HST/GST: Quick Method vs Regular
If you're a Canadian freelancer or sole proprietor registered for GST/HST, the Quick Method lets you keep a slice of the tax you collect instead of tracking every input tax credit. See which method remits less for 2026, and the exact expense level where the answer flips.
Rates & rules verified · July 2026Primary sources: CRA – GST/HST for businesses
Which method wins as expenses rise
Net GST/HST you'd remit under each method as your HST-taxable expenses rise, out past your break-even. The regular line falls as your ITCs grow; the Quick line stays flat. The tint between the lines takes the colour of whichever method remits less.
Where the Quick Method saving comes from
Start from what you'd remit the regular way. The Quick Method gives up the ITCs on your expenses, then its lower flat rate takes some off (you remit a smaller share of tax-included sales than the tax you collect), and so does the 1% credit on your first $30,000.
Does the Quick Method still win if your numbers change?
GST/HST the Quick Method saves (+) or costs (−) you each year against the regular method, by revenue and by HST-taxable expenses as a share of revenue. Once you elect, you generally stay on the Quick Method for at least a year, so check the cells your year could land in.
Side-by-side breakdown
Every line in both calculations, for your numbers.
| Line | Regular | Quick Method |
|---|
How this is calculated
The regular method (input tax credits)
You collect GST/HST on every sale and remit it, minus the tax you paid on business purchases (input tax credits, or ITCs). Net remittance is revenue × rate − expenses × rate − capital × rate. Nothing is kept, the tax simply flows through you to the CRA.
The Quick Method
Instead of tracking ITCs on operating costs, you remit a flat percentage of your tax-included sales and keep the rest. Net remittance is revenue × (1 + rate) × quickRate − 1% × min($30,000, revenue × (1 + rate)) − capital × rate. The 1% credit applies to your first $30,000 of GST/HST-included eligible supplies each fiscal year. You still claim full ITCs on capital purchases (equipment, computers, vehicles) even on the quick method, but not on day-to-day expenses.
2026 remittance rates (permanent establishment supplying its own province)
Services: Ontario 8.8%, Nova Scotia 9.4%, 15% HST provinces (NB/NL/PE) 10.0%, GST-only 5% provinces 3.6%. Goods resale: Ontario 4.4%, Nova Scotia 4.7%, 15% HST 5.0%, GST-only 1.8%. Nova Scotia's HST dropped to 14% on 1 April 2025, with matching quick rates. The lower goods rates apply only if the cost of goods you buy for resale (including tax) is at least 40% of your taxable sales (including tax), based on the previous year. The calculator measures that cost with your HST-taxable expenses, which include it: when they come to less than 40% of revenue, it uses the services rate even if you choose Goods resale. Rates verified July 2026 against CRA RC4058.
Your break-even
Set the two methods equal and solve for expenses: E = revenue − revenue × (1 + rate) × quickRate ÷ rate + credit ÷ rate, where credit = 1% × min($30,000, revenue × (1 + rate)). If your HST-taxable operating expenses come in below that figure, the Quick Method remits less; above it, the regular method wins. (Capital ITCs cancel out, so they don't move the break-even.) For goods resale the answer can change three times: at the services-rate break-even under 40% of revenue, at the 40% line where the goods rate starts, and at the goods-rate break-even above it. The break-even card shows the one next to your expenses: the next one up when the Quick Method wins, the one below when the regular method wins.
The charts
Which method wins as expenses rise re-runs the calculation above at each expense level, from $0 to 1.25 times the highest break-even (and at least half your revenue and 1.2 times your expenses), in round-dollar steps. The markers show your expenses and your break-even; for goods resale, the shaded span is under 40% of revenue, where the services rate applies.
Where the Quick Method saving comes from walks from one result to the other: Quick = Regular + ITCs on expenses − (tax collected − quickRate × tax-included sales) − credit. The middle term is what the lower flat rate saves you: tax you collect but don't remit, before the credit. Capital ITCs sit inside both totals and cancel, so they have no step of their own.
Does the Quick Method still win if your numbers change? repeats the same calculation for revenue from half to twice yours (rounded to the nearest $1,000, plus your exact revenue) and for HST-taxable expenses at 10–40% of revenue for services or 20–80% for goods resale, plus your own share. The outlined cell uses your exact inputs, so it matches the headline. Every figure is before income tax, capital purchases don't change it, and cells over the $400,000 cap are left blank because the Quick Method isn't available there.
Eligibility & election
You can elect the Quick Method if your worldwide taxable supplies (including GST/HST) were $400,000 or less over the last four consecutive fiscal quarters, and you're not an excluded profession (accountants, bookkeepers, financial or tax consultants, lawyers, listed financial institutions). Elect with Form GST74, effective on or before the first day of the reporting period it applies to, you can file it in your CRA My Business Account. Once you elect, you generally have to stay on the Quick Method for at least a year before you can revoke it. You must register for GST/HST once your revenue passes $30,000 over any single quarter or four consecutive quarters.
What this doesn't model
The saving shown is before income tax. The amount you keep is taxable business income on your T2125, enter your marginal rate above to see the after-tax figure. This tool also ignores provincial PST and Quebec's QST (both separate; Quebec runs its own QST Quick Method through Revenu Québec, which this tool doesn't cover), mixed goods/services businesses, a cost of goods that differs from your HST-taxable expenses (the goods-rate test uses those expenses), sales to other provinces, and the special first-year rules. Confirm with your accountant before electing. See also the freelance rate calculator and income tax calculator.
Common questions
What is the GST/HST Quick Method remittance rate in Ontario for 2026?
For a service business with its permanent establishment in Ontario (13% HST), the quick method remittance rate is 8.8% of HST-included sales. Goods-resale businesses use 4.4%. GST-only provinces (5%) use 3.6% for services and 1.8% for goods; 15% HST provinces (NB, NL, PE) use 10.0% and 5.0%; Nova Scotia at 14% HST uses 9.4% and 4.7%.
Who should use the GST/HST Quick Method?
The quick method usually wins for service businesses with low HST-taxable expenses, consultants, freelancers, designers and trades who mostly sell their time. Because you keep a slice of the tax you collect instead of remitting it all and claiming input tax credits, low-overhead businesses come out ahead. Businesses with heavy taxable purchases are usually better off filing the regular way.
Am I eligible for the GST/HST Quick Method?
You qualify if your worldwide taxable supplies (including GST/HST) were $400,000 or less over the previous four consecutive fiscal quarters, and you are not in an excluded profession such as accountants, bookkeepers, financial consultants, lawyers or listed financial institutions. You must file Form GST74 to elect, effective on or before the first day of the reporting period it is to apply.
Is the money saved with the Quick Method taxable?
Yes. The portion of the tax you collect but do not remit under the quick method is business income and must be reported on your T2125. The GST/HST saving is a before-income-tax figure, so your after-tax benefit is smaller, roughly the saving times one minus your marginal rate.
Do I have to register for GST/HST as a freelancer?
You must register once your worldwide taxable revenue exceeds $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over four consecutive quarters. Below that you are a small supplier and registration is optional, though registering lets you claim input tax credits on your business purchases.