Cost to incorporate in Ontario: government fees and ongoing costs

The cost to incorporate in Ontario: the short answer

The Ontario government fee to incorporate a business corporation is $300 for articles of incorporation, according to the fee table on ontario.ca, which was last updated on September 29, 2026. The fee is the same whether you file online (processed immediately) or by mail (15 business days). The same table lists $0 for the initial return and $0 for the annual return of an Ontario corporation.

That $300 is only the filing fee. The table says its figures are government fees only and that service providers charge separately for online services, and it does not list a fee for a NUANS name report. If you hire a lawyer, an accountant or an online service to prepare and file the articles, their fee is additional and varies by provider, so ask for a written quote that lists what is included.

The larger number for most owners is the ongoing cost of running a corporation. The sections below set the one-time fees beside the yearly ones: the corporate return, bookkeeping and payroll.

Incorporation costs in Ontario: what the registry charges

These are the Ontario Business Registry fees most owners meet, taken from the ontario.ca table for Business Corporations Act and Corporations Information Act filings. Incorporation is $300. An amendment to the articles, such as a name change, is $150. An amalgamation is $330. A certificate of status, which a bank or lender sometimes asks for, is $26. Dissolution is $25.

The initial return, which you file after incorporating, and the annual return are both listed at $0. They are still legal obligations. An Ontario corporation files an initial return after it is created and an annual return each year, and the annual return is separate from the T2 tax return. Put the filing dates in your calendar when you incorporate, and ask your lawyer or accountant when each return is due.

The table also says that payment online is by debit, Visa or Mastercard, and that payment by mail is by cheque payable to the Minister of Finance.

Provincial or federal: does the fee change?

You can incorporate in Ontario or federally through Corporations Canada. The Government of Canada’s comparison page says federal incorporation involves a name-approval process and protects the approved name across the country, and that a federal company may do business anywhere in Canada. That page does not quote a fee.

This guide therefore does not compare dollar amounts. Confirm the current federal fee, and what it costs to register a federal company in Ontario, on the Corporations Canada website before you choose. For many owners who will operate only in Ontario, the deciding factors are name protection and where you plan to do business, not the filing fee. Our guide on whether to incorporate covers the wider decision.

Ongoing costs of a corporation: the T2 return

Most resident corporations must file a T2 corporation income tax return for every tax year, even if there is no tax payable, according to the CRA, which lists tax-exempt Crown corporations, Hutterite colonies and registered charities as exceptions. The return is due within six months of the end of the corporation’s tax year. For example, a December 31 year-end gives a June 30 deadline, and the CRA says a return is on time if it reaches the CRA or is postmarked by the next business day when the deadline falls on a weekend or CRA-recognized holiday.

Sora’s published price for a corporate return is $1,425 per return. A personal return for the owner is separate. Your actual cost depends on what you bring: tidy books and a complete set of statements are easier to file than a year of unsorted receipts. Paying tax is a separate deadline from filing the return, so confirm both dates. See our guide on corporate tax filing versus payment.

Bookkeeping, payroll and other yearly costs

A corporation needs its own bank account and a separate set of books, because it is a separate legal person. Sora’s published bookkeeping price starts at $50 per month, for minimal transactions. Monthly pricing is based on transaction volume, so a busy business will pay more than the starting price.

If you pay yourself a salary, the corporation becomes an employer. Sora’s published payroll price is $50 per filing. Salary also brings source deductions to remit, and T4 slips to prepare. Paying yourself by dividend instead avoids payroll but has its own reporting. Our salary versus dividends guide compares the two.

Other yearly costs may include HST filing if you are registered (Sora’s published HST price is $375 per service), the minute book, insurance, any fee for the registry certificate a lender requests, and accountant time for year-end questions. None of these is a registry fee, and the amounts depend on how you operate.

How to weigh the costs of incorporating

Start with the one-time total, which for the registry is $300, and add whatever you pay a professional to prepare the filing. Then add the yearly recurring costs: the corporate return, bookkeeping at your transaction volume, payroll if any, and HST if registered. Compare that total with the benefit you expect, which depends on why you are asking.

If the reason is tax, the question is how much profit you can leave in the corporation each year. The lower corporate rate is generally a deferral, because personal tax applies when you pay yourself. If you need to withdraw everything you earn, the extra yearly costs may outweigh the deferral. If the reason is liability or a client or lender requirement, the cost is the price of meeting that need, and insurance may be part of the answer.

Run your own figures through our should-i-incorporate estimator, then discuss the results with an accountant before filing. Illustratively, if the yearly cost of running a corporation were $3,000 more than operating as a sole proprietor, the deferral would need to be worth more than that before incorporation made financial sense. That number is an example only, not an estimate of your costs.