Provincial vs Federal Incorporation in Canada | Canada Incorporation | Ontario Incorporation

Ready to incorporate your Canadian business but unsure if you should incorporate provincially or federally? Ontario Business Central has the answers.
In this video, we provide you with the information you need to decide if you’d like to incorporate your business provincially or federally, the benefits of incorporating a business, costs you can expect when incorporating, and the legal differences between provincial and federal incorporation.
There are many benefits to incorporating your business. These include liability protection, business name protection, and potential tax savings.
#1 Government Fees - The government fees for incorporating your business vary depending on the jurisdiction. Visit our website for detailed pricing for provincial and federal incorporations.
Ontario Incorporation:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
Federal Incorporation:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
#2 Mandatory Filings - Federal incorporations are required to complete annual filings, known as Annual Returns. A small fee is associated with these Annual Returns. These are due in the anniversary month of the corporation.
As of October 19th 2021, the Annual Return is required for Ontario corporations.
#3 Name Protection - When incorporating federally, your business name has a higher level of name protection because your name is protected at the federal level. When incorporating provincially you will have name protection only within that province.
#4 Name Search - A NUANS report is mandatory for federal incorporations as well as some provincial incorporations, such as Ontario and Alberta. In other provinces, such as British Columbia, a Name Reservation is required. We can assist you with all of these name search requirements. Visit our website for more information.
Presearch:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
NUANS Report:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
#5 Processing Times - Processing times for your incorporation vary by application. The name approval process for a federal incorporation usually takes 1-2 business days whereas for a provincial incorporation typically takes about 24 hours.
#6 Extra-Provincial Registration - Businesses that incorporate federally also require extra-provincial registration. They must register within each jurisdiction where the company maintains a physical address.
With either incorporation you can change any details of the corporation including corporate name, adding a secondary business name, adding or removing directors, and changing share structure.
Change A Business:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
Change Ontario Corporate Name or Structure:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
Change Federal Corporate Name or Structure:
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
#7 Qualifications - When applying for incorporation, the criteria can vary from province to province. In Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, applicants must have 25% of the directors listed as either Canadian citizens or permanent residents. This is also a requirement when federally incorporating.
British Columbia and now Ontario, offer the availability of non-residents of Canada to be directors or shareholders of the corporation.
Ontario Business Central has assisted entrepreneurs to incorporate and register their business in Canada for over 25 years. Our services include changing details of your registered or incorporated business, canceling or dissolving a business, searching for an existing business, as well as registering domain names.
This is one of several videos in a series to help you incorporate your business. Other videos you may find helpful include:
Incorporating A Business in Canada:
• Incorporating A Busine...
Ontario Corporation - How To DIY:
• Ontario Incorporation ...
We have a number of blogs related to provincial incorporations and federal incorporations and so much more.
www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca...
The information provided in this video is specifically designed to assist and in no way shall be considered as legal or accounting advice.
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[@theglowaxis]

Great info 👌🏽🙏🏽

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

Thanks for watching!

[@deborahmurphy8446]

I was hoping that you included the differences between LLC vs anything indicator of limited liability registered business

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

LLC is a term in the US for a specific type of incorporation offered in that country. LLC stands for limited liability corporation. In Canada, any incorporation offers you the liability protection

[@satyasibadas]

Please let me know what it mean Alberta job offers must be from an Alberta employer: that is incorporated or registered by or under an act of the legislature of a province, territory or the Parliament of Canada and that is operating an established production capacity, plant or a place of business in Alberta, and

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

Hi Satyasaiba, thank you for your inquiry. A corporation can exist in one jurisdiction and have job to do in another. Its only when a corporation takes a physical address for the corporation that the corporation must register within that jurisdiction. In this circumstance, perhaps the employer has work in Alberta but does not reside in the Province.

[@Justcallmeshaz]

So I registered my business last year as a sole proprietorship. How do I go about incorporating it federally, and what all do I need?

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

Hi, thank you for your inquiry. You can complete the federal incorporation. There is no tie between your registered business and incorporating outside of seeing you have already registered it when we search the corporate name. We will ask you to confirm the registered business and as long as there aren't any other conflicting businesses, we can complete the federal incorporation easily for you. Here is the link for the federal incorporation www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca/incorporate-canada-federal.php

[@rutvijgajjar5172]

If I register my business as federal corporation, do I need to additionally register it provincially too?

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

HI Rutvij, yes you do. Whatever Province you are registered in, you will need to bring your corporation into the province. We assist in Ontario if you need to file your federal corporation into Ontario. Here is the link www.ontariobusinesscentral.ca/forms/ontario-corporation-number.php

[@ryansolomon7922]

Its frustrating to hear all options described with Canadian context only as if the business exists here only. How does each option protect your business name from being used in the US and the rest of the world? Other than that, there seems to be no real difference whatsoever as I can't fathom any future business owner concerned about an extra 00 bucks or a bit of paperwork.

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

Hi Ryan, lots of people ask this question. No matter where you incorporate, you only have name protection within that jurisdiction no matter where you are in the world. Large corporations that have physical locations in multiple jurisdictions will incorporate or branch into those jurisdictions. You can look at completing a trade mark in Canada and the US as this is an overall protection. A federal Incorporation provides the best name protection in Canada when incorporated. There isn't a global incorporation available. Each country has its own requirements separate from each other. I hope this assists you.

[@jenniferafanador4856]

Hello there, Thank you very much for the valuable information in this video. I want to register a corporation to sell products online, I live in Ontario but my products will be sold in the USA and in the near future in Canada too. Should I incorporate the corporation at the federal and provincial level as well? Thank you.

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

You can do either. The federal incorporation provides a higher level of name protection if you wish to have a physical address in other provinces outside of Ontario. If your business will operate in Ontario, the Ontario incorporation may suite the purposes. We can assist you with either. If you wish to discuss further, please feel free to reach out to me at [e-mail]

[@Shiva-Rapol]

Hey Jennifer! I’m in the same boat as you and planning to sell my products on Amazon USA (FBA) from Canada and also sell in Canada in near future. Could you walk me through on which option you chose? Also how did you register for an LLC and bank account in USA? Any information is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[@mramir3501]

Hello sir I'm a refugee from Afghanistan and living in Indonesia. I want you to help me please

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

I believed we discussed by email but if you have any additional questions, please let me know.

[@aqsaharoon9170]

I still don't understand, why would a business want to incorporate only Provincially rather than Federally?

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

For many incorporators, they want to incorporate within their home jurisdiction. There are complexities to the federal such as having to register within the Province of operation that does not exist with the provincial incorporations.

[@jgatien2008]

@@OntarioBusinessCentral I'm also still unsure, even after your response. Why would a company want to incorporate federally?

[@OntarioBusinessCentral]

@@jgatien2008 Usually, people register federally when they intend for the corporation to reside in more than one jurisdiction or when they want to have advertising across Canada.

[@jgatien2008]

@@OntarioBusinessCentral Thank you