Incorporation Guide · After The Certificate
What happens after you incorporate
The certificate of incorporation is the start of the work, not the end of it. This page sets out the first 60 days filing by filing, including the Ontario Initial Return, the organizing resolutions, the CRA accounts and the register of individuals with significant control. We prepare and file your articles of incorporation for $35.00, HST included, with the government fee charged at cost. Open Corporation for $35 is a department of Gondaliya CPA. A Chartered Professional Accountant tells you which of these steps apply to your corporation and when each one falls due.
The first 60 days at a glance
Five things happen after the certificate is issued. Two are registry filings with a hard deadline, two are internal records nobody chases you for, and one is the bank.| Step | When it is due | Who it goes to | Government fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Organizing resolutions, by-laws and the share issuance | As soon as the certificate is issued | Nobody. They stay in the minute book | $0.00 |
| Ontario Initial Return, Ontario corporations only | Within 60 days of incorporation | Ontario Business Registry | $0.00 |
| Register of individuals with significant control, federal corporations | Prepared and kept from incorporation | Nobody, until Corporations Canada asks | $0.00 |
| CRA program accounts, where they apply | Before the first payroll or the first invoice that charges HST | Canada Revenue Agency | $0.00 |
| Business bank account | Before the corporation receives or pays anything | Your bank | Set by the bank |
A corporation that trades before the shares are issued and the directors are appointed has no properly constituted board and no shareholders of record. The paperwork is cheap at the start and expensive to reconstruct two years later.
Week one, organizing the corporation
Incorporating creates the company. Organizing it puts people and shares inside it. Until the organizing documents are signed the corporation exists and owns nothing, and nobody holds a share in it.The first directors resolution
The first directors appoint the officers, adopt the by-laws, approve the share issuance, appoint the accountant and set the financial year end. One signed resolution covers all of it, and it is dated the day the certificate was issued or shortly after.The by-laws
The by-laws say how the corporation runs its meetings, who signs on its behalf and how officers are appointed. They are adopted by the directors and confirmed by the shareholders, and they are never filed with any registry.Issuing the shares
Shares are issued for consideration, which means each shareholder pays something for them. The resolution records the class, the number, the price and the date, the share certificates are prepared, and the share register is written up to match.
Every one of these documents lives in the minute book with the articles and the registers. What has to be kept, and for how long, is in our guide to minute book requirements.
The Ontario Initial Return, due within 60 days
Every Ontario corporation files an Initial Return with the Ontario Business Registry within 60 days of incorporation. It is required under the Corporations Information Act and the government fee is $0.00. The return reports the registered office address and the directors and officers, with each person’s name, address for service and the date they took office. It is the registry’s record of who runs the corporation. The 60 days run from the date of incorporation shown on the certificate, not from the day you start trading. A corporation that incorporates in January and opens for business in April still files by the March deadline.
Missing the Initial Return is an offence under the Corporations Information Act and the corporation can be fined. It is also the most commonly missed filing we see, precisely because it is free and nobody sends a reminder.
A federal corporation files no initial return. Corporations Canada takes the registered office and first directors on Form 2 at the time of incorporation, so the information is already on the record.
A federal corporation that carries on business in Ontario registers extra-provincially instead, and that registration has its own fee and its own form.
The register of individuals with significant control
A federal corporation under the Canada Business Corporations Act must prepare and keep a register of individuals with significant control. It is an internal record rather than a filing, and it starts at incorporation. An individual with significant control broadly owns, controls or directs 25 percent or more of the voting shares. The same applies to 25 percent or more of all shares by fair market value, or to anyone with significant influence over the corporation. The register records each such individual’s name, date of birth, address, jurisdiction of tax residence, the date they became one and how their control arises. A single-shareholder corporation still keeps the register, with one name on it.
The register sits in the minute book and is reviewed at least once each financial year. Corporations Canada can ask for it, and some banks now ask for it when the account is opened.
