GST/HST Registry
The CRA's free online tool for confirming that a supplier's GST/HST account number is valid and was registered on the date of a transaction.
In short
- Free CRA search that confirms a GST/HST number was registered on a given date.
- Enter the first nine digits of the number, the business name and the transaction date, then keep the Search Details screen.
- QST numbers are validated with Revenu Québec; digital economy vendors are in a separate simplified registry.
The GST/HST Registry is a free search run by the Canada Revenue Agency. You enter a supplier's business name, the first nine digits of its GST/HST account number (its business number, without the RT0001 suffix) and the date of the transaction, and it confirms whether that number was registered for GST/HST on that date.
How to run a search
- Enter only the first nine digits of the GST/HST number, without the letters.
- Enter the business name as it appears on the invoice or on the business's sign: its legal, operating or trading name.
- Enter the transaction date shown on the receipt, invoice or contract.
- Print or save the Search Details screen as your record that the supplier was registered.
Why it matters
If you claim an input tax credit for tax charged by a supplier that was not actually registered, the CRA can deny the credit on audit, even though you paid the tax. Checking the number before paying a new supplier, or before claiming a large credit, is the protection. Invoices of $100 or more must show the supplier's registration number for exactly this reason.
What it does not cover
- QST numbers: Quebec Sales Tax registrations are checked with Revenu Québec, not the CRA registry.
- Searching by name: the registry confirms a number you already have. It is not a directory for finding a business's number.
- No result: the name you used may not be the one the supplier gave the CRA, so ask the supplier for its exact registered name. If a supplier gives no number at all, the CRA's business enquiries line (1-800-959-5525) can confirm registration.
- Digital economy businesses: businesses registered under the simplified GST/HST regime (cross-border digital products and services, platform-based short-term accommodation) are listed in a separate Simplified GST/HST Registry.
Reading a GST/HST number
A full GST/HST account number is the nine-digit business number followed by the program identifier and reference, for example 123456789 RT0001. The registry only takes the nine digits. A QST number from Revenu Québec is different: ten digits, then TQ and four digits. For how a business gets its number in the first place, see how to register for GST/HST.
Worked example
A new supplier's first invoice
A new cleaning contractor invoices $2,260 including $260 of HST and lists GST/HST number 123456789 RT0001. Before approving payment, the AP clerk runs 123456789 with the contractor's name and the invoice date through the registry. It comes back registered. The $260 can be claimed as an input tax credit.