GST and QST on supplier invoices: a guide for Quebec restaurants
Most Quebec supplier invoices show two sales taxes: the federal GST (TPS in French) and the Quebec QST (TVQ). Here is how to read them, why they belong in their own columns, and what your accountant needs from you.
The two taxes on a Quebec invoice
- GST / TPS — the federal Goods and Services Tax, at 5%.
- QST / TVQ — the Quebec Sales Tax, at 9.975%.
Both are calculated on the price before taxes: the QST is not charged on top of the GST. Together they add 14.975% to a taxable line. In Quebec, Revenu Québec generally administers both taxes.
Not every line is taxable. Basic groceries — most of what a kitchen buys, such as fresh produce, meat, fish, dairy and flour — are generally zero-rated, which means no GST or QST appears on those lines. Items such as cleaning products, disposables and packaging, and many snack foods and drinks, are generally taxable. The exact category of a product can be subtle, so confirm anything unusual with your accountant.
Reading an invoice: an example
A delivery from a supplier (illustrative numbers):
| Line | Amount | GST 5% | QST 9.975% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Produce (zero-rated) | $420.00 | — | — |
| Cleaning supplies (taxable) | $80.00 | $4.00 | $7.98 |
| Total | $500.00 | $4.00 | $7.98 |
GST: $80.00 × 5% = $4.00. QST: $80.00 × 9.975% = $7.98. Invoice total: $500.00 + $4.00 + $7.98 = $511.98.
Things to check on every invoice:
- The supplier’s GST number (9 digits followed by RT and 4 digits, e.g. 123456789 RT0001) and QST number (10 digits followed by TQ and 4 digits, e.g. 1234567890 TQ0001).
- The invoice date and number, your restaurant’s name, and a description of what was sold.
- That taxes are charged only on taxable lines, and that the amounts add up.
What an invoice must show depends partly on its amount; your accountant can tell you what is required for your claims.
Why track GST and QST separately
If your restaurant is registered for the GST and QST, the taxes you pay on business purchases can generally be claimed back — as input tax credits (ITCs) for the GST and input tax refunds (ITRs) for the QST. Some purchases have restrictions, which your accountant will know.
That has two practical consequences:
- Keep taxes out of your food cost. If you claim them back, they are not a cost of the food. Adding the tax-included total of every invoice to your purchases overstates food cost — and on a mixed invoice like the one above, the error is not even a fixed percentage.
- Keep the two taxes in separate columns. They are different taxes with different rates, reported as separate amounts. A single “taxes” column has to be split again later, usually by your accountant, usually at month end.
Credit notes (notes de crédit)
When a supplier credits you for a return, a short delivery or a pricing error, the credit note should reverse the taxes on the credited items as well. In the example, returning $40.00 of the cleaning supplies would show:
| Credit note | Amount | GST | QST | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Returned cleaning supplies | −$40.00 | −$2.00 | −$3.99 | −$45.99 |
Record credit notes as negative amounts, linked to the original invoice number, and subtract them from both your purchases and your taxes paid. A credit on a zero-rated item (say, a short case of lettuce) reduces purchases but has no tax to reverse.
What to hand your accountant
- A list of every supplier invoice and credit note for the period: date, supplier, invoice number, subtotal, GST, QST and total, in separate columns.
- The supplier’s GST and QST numbers for each one.
- Credit notes shown as negatives and matched to the invoice they correct.
- A copy (PDF or photo) of every invoice and credit note.
- A short list of anything unusual: invoices with missing tax numbers, taxes that don’t add up, or statements you received instead of invoices.
Ask your accountant which format they prefer — many work from a spreadsheet or an export they can import into their accounting software.
Invoices read for you, taxes already split
CulinaraOS reads supplier invoices sent by email, in French or English, splits out the TPS and TVQ, handles credit notes, and exports a QuickBooks-ready CSV for your accountant. Your first month is free.
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