Accounting for painters in Ontario
Painting businesses balance residential and commercial work, seasonal crews, and material costs. Clean books make quoting and year-end straightforward.
CRA EFILE authorized · Every filing signed by an accountant · Switching is free — about an hour of your time
taxifi · Painters
This month
- Bookkeeping Current
- Payroll & source deductions Filed
- HST Filed
- Year-end tax (T2) On track
The problems we take off your plate
Residential and commercial, tracked apart
The two sides of the business behave differently. We split revenue by type so you can see where you're strongest and quote from real numbers.
Seasonal crews
Payroll scales with your season, with source deductions remitted to CRA on time and T4s ready at year-end.
Supplies and equipment at year-end
Paint, sprayers, and vehicles are tracked and claimed correctly so your deductions are complete.
What’s included
Published prices for incorporated Ontario painters. Everything below is handled.
- Bookkeeping split by residential and commercial work
- Crew payroll and source deductions
- HST returns prepared and filed
- Equipment and vehicles tracked for CCA
- Year-end corporate tax (T2), from $1,000 a year
| Area | A typical setup | With taxifi |
|---|---|---|
| Your books | Weeks or months behind | Current every day |
| Year-end (T2) | A spring scramble, billed extra | Included, no surprise invoice |
| Your accountant | Metered by the hour | Unlimited questions, flat monthly |
Materials credits and subcontractor slips
Painting is construction work, which brings the T5018 requirement: payments to subcontractors for construction services are generally reported on T5018 slips whether or not the sub is incorporated. Crews assembled per job are the classic case, and the record has to be built through the year rather than remembered in February.
Materials are where money leaks. HST on paint, sundries, sprayers, drop sheets, and ladders generally returns as input tax credits — but only on purchases the books actually captured, and paint-store receipts are the ones most likely to end up in a truck door. Add holdback timing on larger construction contracts and you have three reasons the bookkeeping should be daily rather than annual.
Common questions
Do you work with incorporated painting businesses?
Yes. Incorporated painters are a good fit for the flat monthly service.
Can you handle both residential and commercial jobs?
Yes. Revenue is tracked by type so you can see where the business is strongest.
Do painters need to file T5018 slips?
Generally yes where painting is construction work and you pay subcontractors for construction services — incorporated or not. The return is due six months after the end of the reporting period you choose, and most contractors align it with their fiscal year-end.
How do I make sure I claim all my material credits?
By capturing every purchase as it happens. Input tax credits only exist for transactions in the books, so uncaptured supplier receipts are money left with CRA. Bank and card feeds read daily are what make the claim complete without anyone hunting for paper.
Books and taxes for your painting contractor, done
Bookkeeping from $99 a month, accountant-reviewed from $299, corporate T2 from $1,000 a year. Prices are published; a call confirms the fit.
Get Started