--- title: "CRA business number: register or look one up" url: "https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/business-number" description: "Get a business number (BN) in Canada: handled by Canada Revenue Agency. Official link checked 12 October 2026. From official sources. Not a government site." site: "Canada Service Map" author: "Mahmoud Halat" publisher: "Space & Story" lastReviewed: "2026-10-13" licence: "Built entirely from public data: open data and official government pages. Each record keeps the licence of its source, listed at https://canadaservicemap.ca/data." --- # CRA business number: register or look one up Federal service · Work and business Compiled by Mahmoud Halat, checked 13 October 2026. Not a government website. The official page always has the final word. ## Short answer A business number (BN) is the 9-digit number the Canada Revenue Agency uses to identify your business. You need one if you incorporate or need a GST/HST, payroll or other CRA program account. The fastest way to get one is Business Registration Online through your CRA account. You may also get a BN automatically when you incorporate federally or in some provinces. Who handles it: [Canada Revenue Agency](https://canadaservicemap.ca/bodies/canada-revenue-agency). Handles it everywhere in Canada. ## Official links - [Register for a business number](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register.html), checked 12 October 2026 ## Who can apply - Not every business needs a BN. You need one if you incorporate, or if you need a GST/HST, payroll or other CRA program account. An unincorporated business only needs a BN when it registers for a program account. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-bn.html), checked 13 October 2026. - You need a CRA account to use BRO. If you cannot register online, fill out Form RC1 and mail it to your tax centre. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## Steps 1. Register online with Business Registration Online (BRO), which is the fastest way. You can get a BN and accounts such as GST/HST, payroll and corporation income tax at the same time. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## What you need - Have ready the owners' names, phone numbers and SINs, the legal and operating business names, mailing and physical addresses, the type of business and a description of its main activity. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/gather-information.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## Where to go - Incorporating federally through Corporations Canada, or registering or incorporating in Alberta, BC, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, PEI or Saskatchewan, gives you a BN automatically. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-bn.html), checked 13 October 2026. - Businesses in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Quebec and Yukon do not get a BN from provincial registration and must register with the CRA. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-bn.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## Good to know - A business can only have one BN. New CRA program accounts, such as GST/HST (RT) or payroll (RP), are added to the same BN. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-bn.html), checked 13 October 2026. - Save or print your BN when you finish in BRO, because it will not be sent to you. Sessions time out after 10 minutes of inactivity. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. - Businesses located in Quebec register for and file GST/HST with Revenu Québec, not the CRA. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## Questions people ask ### Do I need a business number for a sole proprietorship? Only if you need a CRA program account, such as GST/HST or payroll. An unincorporated business does not need a BN otherwise. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-bn.html), checked 13 October 2026. ### How do I get a business number online? Sign in to your CRA account, choose to add a business account, then select Register a business to use Business Registration Online. It is available daily except 3 am to 6 am Eastern time. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. ### What does a CRA program account number look like? It is your 9-digit BN, then a 2-letter code for the account type (such as RT for GST/HST or RP for payroll), then a 4-digit reference number. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/need-program-accounts.html), checked 13 October 2026. ### Can I get a business number with a temporary SIN? Yes. People with a temporary SIN starting with 9 register as residents using Business Registration Online. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/how-register/resident.html), checked 13 October 2026. ### Is my Ontario BIN or Quebec NEQ the same as a business number? No. An Ontario Business Identification Number or a Quebec Enterprise Number cannot be used as your CRA business number. Source: [canada.ca](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/business-registration/business-number-program-account/gather-information.html), checked 13 October 2026. ## More - [Incorporate a business federally](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/federal-incorporation) - [Register a trademark, patent or copyright](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/trademark-patent) - [Get a municipal business licence](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/business-licence) - [Find a job (Job Bank)](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/job-search) - [Apply for a federal government job](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/government-jobs) - [Join the Canadian Armed Forces](https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/join-military) ## Cite this page Canada Service Map, "CRA business number: register or look one up", checked 13 October 2026, https://canadaservicemap.ca/services/business-number