BC PST on professional services is paused: what BC businesses should do now

If you run a business in British Columbia, you probably spent part of 2026 hearing that PST was coming to professional services. Searches for "bc pst" in BC hit their highest point of the year the week Budget 2026 was tabled, and jumped again in September. Then, two weeks before the start date, the Province paused it. This guide explains what was planned, what the pause means, what still changed on October 1, and the practical steps for buyers and providers of these services.

What Budget 2026 planned

Budget 2026, tabled on February 17, 2026, announced that PST would apply to a group of professional services from October 1, 2026. The Ministry of Finance set out the details in Notice 2026-001. The services were:

• Accounting services, which the Province defined to include bookkeeping, financial statements, assurance (audit and review) and tax return preparation
• Architectural services
• Engineering and geoscience services
• Non-residential real estate services
• Security and private investigation services

The rate was the usual 7%. For architectural, engineering and geoscience services, PST would have applied to 30% of the price, an effective rate of 2.1%. Registration opened on April 1, 2026, and providers could register up to six months before their first taxable sale.

What the September 18 pause means

On September 18, 2026 the Province announced that it would delay the expansion, citing the trade dispute with the United States and economic uncertainty. The pause is made through a temporary regulation. The Province estimated the savings for people, local governments and businesses at about $260 million in 2026-27.

In practical terms, as of the date of this guide:

• Accounting and bookkeeping services stay exempt from PST. So do the other services on the list.
• Providers should not charge PST on these services. The Province's accounting services page asks anyone who registered for a PST account because of the expansion to cancel it, through eTaxBC or by calling 1-877-388-4440.
• If you bought one of these services and were charged PST for work after October 1, ask the provider about a correction.

How the rules would have worked

It is worth knowing the mechanics, because they will apply if the expansion returns. Under Notice 2026-001, PST would have applied when the buyer of the service resides or ordinarily resides in BC, or carries on business in BC. Services that relate partly to BC and partly to another province could be prorated. Services provided to an employer by its own employees were never in scope, because they are not a sale.

There was also a transition rule: PST would not apply to a service provided entirely before December 1, 2026 if the price was paid or due before October 1, 2026. Ongoing engagements, such as a monthly bookkeeping contract, would have become taxable for the part of the work done on or after October 1.

What it means for your books

For most BC businesses, these services are a business expense. GST paid on them comes back as an input tax credit, but PST would not have: PST paid on purchases is a cost. So the pause is a direct saving for buyers, and it keeps your books simpler: one less tax line to code on professional fees. If your accounting software has a tax code you set up for PST on professional services, archive it so nobody uses it by mistake.

What did change on October 1, 2026

The pause covers only the professional services. Other Budget 2026 PST measures went ahead. The Province's sales tax updates page lists them. From October 1, 2026:

• The PST exemptions for basic cable television services and residential landline telephone services ended.
• The exemption for services to clothing and footwear (repairs and alterations, for example) ended, along with the exemption for clothing patterns.
• Dry-cleaning, wet-cleaning and laundry services stay exempt, even when provided with another related service that is taxable.

Separately, since February 18, 2026, sellers can give a point-of-sale exemption or refund to businesses that buy goods for use outside BC, when the goods are shipped out of the province for business use.

Five steps for BC businesses

If you provide one of the services

1. Check whether you registered for PST only because of the expansion. If so, follow the Province's instruction to cancel the account, and keep a note of the date you did it.
2. Remove PST from your invoice templates, quotes and recurring invoices, and from contracts you updated for October 1.
3. In your accounting software, set the tax code on these services back to GST only. A leftover PST code is easy to miss and will flow straight into your next return.
4. Credit any PST you already charged on these services for work after October 1, and keep the correction with the original invoice.
5. Keep your preparation notes. If the expansion returns, you will need the same answers again: which services, which clients are in BC, and how to split mixed work.

If you buy these services

Check invoices from your accountant, bookkeeper, engineer, architect or security provider for PST after October 1. If PST appears on a bill for these services, it should not be there under the current rules. A PST line that slips into your books will also be coded wrong, because PST you pay is a cost, not a credit.

Who still has to charge PST in BC

Nothing about the pause changes the basic rule: if you sell or lease taxable goods, software or taxable services in BC, you generally have to register and charge 7% PST. There is a small seller exception for some businesses with $10,000 or less in retail sales over the past 12 months, with conditions (see Bulletin PST 003). Our guide to GST and PST in BC covers registration, filing frequency and the mistakes we fix most often.

What to watch next

• A new start date. The Province would have to announce one, and providers would again be able to register up to six months before their first taxable sale.
• Any change to the scope, for example which accounting services are taxable and how mixed work is split.
• Budget 2027. The legislative committee that consulted on it recommended cancelling the expansion, and business groups have asked for the same.

Questions

Sources

1. BC Government News: B.C. pauses PST expansion to professional services (September 18, 2026)
2. BC Ministry of Finance: PST on accounting services
3. BC Ministry of Finance: Notice 2026-001
4. BC Ministry of Finance: Updates to sales taxes
5. Bulletin PST 003, Small Sellers