GST/HST Number for Uber and Lyft Drivers: How to Register

A GST/HST number for Uber or another commercial passenger rideshare service is required from the start of the service. Drivers need a CRA Business Number and GST/HST account regardless of the usual small-supplier threshold, registered online through a CRA account (Add account > Business Account > Register a business) or by mail with Form RC1. Drivers who are non-residents of Canada follow a different route; see non-resident drivers.

Set the correct effective date

The GST/HST effective registration date must be the date you charged your first rideshare or taxi fare. That is different from the date you create a platform profile, receive a payout, or later cross $30,000. If the correct date is more than 30 calendar days before the registration request, CRA directs the driver to its backdating process. CRA: GST/HST account registration

How to get a GST/HST number for Uber

Before starting, check whether you already have a BN—sole proprietors have one BN for the business. Registration follows one of two channels:

1. Online: sign in to a CRA account, choose Add account, then Business Account, and choose Register a business. The owner name and SIN must match the owner’s T1 information. CRA rideshare instructions
2. By mail: if a driver cannot get a CRA account, CRA identifies a mail route using Form RC1.

The online form also asks for actual annual worldwide and domestic GST/HST taxable sales. If the figure is unknown, CRA’s instructions say to enter zero.

Save the BN and GST/HST account number after an online registration: it will not be sent to you afterward. Then link the BN to the CRA account to view and manage the business account online. Drivers in Ontario who need only the number itself, not a non-resident or multi-province setup, can also see How to Get an HST Number in Ontario.

How to add your GST/HST number in Uber (and Lyft)

Once the GST/HST number is active, add it to the account used to get paid — this is separate from registering with the CRA. For Uber, sign in at drivers.uber.com and upload the number under Invoice settings. Uber: HST/GST registration For Lyft, add the number in the Driver info tab of the Lyft Dashboard. Lyft: GST/HST info for drivers

Rideshare is not every delivery job

This mandatory exception is for taxable passenger transportation in a taxi or commercial rideshare business such as Uber or Lyft. Delivery-only work — for example Uber Eats, DoorDash or SkipTheDishes — generally follows the ordinary small-supplier rules instead; do not assume the passenger-transport rule applies simply because an app pays the driver. If you do both, the $30,000 test counts your combined rideshare and other taxable sales: under $30,000, mandatory registration generally applies only to the rideshare fares unless you extend it; above $30,000, GST/HST applies to all of your taxable sales, delivery included. CRA: when to register CRA: sharing economy

Charging, filing and the Quick Method for drivers

GST/HST is usually already included in the fare rather than added on top; registered drivers back the tax out of the fare at the rate that applies where the trip begins; a trip that begins in Canada and ends outside Canada is subject to GST. Returns are due for whichever reporting period CRA assigns at registration — annually, quarterly or monthly; see GST Working Copy: Prepare a GST/HST Return for the return itself. Under the regular method, drivers can claim input tax credits on eligible business purchases such as gasoline, vehicle repairs and maintenance, and vehicle leases or purchases — not on insurance or loan interest, since neither carries GST/HST; see CRA Business Expenses and GST/HST Input Tax Credits for the full list. Some drivers instead elect the GST/HST Quick Method of Accounting, which remits a set portion of fares collected instead of tracking ITCs on every expense; it has its own eligibility rules, and whether it beats the regular method depends on each driver’s situation.

After registration, keep platform statements, invoices, expense records, and the account confirmation. Registration also creates return, remittance, and record-keeping obligations — the same habits apply to Airbnb hosts, who instead follow the ordinary $30,000 threshold rather than registering from day one. See GST/HST filing guidance for the return workflow.