Québec freelancers: the GST/QST C$30,000 threshold

One threshold signal can lead to two registrations

Revenu Québec describes the ordinary registration rule for businesses carrying on commercial activities in Québec using the same C$30,000 small-supplier signal for the GST and QST. The total includes worldwide taxable supplies made by the business and its associates.

That does not mean GST and QST are one tax. They remain separate systems with separate registration files, rates, place-of-supply rules, input-credit mechanisms, and exceptions. Use the shared threshold calculation as an alert to review both files, not as a complete QST conclusion.

The test is not simply annual self-employment income

The ordinary test uses fixed calendar quarters. It asks whether the applicable total exceeds C$30,000 in one calendar quarter or across the four preceding calendar quarters. A calendar-year income statement by itself can hide the relevant crossing pattern.

Use gross consideration from taxable supplies before expenses, and include applicable associates. Revenu Québec's small-supplier guidance says taxable supplies include zero-rated supplies and excludes GST and QST themselves, financial services, sales of capital property, and goodwill.

• Do not substitute net profit or bank deposits for gross consideration.
• Combine the commercial activities and associates that the rules require.
• Keep exempt and excluded amounts separate from confirmed taxable supplies.
• Keep unresolved foreign-client classifications visible until reviewed.

Foreign clients can still affect the threshold

A supply does not disappear from the ordinary threshold merely because the customer is outside Canada or pays in another currency. A properly zero-rated supply remains taxable at 0% and is included in the small-supplier total described by Revenu Québec.

The actual GST and QST treatment of an exported service still depends on the facts and the applicable rules. Contracting party, residence, registration status, place of supply, Canadian property or users, and the nature of the service can matter. Track the amount, but do not let the tracker choose the legal classification.

Québec businesses generally deal with Revenu Québec

Revenu Québec administers GST/HST in Québec and also administers the QST. Its registration service and forms are therefore the practical route for a Québec business that has confirmed an obligation or chosen voluntary registration.

The timing language is not identical on the registration page: as a general rule, QST registration is requested before the first taxable supply in Québec made other than as a small supplier, while the GST application is generally due before the 30th day after the first taxable sale in Canada made other than as a small supplier.

Use the free tracker as an alert, not a QST deadline

The Thirty North tracker can organize gross Canadian-dollar amounts by fixed quarter and test the ordinary C$30,000 pattern. That arithmetic is useful for a Québec review because the source facts overlap.

The tracker and registration deadline calculator are built around the ordinary federal GST/HST timing framework. They do not determine whether a supply is made in Québec, calculate QST, create a QST filing deadline, or account for special mandatory-registration categories. Confirm both files with Revenu Québec or a qualified adviser before acting.