Configure GST/HST tracking
Choose whether the Workspace tracks Canadian sales tax and set the primary province used for available tax codes.
Configure the Workspace
- Open Settings > Business Profile.
- Find Sales Tax.
- Enable or disable GST/HST tracking.
- When tracking is enabled, choose the primary province.
- Review Setup Impact and save the Business Profile.
The saved setting affects Tax choices in Expenses, Income, and Bank Transactions and controls whether GST/HST reports appear.
For managed expense categories, the primary province also supplies a starter Tax code suggestion. Ontario taxable categories generally use HST 13%; Alberta uses GST 5%; and British Columbia uses the category's GST-only or GST/PST starter treatment (for example, Meals and vehicle fuel are GST-only). This is a starting suggestion, not proof of the tax on a particular purchase.
In British Columbia, Software & Subscriptions and Legal & Accounting start as GST/PST (12%). These defaults are editable on each transaction.
When tracking is enabled
- Choose the applicable Tax code on each transaction.
- Review the calculated Tax Amount CAD.
- Override the amount only when the supported transaction workflow allows it and the source information requires it.
- Use GST/HST Summary and Detail to review recorded amounts.
- For a receipt or paid invoice, use the tax printed on the document even when
the category suggestion is different. Changing the province refreshes managed starter defaults for future bookkeeping; custom categories and explicit non-exempt user choices are preserved.
When tracking is disabled
- New transactions use Out of Scope treatment with zero tax.
- The Tax field may remain visible but locked to Out of Scope.
- GST/HST report navigation is hidden.
Important boundaries
xBoox records and summarizes sales-tax data. It does not:
- file a GST/HST return;
- track filed and unfiled return periods;
- record remittance or refund settlement status;
- guarantee that a selected tax treatment is correct for a specific purchase or sale.
Consult an accountant when the correct tax treatment is uncertain.
Important rules
- GST/HST registration is independent of Sole Proprietor or Corporation status.
- Changing the Workspace tax profile changes future available choices; historical transactions retain saved tax snapshots.
- Only the Workspace Owner can change tax settings.
If the Business Profile cannot save Sales Tax
- When Registered is selected, choose a valid Primary Province or Territory before saving.
- When the province changes, confirm the reset of tax-code defaults for new bookkeeping. Historical transaction tax snapshots are not rewritten.
- Use the dialog's Help Center button for the exact recovery steps.
Resolve a Workspace Health Check message
Workspace Health Check can report that GST/HST is Registered while the saved Primary Province / Territory is missing or invalid. This is an advisory message and does not change the Workspace or prevent access.
- Select Open Business Profile in the message.
- In Settings > Business Profile, find Sales Tax.
- Confirm that Registered reflects the business's actual status.
- Choose the applicable Primary Province / Territory.
- Save the Business Profile.
Select Help Center to keep these instructions open in a new tab. Select Continue to close the message without making a change. xBoox does not automatically select British Columbia or any other province.