GST/HST return (Form GST34)

Section 238(1) of the Excise Tax Act says every registrant shall file a return with the Minister for each reporting period, subject to the exceptions in section 238. A buyer meets this return when asking for filed returns to test a seller’s revenue. The CRA describes Form GST34-2 as the paper form, and says registrants other than selected listed financial institutions and most charities must file electronically for reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2024.

What the sales lines show

If an online filer chooses to report those kinds of sales, the CRA’s instructions ask for taxable sales, including zero-rated supplies made in Canada, on line 90. Exempt supplies, zero-rated exports and other sales and revenues go on line 91. The CRA lists goodwill, financial services, sales of capital real property and supplies made outside Canada as other sales and revenues.

What to ask

• Whether a return was filed for every reporting period, and which period the business was assigned.
• How lines 90 and 91 reconcile to revenue in the financial statements.
• Whether any return was later changed, and why.

See which financial records to ask a seller for and the entry on the GST/HST reporting period.