Your CRA accounts, and which ones you actually need
A business number arrives with the incorporation. Program accounts sit underneath it and each one is opened only when the corporation needs it, which is why a new corporation rarely needs all four.| Account | Suffix | When you need it | When to open it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporation income tax | RC | Every corporation, because every corporation files a T2 return | Opens with the business number |
| GST and HST | RT | Once taxable revenue passes the $30,000 small supplier threshold, or voluntarily before that | Before the first invoice that charges HST |
| Payroll deductions | RP | Once the corporation pays a salary to anyone, including the owner | Before the first pay run |
| Import and export | RM | Only if the corporation imports or exports commercially | Before the first shipment |
Each account, what it is for and how the numbers are structured is set out in our guide to the business number and CRA accounts.
Opening the business bank account
The bank is usually the first place the paperwork is tested. A bank will not open a corporate account on the certificate alone. Most banks ask for the certificate of incorporation, the articles, the by-laws and a banking resolution naming who may sign. They also ask for the directors register and identification for every signing officer and significant shareholder. This is why the organizing documents come first. An account application stalls when the shares have not been issued or the directors have never been formally appointed, because there is nothing to show the bank.
The documents each bank asks for, and the order to take them in, are set out in our guide to the business bank account for a new corporation.
What the first 60 days cost
Almost nothing, in government fees. The Initial Return is free, the Ontario Annual Return is free and the CRA accounts are free. The table shows every figure that applies.| Item | Amount | HST | Total | Who charges it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our incorporation service fee. We prepare and file the articles of incorporation, the share provisions and the first director details | $35.00 | Included | $35.00 | Open Corporation for $35, a department of Gondaliya CPA |
| NUANS report, named corporations only | $25.00 | Included | $25.00 | Open Corporation for $35, a department of Gondaliya CPA |
| Government fee, articles of incorporation filed online under the CBCA | $200.00 | Not applicable | $200.00 | Corporations Canada |
| Government fee, articles of incorporation filed online under the OBCA | $300.00 | Not applicable | $300.00 | Ontario Business Registry |
| Ontario Initial Return, due within 60 days of incorporation | $0.00 | Not applicable | $0.00 | Ontario Business Registry |
| Ontario Annual Return under the Corporations Information Act | $0.00 | Not applicable | $0.00 | Ontario Business Registry |
| Federal annual return, filed online each year | $12.00 | Not applicable | $12.00 | Corporations Canada |
| Opening a CRA program account for payroll, HST or import and export | $0.00 | Not applicable | $0.00 | Canada Revenue Agency |
| Total, named federal corporation, standard online filing | $260.00 | Included in our fees | $260.00 | Combined |
| Total, named Ontario corporation, standard online filing | $360.00 | Included in our fees | $360.00 | Combined |
Our $35.00 fee includes HST and our $25.00 NUANS fee includes HST. Government fees are passed through at cost with no mark-up. These registry fee schedules were last checked on 7 September 2026. The full list is on our full pricing page.
We tell you what falls due and when
Every filing in your first 60 days, dated against your certificate.The deadlines that fall after day 60
Day 60 clears the registry. The rest of the first year runs on the financial year end the directors chose in the organizing resolution.| Filing | When it is due | Who it goes to | Government fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| T2 corporation income tax return | Within six months of the financial year end | Canada Revenue Agency | $0.00 to file |
| Federal annual return, CBCA corporations | Within 60 days after the anniversary date of incorporation | Corporations Canada | $12.00 online |
| Ontario Annual Return | Within six months after the financial year end | Ontario Business Registry | $0.00 |
| Payroll source deductions, regular remitter | By the 15th of the month after the pay was made | Canada Revenue Agency | $0.00 to remit |
| T4 slips and summary | By the last day of February for the previous calendar year | Canada Revenue Agency | $0.00 |
| HST return, where the corporation is registered | On the reporting period CRA assigns, monthly, quarterly or annually | Canada Revenue Agency | $0.00 to file |
What each annual return reports, and what happens to a corporation that stops filing them, is in our guide to annual return filing.
Frequently asked questions
These are the questions owners ask in the week the certificate arrives. Each answer carries the deadline, the fee or the authority that makes it true, so it can be read on its own without the rest of the page around it.What is the Ontario Initial Return?
The Initial Return is a filing every Ontario corporation makes with the Ontario Business Registry within 60 days of incorporation, and the government fee is $0.00. It is required under the Corporations Information Act. It reports the registered office address and every director and officer, with each person’s name, address for service and the date they took office. The 60 days run from the date of incorporation on the certificate, not from the day the business starts trading.
