How to Register a Business in Ontario (2026 Guide)

In Ontario, a sole proprietor or a partnership does not register a company. It registers a business name with the Ontario Business Registry, for $60 online, and the registration lasts five years. If you only ever trade under your own legal name, you may not need to file anything at all.

Fees and rules checked on October 21, 2026 on ontario.ca, in the Business Names Act and on the Canada Revenue Agency site. Fees change, so confirm them before you file. This article is general information, not legal or tax advice.

What does registering a business in Ontario actually mean?

Registering a business in Ontario usually means registering a business name under the Business Names Act. The filing puts on the public record the name you use with customers and who stands behind it. It does not create a new legal person: a registered sole proprietorship is still you, with your income, your debts and your signature.

Incorporating is a different step. It creates a corporation under Ontario's Business Corporations Act or the federal Canada Business Corporations Act, with its own legal personality, its own tax return and its own records. The province charges $300 online to incorporate a business corporation, compared with $60 for a name registration.

You will also see the term Master Business Licence. The province now calls the same document a Business Name Registration. If an older bank form or a supplier asks for your Master Business Licence, your current registration is what they want.

Who must register a business name in Ontario?

Section 2 of the Business Names Act sets three rules. An individual who carries on business or identifies the business to the public under a name other than their own must register that name. A corporation that operates under any name other than its corporate name must register that name. Partners must register the firm name of the partnership, and all partners register it together.

The province adds a practical test: if your business has employees, facilities or offices in Ontario, you must register using the Ontario Business Registry. A sole proprietor who uses a brand, a shop name or a website name instead of their own name falls in the first rule.

• You trade only as yourself. A designer who invoices as Maria Lopez, with no other name on the invoice or website, does not have to register a name.
• You trade under a brand. The same designer working as Northline Studio must register Northline Studio before using it.
• You have a partner. A partnership registers its firm name, whatever that name is.
• You own a numbered company. If 1234567 Ontario Inc. runs a bakery called Bright Loaf, the corporation registers Bright Loaf.

If you plan to add words to your own name, such as a trade or a service, treat it as a new name and check before you print anything. At $60, registering is cheaper than defending an unregistered name later.

Not sure which structure fits? Our overview of the most common business structures in Ontario compares them before you file.

How to register a business in Ontario online, step by step

The whole process happens on the Ontario Business Registry. The province's own registration page lists the fees and links to each form.

1. Choose your structure. Sole proprietorship, general partnership, limited liability partnership, limited partnership or corporation. The form and the fee depend on this choice.
2. Search the name. The registry search is free. It shows whether the name is already registered, so you can avoid a name another business is using.
3. Create your accounts. You need an Ontario.ca Login and an Ontario Business Account, a working email address and a valid debit or credit card.
4. Select your business type and complete the form. Enter the name, the activity and the owner details the form requests, and check the spelling of the name carefully.
5. Pay the fee. A new sole proprietorship or general partnership registration costs $60 online and is processed immediately.
6. Keep your documents. Save the registration, your 9-digit Business Identification Number (BIN) and your company key. You will need them to make changes or renew.

Registering by mail is still possible. The fee is the same, but the province lists a service time of 15 business days instead of an immediate result.

Source: Ontario service times and fees for the Business Names Act and the Limited Partnerships Act, checked in October 2026.

What is the difference between a BIN and a Business Number?

Registering with the province gives you a 9-digit Business Identification Number from ServiceOntario. The Canada Revenue Agency issues a different number, the Business Number (BN), which it uses for tax accounts such as GST/HST and payroll. The province warns that the two are not interchangeable.

Owners often assume the provincial registration also opened their tax accounts. It did not. Registering a name in Ontario does not register you with the CRA, and the CRA does not register your name with Ontario.

Do you need to register for GST/HST as a sole proprietor in Ontario?

Not always on day one. The CRA calls a business with taxable revenue of $30,000 or less a small supplier, and a small supplier does not have to register. For a sole proprietor, the test counts revenue before expenses from all your businesses, worldwide, including those of associates.

The timing depends on how you cross the line. If you exceed $30,000 in a single calendar quarter, you stop being a small supplier with the sale that put you over, you charge HST on that sale and you have 29 days to register. If you only exceed $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, you stay a small supplier until the end of the following month. The CRA's page on when to register for and start charging the GST/HST walks through examples.

Some owners register voluntarily, for example to claim input tax credits on start-up purchases or because business clients expect an HST number. If you register voluntarily, the CRA says you may need to stay registered for at least one year before you can cancel. Ontario's HST rate is 13%.

