above $6,000,000. You can choose to file more often. Some owners file quarterly on purpose so the tax never builds into a large annual bill. ## How to file Nearly every registrant now has to file electronically. The CRA says registrants with a reporting period that begins in 2024 or later [must file electronically, with exceptions for charities and selected listed financial institutions](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/file-gst-hst-return/how-file.html), and a paper return draws a penalty. Your options: - **Your CRA account** (My Business Account, or Represent a Client for your accountant). No access code needed. - **The GST/HST NETFILE form** online, if you don't have a CRA account. Needs your 4-digit access code. You get a confirmation number when it's accepted, so keep it. - **Your bank**, if it's a participating financial institution. No access code needed. - **Accounting software** that uploads through GST/HST Internet File Transfer. Needs the access code. - **TELEFILE** by phone. Needs the access code. - **Mail**, on the paper return (Form GST34-2), only if you're exempt from electronic filing. Otherwise a penalty applies. If you've lost your access code, the CRA lists [three ways to get or change it](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/gst-hst-businesses/file-gst-hst-return/how-file/get-gst-hst-access-code.html), including finding it in your CRA account. One exception to all of this: if your business is physically located in Quebec, you generally file with [Revenu Québec](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/rc4022/general-information-gst-hst-registrants.html), not the CRA. ## Common mistakes - **Putting tax-included totals on line 101.** It's sales before tax. - **Claiming ITCs on exempt purchases** like insurance or most financial services. The CRA lists these [as exempt](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/t4002/t4002-5.html), so there's no tax in them to claim. - **Claiming ITCs with no receipt**, or with a receipt that doesn't show the supplier's GST/HST number when it needed to. - **Counting only the sales you've been paid for.** Invoiced counts. - **Forgetting the meals adjustment.** If you claimed full ITCs on meals and entertainment during the year, the CRA has you add back 50% of them once a year on line 104. ## Where the numbers come from All of this is easier when your books split the tax on every transaction as it happens. [Spark Books](/books) does that as it sorts your uploaded statements, and then sets out the figures for each line, regular or quick method, along with the due date. Spark prepares the return and doesn't file it. You or your accountant file it in your CRA account or through NETFILE. It's free, with no card.