Insights
Nov 12, 2025
Mackisen
How to Educate Your Staff on Charging and Handling GST/QST — Montreal CPA Firm Near You
Introduction
For any Quebec business, success in GST (Goods and Services Tax) and QST (Quebec Sales Tax) compliance depends on your team’s understanding of how these taxes work day to day. Whether your employees are in sales, accounting, customer service, or management, everyone who handles invoices, receipts, or payments plays a role in ensuring that taxes are charged, recorded, and remitted correctly.
At Mackisen CPA Montreal, we train business teams to handle GST/QST with confidence, accuracy, and professionalism. This guide outlines how to educate staff on charging, collecting, and managing these taxes properly to avoid costly mistakes, penalties, and audit exposure.
Legal and Regulatory Framework
Your business’s responsibility to charge and remit taxes correctly is defined by:
Excise Tax Act (Canada) s.225–s.228 — sets out GST/HST collection and remittance obligations.
Taxation Act (Quebec) s.407 — governs QST registration, collection, and filing.
Tax Administration Act (Quebec) s.59(3) — enforces penalties and daily compounded interest for late or inaccurate remittances.
Revenu Québec Administrative Bulletin TVQ.206.2 — outlines procedures for invoicing, documentation, and refunds.
Employees who issue invoices or process payments must apply these laws correctly to maintain compliance.
1. Explain the Basics of GST/QST to All Staff
Start with clear, simple training that defines the fundamentals:
GST (5%) is the federal tax collected on most goods and services in Canada.
QST (9.975%) is the provincial tax applied in Quebec on the GST-inclusive amount.
Combined, this equals 14.975% total tax on most taxable sales.
Exempt items include basic groceries, residential rent, and certain health or education services.
Training Tip: Use real examples from your own business — for instance, showing how a $100 sale becomes $114.97 after both taxes.
2. Train Sales and Frontline Staff on How to Charge Taxes Correctly
Sales staff, receptionists, and cashiers are your first line of compliance. Teach them:
How to calculate GST and QST separately.
When to charge tax (taxable vs. exempt transactions).
How to use your POS or invoicing system to apply taxes automatically.
How to handle tax-inclusive vs. tax-added pricing.
Example:
Tax-added: $100 + GST (5%) + QST (9.975%) = $114.97.
Tax-inclusive: $114.97 ÷ 1.14975 = $100 (base before tax).
Roleplay Exercise: Practice explaining tax charges to customers, such as:
“Our prices don’t include tax — the total with GST and QST comes to $114.97.”
3. Educate Accounting and Finance Teams on Recordkeeping
Your accounting team must know how to:
Separate GST and QST collected from revenue in your ledger.
Record taxes paid on purchases to claim Input Tax Credits (ITCs) and Input Tax Refunds (ITRs).
Reconcile tax collected versus tax remitted monthly or quarterly.
Keep documentation (invoices, receipts, supplier tax numbers) for six years under Tax Administration Act s.34.
Key Reporting Lines:
Line 103 (CRA GST Return): GST collected.
Line 106: Input Tax Credits (ITCs).
Line 202 (FPZ-500-V): QST collected.
Line 208: Input Tax Refunds (ITRs).
Mackisen Tip: Automate reconciliation using accounting software (QuickBooks, Sage, or Xero) to reduce manual errors.
4. Provide Department-Specific GST/QST Training
Different departments need different levels of tax knowledge:
Department | Key Training Focus | Examples |
|---|---|---|
Sales & Customer Service | When to apply GST/QST; exemptions; refunds | Retail, service quotes, invoices |
Purchasing | Valid supplier invoices; tracking GST/QST paid | Equipment, rent, marketing |
Accounting/Finance | Filing, remittance, ITC/ITR management | Monthly or quarterly returns |
Management | Compliance oversight; risk prevention | Policies, audits, tax planning |
Each team should understand its own tax responsibilities while knowing when to escalate complex cases to accounting or management.
5. Teach Staff How to Handle Exempt and Zero-Rated Sales
Employees must know the difference between exempt and zero-rated sales:
Exempt: No tax is charged, and no ITCs/ITRs can be claimed (e.g., residential rent, insurance).
