From an idea to a real company — in Canada and beyond

Map customer segments, the problem, your offer, channels, revenue and costs on a single page. BDC publishes a free one-page business model canvas and a full business plan template in Canadian format.

• Canada.ca - planning a business
• BDC - free templates and toolkits
• BDC - business plan template

Canada is a smaller, regional and often bilingual market. Work at the province and city level, name local competitors, and cite a real data source. US templates bring US terms (LLC, EIN, state) that do not apply here.

• Statistics Canada - small business and census data
• FedDev Ontario - business plan guide

A 12-month cash-flow projection, a 2-3 year income statement and a break-even estimate. Overstated revenue is one of the most common reasons a lender says no.

• BDC - cash flow calculator and financial plan

Ontario Small Business Enterprise Centres offer free one-to-one plan reviews and referrals. Pro Bono Ontario offers free legal advice to small business owners by phone.

• Ontario - small business hub
• Find a Small Business Enterprise Centre
• Pro Bono Ontario

BetaConnect has an AI Pre-Test Brief that scores an idea across six weighted dimensions with a deterministic five-person simulated panel. This is simulated validation, not feedback from real people - useful for finding weak assumptions early, and honest about what it is.

A sole proprietorship or partnership is cheaper but does not separate your personal assets from the business. An Ontario (provincial) corporation suits businesses operating mainly in Ontario. A federal corporation gives Canada-wide name protection but still needs provincial registration where it actually operates.

• Canada.ca - planning and types of ownership
• Ontario - incorporating a business corporation
• Corporations Canada - how to incorporate

File Articles of Incorporation (Form 1) through the Ontario Business Registry / ServiceOntario. A word name needs an Ontario-biased NUANS name search report valid for 90 days; a numbered company does not. You need a physical Ontario street address for the registered office - a PO box is not accepted - and at least one director.

• Ontario Business Registry
• Short address used in official notices
• All OBR services, forms and notices

Corporations Canada takes you through naming the corporation, creating the articles, setting the initial registered office and first board, filing individuals with significant control, then submitting and paying. Check the current fee and processing time on the official page.

• Corporations Canada - how to incorporate
• Corporations Canada - naming a corporation

A Business Name Registration (formerly called a Master Business Licence) is not incorporation and does not give exclusive rights to the name. If you later want Canada-wide exclusive rights, that is a trademark.

• OBR - all services, including name registration
• CIPO - file a trademark application

Keep the filed articles, by-laws, first-director consents, share and director registers, share certificates and resolutions at the registered office. Cheap online filings often skip this; it surfaces later as a painful due diligence problem when you raise money or sell.

Ontario corporations file an Initial Return in the Ontario Business Registry within 60 days of incorporation, setting out directors, the five most senior officers and the registered office. There is no statutory fee.

• Ontario notice - Initial Return and Notice of Change
• Form 5284 instructions

Any change to directors, officers, the registered or head office address, the official email or the NAICS code must be reported within 15 days in the OBR.

• Ontario notice - Initial Return and Notice of Change

Still required, and it was NOT abolished. What changed: in May 2021 the CRA stopped accepting it on the province’s behalf (the old T2 Schedule 546 is gone). You now file it directly in the OBR with your Company Key within six months after the end of your taxation year, with no statutory fee. Filing a T2 does not do this for you.

• OBR - file an annual return
• Corporations Canada - annual return vs tax return

A federal corporation files with Corporations Canada within 60 days after its incorporation anniversary, together with individuals-with-significant-control information. It does not file the Ontario CIA annual return. Verify the current online fee before filing.

• Corporations Canada - annual return
• Corporations Canada - current fee

Federal incorporation, and incorporation in Ontario, normally creates a nine-digit BN and a corporation income tax (RC) account automatically - check before you apply again. Add GST/HST (RT), payroll (RP) and other accounts through Business Registration Online. Since 14 July 2026 BRO requires signing in through a CRA account.

• CRA - when you need a BN
• CRA - Business Registration Online

The small-supplier threshold is CAD 30,000 of taxable revenue. Once you stop being a small supplier you must register within 29 days. You may also register voluntarily to claim input tax credits, but you then generally stay registered for at least a year.

• CRA - register for a GST/HST account
• CRA - GST/HST registration guidance

Due within six months of the end of each tax year, even if no tax is payable. The balance-due date is different from the filing date (generally two months, three for a qualifying Canadian-controlled private corporation).

• CRA - when to file your corporation income tax return

CRA payroll deductions, WSIB coverage (register when you hire your first Ontario worker and report changes within 10 calendar days), and Ontario Employer Health Tax with an annual return due 15 March once you pass the exemption. Verify the current exemption and rates.

• WSIB - new businesses
• Ontario - Employer Health Tax

Ontario privately-held corporations must keep a register of individuals with significant control at their registered office, review it at least once a year and update it within 15 days of learning of a change. Under the current rule it is not uploaded to a public registry; check official guidance for changes.

• Ontario - beneficial ownership information requirements

Bring your certificate and articles of incorporation, your BN, and a directors’ resolution. Keep personal and business money separate from day one.

The official email address you give the Ontario Business Registry is where statutory notices arrive - keep it monitored and update it within 15 days if it changes.

• BDC - website and e-commerce checklists

BizPaL generates a free list of federal, provincial and municipal permits for your location and activity, but it does not cover every jurisdiction or sector. Confirm directly with your municipality; zoning review, fire and health approvals can gate a location.

• BizPaL - permits and licences

Start in week one. CRA generally expects books and supporting documents to be kept in Canada for six years from the end of the tax year they relate to.

Registering a business name or incorporating does not grant trademark rights. Search the Canadian Trademarks Database and file with CIPO for Canada-wide protection.

• CIPO - file a trademark application

Commercial email needs consent, sender identification and a working unsubscribe mechanism. Do not buy or harvest address lists; act on opt-outs promptly.

• Fight Spam - Canada anti-spam legislation

WSIB covers workplace injury insurance only. It is not general commercial liability cover, which landlords and clients often require as proof.

Small Business Enterprise Centres and the Ontario small business hub route you to the right programme before you spend weeks on the wrong one.

• Ontario - small business hub
• Find a Small Business Enterprise Centre

BDC offers financing and advisory services; Futurpreneur supports founders aged 18-39 with financing plus up to two years of mentorship (verify the current amount and eligibility). The Canada Small Business Financing Program is applied for at a lender, not at the government.

• BDC - free tools and templates
• Futurpreneur Canada
• ISED - funding and support roundup

SR&ED is a tax incentive claimed with your T2, not an upfront grant; keep contemporaneous records of technical uncertainties, experiments and time. An optional pre-claim approval process is now available. NRC IRAP supports incorporated, for-profit technology SMEs - find it through the ISED support hub.

• CRA - SR&ED tax incentives
• ISED - innovation support

Accelerators and incubators offer mentorship, peer groups and investor access. Ontario examples include MaRS and DMZ in Toronto, Communitech in Waterloo Region and Velocity at the University of Waterloo. Each has its own intake rules.

• MaRS Discovery District
• DMZ
• Communitech
• Velocity

Simulated scoring is a way to find weak assumptions; it is not customer evidence. Actual validation means responses from testers and paying customers. BetaConnect is in private beta: real tester matching and feedback collection are planned, not live yet.