The Quick Method of Accounting rates apply only to sales made in the normal course of your commercial activities.

For other transactions, such as the sale of land or of used equipment giving entitlement to capital cost allowance (CCA), you must remit the full amount of GST and QST you collected or were required to collect.

The applicable rates are 1.8% for the GST and 3.4% for the QST in the case of retailers and wholesalers that purchase goods intended for sale, such as:

• grocers;
• booksellers;
• tobacco vendors; and
• owners of convenience stores, boutiques and service stations.

For these rates to be used, the cost of the property purchased for sale or for use in other property intended for sale (other than basic groceries and property on which the registrant is not required to pay the taxes at the time of purchase) must represent at least 40% of the business's total annual taxable sales.

The general rates for businesses that are not entitled to use the 1.8% and 3.4% rates and supply mostly services are 3.6% for the GST and 6.6% for the QST.

Such businesses include:

• taxi businesses;
• dry cleaners;
• delivery services;
• auto repair shops;
• fast-food outlets;
• travel agencies;
• small manufacturers;
• caterers;
• photographers; and
• painting contractors.

If you use the Quick Method as of the first day of your fiscal year, or as of your GST and QST registration date, you can apply a 1% reduction to a portion of your taxable sales (excluding zero-rated sales).

For GST purposes, the 1% reduction applies to the first $30,000 of your taxable sales (including GST) made during each fiscal year. For QST purposes, the 1% reduction applies to the first $31,421 of your taxable sales (including QST) made during each fiscal year.

If you file monthly or quarterly returns, the 1% reduction applies to your sales made during the first reporting period and during all subsequent reporting periods in the fiscal year, until the fiscal year ends or until the amount of sales reaches $30,000 (for GST purposes) and $31,421 (for QST purposes).

If you file an annual return, the 1% reduction applies to the first $30,000 of sales (for GST purposes) and the first $31,421 of sales (for QST purposes) made during the fiscal year.

If your sales in any fiscal year are under $30,000 (for GST purposes) and $31,421 (for QST purposes), the unused amount cannot be carried forward.