Bookkeeping › Ontario › Cambridge › Contractor bookkeeping
Bookkeeping for contractors in Cambridge, ON.
For plumbers, electricians, roofers, renovators and every trade that runs from a truck. Your books done the day you upload your statements, checked against your bank.
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Sales tax
Ontario charges 13% HST on most sales. Once your sales pass $30,000 in four quarters in a row (or in one quarter), you register, charge it and file GST/HST returns.
Income tax
Ontario taxes income at 5.05% to 13.16% in 2026, on top of federal tax of 14% to 33%, on the profit from your business.
CPP
Working for yourself, you pay both halves of CPP: 11.9% of your earnings from $3,500 to $74,600 in 2026, plus 8% more up to $85,000.
Deadlines
Sole proprietors file by June 15 and pay by April 30. Once you owe more than $3,000, CRA asks for instalments on March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15.
Contractors
Paid someone more than $500 for services in a year? They may need a T4A slip by the end of February.
What every business in Cambridge (about 140,000 people) keeps track of in 2026. Rates change, so check with your accountant before you file.
Contractors in Cambridge, by the numbers
Cambridge has 331 specialty trade contractors (plumbers, electricians, roofers and other trades) with employees (Statistics Canada, December 2024).
Every one of them has books to keep: sales to match to the bank, costs to sort and tax to work out.
Why contractors need different books
Supply-house runs on the business card, subcontractors paid by e-transfer or cheque, deposits that come in before the job starts, a truck that's partly business and receipts that live in the cup holder. That's what makes a contractor's books messy, and it's what a good bookkeeper spends most of the month on.
What a bookkeeper for contractors in Cambridge keeps track of
- Materials as the cost of each job, so you see what's left after them
- Subcontractors paid, for slips at year end
- Customer deposits and progress bills
- Holdbacks customers keep back until the job is done
- Your truck, tools and equipment
- Sales tax or GST/HST on what you bill
Taxes for contractors in Ontario
In Ontario you charge 13% HST on your invoices once registered (at $30,000 in sales over four quarters in a row).
- If most of your income is construction, you report subcontractors you pay $500 or more on T5018 slips, by six months after your year end.
- GST/HST goes on your invoices for labour and materials once you're registered.
- Holdbacks are usually 10% under provincial construction laws, released after the job is finished.
What SumSwift does for contractors and trades
- Materials sorted as the cost of the job, with job costing to see what each job made
- Subcontractor lists for 1099s or T4A and T5018 slips, with who you still need a W-9 or business number from
- Progress bills and holdbacks tracked until they're released
- Cheques written and printed in SumSwift, and "CHEQUE 104" on a statement asked about once
- Big purchases get one question, "Is this equipment?", so they're written off over the right years
- A mileage log (a CRA logbook in Canada) and the business share of your vehicle worked out for taxes
- Receipts snapped with your phone or forwarded by email are read and matched to the charge
Your accountant still files your tax return, with clean books and free access.
Questions.
How much does a bookkeeper for contractors cost in Cambridge?
Published price guides put most small businesses at $300 to $1,500 a month for a bookkeeper, more when the books are busy, as they often are for contractors. SumSwift does the same monthly work the day you upload your statements.
What does a bookkeeper for contractors do?
Sorts materials, subcontractors and truck costs, matches every account to the bank, keeps receipts, tracks deposits and holdbacks, and gets subcontractor slips and sales tax or GST/HST ready.
Do I need to track materials by job?
It's the only way to know which jobs make money. SumSwift tags costs to jobs and shows profit per job.
Does SumSwift know Ontario's tax rules?
In Ontario you charge 13% HST on your invoices once registered (at $30,000 in sales over four quarters in a row). If most of your income is construction, you report subcontractors you pay $500 or more on T5018 slips, by six months after your year end.
Behind on my books. Can you catch me up?
Yes. Upload every month's statements at once and the books are done in minutes, checked against your bank to the cent.
Other businesses in Cambridge.
Clean books for your contractor in Cambridge.
Upload your statements and see your books in minutes.
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