What else should you do after registering?

The name registration is one step out of several. The province's own start-a-business checklist continues with licences, tax and insurance.

• Licences and permits. Use BizPaL, the free government tool, to find the federal, provincial and municipal permits for your location and activity.
• A separate bank account. Keeping business money apart makes taxes and bookkeeping easier. See what banks ask for in our guide to the sole proprietor business bank account.
• Income tax. A sole proprietor's business income is taxed at their personal rate and reported on their personal return.
• Insurance. Liability insurance matters more for a sole proprietor, since the owner answers personally for business debts and claims.

How do you renew or change an Ontario business name registration?

A registration is effective for five years from the date the Registrar accepts it, under section 4 of the Business Names Act. You can renew from six months before the expiry date until 60 days after it. The renewal option appears in your registry account six months before expiry, and the fee is $60, the same as a new registration.

Wait longer than 60 days after expiry and renewal is no longer possible. You must register the same name again, and you receive a new BIN and a new company key, which means updating every place where the old number appears.

Changes during the five years, such as a new address or activity, are filed as an amendment, free online. When you stop using the name, file a cancellation, also free. A corporation that carries on business under a registered name must show both the registered name and its corporate name on its contracts, invoices, negotiable instruments and orders.

What happens if you do not register your business name?

The Act has two consequences worth knowing. First, operating under an unregistered name without reasonable cause is an offence. An individual can be fined up to $2,000 and a corporation up to $25,000, and a director or officer who allowed the offence can be fined up to $2,000.

Second, and more likely to hurt in practice, a business that operates in breach of the registration rule cannot bring a court proceeding in Ontario about that business without the court's permission. If a client refuses to pay an invoice, you first have to ask for leave. The court grants it if the failure was inadvertent, the public was not misled, and the business now complies.

Registration also gives a remedy against others. A person who suffers damage because someone registered a name that is the same as, or deceptively similar to, their own can recover compensation, which the Act sets at the greater of $500 and the actual damages.

Register as a sole proprietor or incorporate?

A sole proprietorship is the cheapest and fastest way to start: $60, an immediate result and no annual corporate filings. The trade-off is liability. You answer for all business debts with your personal assets, the name has no real protection, and all profit is taxed at your personal rate.

A corporation costs $300 in Ontario and brings annual returns and corporate records, but it separates the business from you. Liability is generally limited to what you invest, and profit left in the company is taxed at corporate rates. The province notes that a sole proprietor can choose to incorporate later as the business grows.

If you already know you will hire, sign leases or take on debt, it often makes sense to start incorporated. Our guide to incorporating in Ontario, federally or provincially covers the cost, the steps and the choice of law.

FAQ about registering a business in Ontario

How much does it cost to register a business in Ontario?

Registering a sole proprietorship, a general partnership or a business name costs $60 online, processed immediately, and the same by mail with a 15 business day delay. A limited partnership costs $210. Incorporating an Ontario business corporation costs $300. Renewing a name every five years costs $60 again.

Do I need to register my business if I use my own name?

No, if you trade only under your own legal name. The Business Names Act requires registration when an individual uses a name other than their own. Once you add a brand, a shop name or a website name, register it before using it with customers. Partnerships always register their firm name.

How long does an Ontario business name registration last?

Five years from the date the Registrar accepts it. You can renew online from six months before expiry until 60 days after, for $60. After those 60 days, you cannot renew and must register the same name again, which gives you a new Business Identification Number and a new company key.

Is a Master Business Licence the same as a business name registration?

Yes. Master Business Licence is the older name for the document Ontario now calls a Business Name Registration. Banks, suppliers and some forms still use the old term. Your current registration, with its Business Identification Number and expiry date, is what they are asking you to provide.

Do I need a GST/HST number as a sole proprietor in Ontario?

Only once your taxable revenue goes over $30,000, unless you drive a taxi or ride-sharing vehicle. Under that threshold you are a small supplier and registration is optional. Ontario's registry does not open a GST/HST account for you: you register separately with the Canada Revenue Agency.

Does registering a business name protect it?

Not in the way a trademark does. The province states that a sole proprietorship's business name is not protected, and the registry does not stop someone else from using a similar name. The Act does allow compensation from a registrant whose name is the same or deceptively similar to yours.

Start with the structure you will want in two years

Registering a name is done online in one sitting and costs $60. Choosing the wrong structure costs more later, when contracts, debts and taxes are already in place. If you are weighing a sole proprietorship against a corporation, talk to our team before you file.