Zero-rated: Tax charged at 0%, but ITCs/ITRs can be claimed (e.g., exports, basic groceries).
Exercise: Create a visual chart showing examples of taxable, zero-rated, and exempt items for your business sector.
6. Introduce a GST/QST Checklist for Invoicing
Every invoice issued should include:
Your legal business name.
Invoice number and date.
Customer name and address.
Itemized description of goods or services.
GST and QST shown separately.
Your GST (RT) and QST (TQ) registration numbers.
Sample Checklist:
☑ GST/QST applied correctly.
☑ Tax rates verified.
☑ Registration numbers included.
☑ Customer information accurate.
☑ Invoice saved and archived digitally.
At Mackisen CPA Montreal, we provide customized invoice templates that are fully compliant with CRA and Revenu Québec standards.
7. Train on Refunds, Discounts, and Credit Notes
Mistakes and returns happen. Staff should know how to:
Issue credit notes showing tax adjustments.
Refund both the price and the taxes to customers.
Record refund transactions properly in the accounting system.
Retain proof of refund for audit defense.
Example:
If a $115.47 sale is refunded, GST = $5.00, QST = $10.47, total refund = $115.47.
8. Schedule Regular Training Sessions and Refreshers
Regulations change, and turnover happens. Build training into your yearly business schedule:
Initial onboarding training for all new employees.
Quarterly refreshers for sales and accounting staff.
Annual compliance sessions led by your CPA or internal controller.
Include role-specific modules: e.g., “How to Apply GST/QST in E-commerce Transactions” or “Handling First Nations QST Exemptions.”
Jurisprudence and Legal Insight
Courts have consistently reinforced that businesses are responsible for their staff’s tax compliance:
Hickman Motors Ltd. v. Canada (SCC 1997) — taxpayers bear the burden of proving accuracy in filings.
Canderel Ltd. v. Canada (SCC 1998) — filings must reflect commercial reality.
Lac d’Amiante du Québec Ltée (SCC 2001) — Revenu Québec has full authority to demand documentation and reassess.
If your team misapplies QST or fails to keep records, your company — not the employee — will bear the penalties.
9. Create a Tax Compliance Manual
Develop a GST/QST Policy Manual that outlines:
Step-by-step tax procedures.
Roles and responsibilities for each department.
Filing deadlines and remittance methods.
Contact information for your CPA or tax advisor.
At Mackisen CPA Montreal, we create customized compliance manuals tailored to each client’s operations, ensuring staff always have clear reference materials.
Winning With CRA and Revenu Québec
At Mackisen CPA Montreal, we help businesses build internal tax confidence:
Staff Training Workshops – Interactive sessions on charging and remitting GST/QST.
Custom Invoicing Templates – Fully compliant forms for all transaction types.
Departmental Process Audits – We evaluate and optimize how each team handles taxes.
On-Demand Support – Our accountants and tax lawyers are available for questions or quick clarifications.
Mackisen Service Hub: Staff Tax Education & Compliance
Our Mackisen Service Hub provides ongoing GST/QST education and oversight:
Live and virtual training sessions.
Tax policy manual development.
Compliance checklists and templates.
Regular updates on new CRA and Revenu Québec rules.
Our bilingual CPA auditors, tax lawyers, and trainers — educated at McGill, Université de Montréal, and Concordia University — deliver engaging, practical sessions designed for real business scenarios.
Real Client Example
A Quebec retail chain failed to apply QST exemptions correctly on certain First Nations transactions. Mackisen CPA conducted staff retraining, updated their POS tax settings, and created an internal compliance manual. Within one quarter, the company passed a Revenu Québec verification with zero adjustments.
Why Mackisen
With more than 35 years of combined CPA and legal experience, Mackisen CPA Montreal ensures your team understands, applies, and documents GST/QST correctly. We turn compliance into confidence — transforming your employees into your strongest line of tax defense.
When you train with Mackisen, every invoice, refund, and filing reflects precision, professionalism, and full legal compliance.