Does a federal corporation file an initial return?
No. Corporations Canada collects the registered office address and the first directors on Form 2 at the time of incorporation, so there is no separate initial filing. A federal corporation that carries on business in Ontario registers extra-provincially instead, which is its own form with its own fee. The federal annual return is a different filing again, due within 60 days after the anniversary date of incorporation at $12.00 online.
What happens if I miss the Initial Return?
Missing it is an offence under the Corporations Information Act and the corporation can be fined. It is also the filing we see missed most often, because the fee is $0.00 and nobody sends a reminder. The return can still be filed late, and the sooner it goes in the better. We date the deadline against your certificate and tell you when it falls.
Do I need to issue shares, or does incorporating do it?
Incorporating authorizes the share classes. Issuing the shares is a separate step taken by the directors after the certificate is issued. Until it happens the corporation has no shareholders of record, which stalls a bank account application and complicates every later transaction. The resolution records the class, the number, the price and the date, and the share register is written up to match.
When do I need a payroll account?
Before the first pay run, if the corporation pays a salary to anyone including the owner. The payroll account is the RP suffix on the corporation’s business number and it costs $0.00 to open. A corporation that pays its owner by dividend instead of salary needs no payroll account at all. Which of the two suits you is a tax question settled before the first payment, not after.
When do I have to register for HST?
Once the corporation’s taxable revenue passes the $30,000 small supplier threshold, and voluntarily at any point before that. The HST account is the RT suffix on the business number and it costs $0.00 to open. Registering early lets the corporation claim input tax credits on its start-up costs, and it commits it to charging and filing HST from that date onward.
What is the register of individuals with significant control?
It is an internal register a federal corporation under the Canada Business Corporations Act must prepare and keep from incorporation. An individual with significant control broadly owns, controls or directs 25 percent or more of the voting shares, or 25 percent or more of all shares by fair market value. The register records each person’s name, date of birth, address, tax residence and how their control arises, and it is reviewed at least once each financial year.
When is the first T2 return due?
Within six months of the corporation’s first financial year end, which the directors choose in the organizing resolution. The year end does not have to be 31 December, and the first year can be shorter than twelve months. Filing the T2 costs $0.00. Any tax owing is due earlier than the return itself, so the two dates are planned together rather than separately.
What does the bank ask for?
Most banks ask for the certificate of incorporation, the articles, the by-laws and a banking resolution naming the signing officers. They also ask for the directors register and identification for each signing officer and significant shareholder. This is why the organizing documents are signed first. An application stalls when the shares have not been issued or the directors were never formally appointed.
Can you handle the first 60 days for me?
We prepare and file the articles for $35.00 with HST included, plus the government fee at cost. We then tell you every filing that falls due in your first 60 days, dated against your certificate. The minute book, the CRA registrations and the bookkeeping that follow are quoted separately in writing before any work starts. Our fees are on the pricing page.
Why owners trust the filing to us
Gondaliya CPA Professional Corporation is registered with CPA Ontario under firm registration number 61330051. Our clients have left us 1,300+ five-star Google reviews, and we work from 13 Ontario offices, open 9:00 AM to 8:30 PM, Monday to Sunday. We back every filing with a 30-day money-back guarantee and a 60-day fee-matching policy, and we are a Xero Partner Award Winner 2026. The platform is operated by WealthBamboo Inc., a federal corporation. Open Corporation for $35 is a department of Gondaliya CPA.
Ready to incorporate
Send the intake form and we will file the articles, then set out every filing that falls due in your first 60 days dated against your certificate. Our fee is $35.00, HST included, and the government fee is shown separately at cost. Payment is by Interac e-Transfer to info@gondaliyacpa.ca, and the security question is Not Applicable because auto-deposit is enabled.Registered CPA Ontario 61330051
1300+ Five-Star Reviews
Government Fee At Cost
30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
No legal advice
Gondaliya CPA Professional Corporation is a firm of Chartered Professional Accountants licensed by CPA Ontario, firm registration number 61330051. It is not a law firm. We prepare and file corporate documents and we provide accounting and tax advice. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and reading it creates no solicitor and client relationship. For legal advice, including advice on a shareholder agreement before you sign it, consult a lawyer licensed in the province where your corporation carries on business.
