B.C. PST is Expanding to Professional Services: What Businesses Need to Know Before October 1, 2026
Beginning October 1, 2026, British Columbia’s provincial sales tax (PST) will expand to certain professional services, including accounting services, bookkeeping, and assurance services. The expanded rules, first announced in the 2026 B.C. Budget and later confirmed by Notice 2026-001, are also expected to capture several professional service categories beyond accounting—some of which you may not expect.
For many B.C. businesses, this may impact the cost of certain services and affect how those costs are budgeted, approved, and recorded. For DMCL clients, certain services provided on or after October 1, 2026, may be subject to PST. We will provide further communication about how this change will affect our services, invoices, and billing processes as the effective date approaches.
The Province has released initial guidance, and additional details are expected as the related regulations are finalized. Based on what is currently available, here’s what B.C. businesses should know.
What is changing?
Based on current guidance, PST is expected to apply at 7% to the purchase price of taxable services, unless a specific exemption applies.
For accounting services, the Province’s current guidance indicates that the rules may apply to a broad range of activities, such as preparing accounting records, providing assurance services, bookkeeping, billing, account reconciliation, and cost, financial, forensic, management, or tax accounting.
The tax base may vary by service category. For example, certain architectural, engineering, and geoscience services are expected to be taxable on 30% of the purchase price, rather than the full service fee.
The Province has also indicated that fees, charges, and disbursements may form part of the purchase price of taxable accounting services, unless excluded by regulation. Additional details on exclusions, exemptions, and other application rules are expected once the regulations are complete.
Why this matters for businesses that buy these services
For many businesses, the most immediate impact will be cost. PST is generally not recoverable by most businesses in the same way GST/HST may be recoverable for GST/HST registrants. As a result, the additional 7% PST may represent a real added cost, not simply a timing difference.
This may affect organizations that rely on annual accounting or assurance engagements, recurring bookkeeping, property management, strata management, security, non-residential real estate services, or larger professional service projects.
Businesses should consider whether upcoming budgets, purchase approvals, and internal coding processes account for the additional PST cost, particularly where professional service budgets were prepared before the PST expansion was announced.
Why timing matters
The timing rules are one of the more important areas to watch.
Businesses should not assume that PST depends only on when an invoice is issued. Based on the Province’s current transitional guidance, the result may depend on when the amount is paid or becomes due, when the service is provided, and whether the service period crosses certain dates.
For example, services that begin before October 1, 2026, but continue after that date may need to be reviewed more carefully. The same is true for retainers, progress billings, monthly arrangements, year-end work, and longer-term contracts.
In summary: pre-billing or signing an agreement before October 1 may not, on its own, determine whether PST applies.
What businesses that provide affected services should review
Businesses that provide services caught by the expanded rules may have new PST obligations. This may include registering for PST, charging PST on taxable services, updating invoices and accounting system tax codes, filing PST returns, and remitting amounts collected to the Province.
The change may apply to service providers beyond traditional accounting firms. For example, businesses that provide bookkeeping, property management, strata management, security, private investigation, or non-residential real estate services should review whether the new rules apply to their own activities.
The rules may depend on the specific service provided, where the client is located, what the service relates to, how the service is billed, and whether any exemptions apply. Businesses that are unsure should consider obtaining advice from an indirect tax or PST specialist before the rules take effect.
What to review before October 1, 2026
This article is not intended to be a full technical guide to the new PST rules. However, it should serve as a reminder to start reviewing where the change may affect your organization.
If your business purchases affected services, consider whether the added PST cost should be reflected in upcoming budgets, estimates, purchase approvals, and internal coding processes. This may be especially important for professional service contracts, recurring monthly arrangements, or engagements that are expected to continue beyond October 1, 2026.
If your business provides affected services, consider whether the new rules could create registration, billing, collection, reporting, or remittance obligations. This may include reviewing your service categories, invoice templates, accounting system tax codes, and billing arrangements before the effective date.
Because additional guidance may be released before October 1, businesses should continue to monitor updates from the Province and avoid making assumptions based only on general summaries.
Final thoughts
The PST expansion is not in effect yet, and additional guidance may be released before October 1, 2026. For now, businesses should treat this as an opportunity to identify where the change may affect their costs, contracts, billing arrangements, systems, and reporting obligations.
Organizations that purchase affected services may want to review upcoming budgets and service arrangements. Businesses that provide affected services should consider whether they need specialized PST advice before the rules take effect.
DMCL will continue to monitor developments and will share further information as more guidance becomes available.