How to Register a Business in Saskatchewan: Trade Name, Partnership or Corporation

To register a business in Saskatchewan, you first reserve a name with the ISC Corporate Registry for $50, then register it. A business name for a sole proprietorship or partnership costs $65 to register and must be renewed every three years for $60. If you'd rather incorporate, a for-profit corporation costs $255, and a numbered company skips the name reservation. Saskatchewan doesn't use NUANS reports, and your CRA business number comes automatically with the registration. This guide covers each option, the fees, and the PST and GST registrations that follow.

Saskatchewan business registration at a glance

Government fees are from the ISC Corporate Registry fee table effective April 15, 2026. Online filings are often processed in real time.

Step 1: Choose your business type

The Corporate Registry describes the common structures this way:

• Sole proprietorship: a business with only one owner, which may be an individual or a corporation. It's the simplest and most flexible structure.
• Partnership: two or more individuals or corporations. Each partner is potentially liable for all the partnership's debts. Joint ventures and syndicates register as partnerships too.
• Limited partnership or limited liability partnership: separate registrations at $255. LLPs are limited to professions.
• Business corporation: a separate legal entity apart from its shareholders and directors, sometimes called a limited company.

ISC won't advise which structure suits you; it points you to a lawyer or accountant. If liability or tax planning matters, read our guide to incorporation in Saskatchewan before you decide.

Step 2: Reserve a name ($50, no NUANS)

Every named business in Saskatchewan, whether it's a trade name for a sole proprietor or the name of a corporation, starts with a name reservation in the ISC Corporate Registry application. Saskatchewan doesn't use NUANS: the name search is part of the reservation process.

1. Log in to the Corporate Registry application and choose reserve a name or create a company.
2. Pick the entity type and the purpose of the reservation. The purpose can't be changed later, and a mistake means starting over and paying again.
3. Check the name, describe the nature of the business and submit.

The fee is $50. If the name is available it is reserved for 90 days, and you'll get a reservation number. The registry can't process a named registration or incorporation without that number, so register within the 90 days. If the name is unavailable, you're notified and search again.

Each trade name needs its own reservation and registration: if you want to do business under more than one name, you register each one separately. Our Saskatchewan name reservation guide covers the naming rules in more detail.

Step 3: Register a Saskatchewan trade name (sole proprietorship)

Saskatchewan's Business Names Registration Act governs the business names of unincorporated businesses: sole proprietorships, partnerships and limited partnerships. Professional firms regulated by a governing body are excluded when the name includes a member's surname. Carrying on business without being registered can lead to penalties under the Act.

To register a sole proprietorship, have these ready:

• Your name reservation number.
• The physical business address (no P.O. boxes) and a mailing address.
• The applicant's full name, address, postal code and email.
• A power of attorney, if the owner is an individual who doesn't live in Saskatchewan. The online form displays the fields to complete.

In the Corporate Registry application, select file, then business names and registration, enter your reservation number and submit. The registration fee is $65, so a new trade name costs $115 in government fees including the reservation.

Step 4: Register a partnership

A partnership, syndicate or joint venture registers the same way, with the same $65 fee after a $50 name reservation. On top of the business and mailing addresses, you'll need each general partner's physical and mailing address and the date the partnership started. A power of attorney is required if an owner lives outside Saskatchewan.

Partnerships have a few extra maintenance rules. Adding, removing or changing a partner is filed as an alteration of members ($20). If removing a partner leaves only one owner, the partnership registration must be cancelled and a new sole proprietorship registration filed with a new fee. Our partnership registration service can handle these filings for you.

Keeping a trade name registered: renewals and changes

The renewal must be filed even if nothing has changed. If it isn't received by the due date, the registration expires; after 90 days the name becomes available to anyone else, and you'd have to reserve it and register again. Changing owners isn't an update: a sole proprietorship sold to someone new is cancelled and re-registered by the new owner.

Option: incorporate in Saskatchewan ($255)

A trade name gives you no liability protection. To create a separate legal entity, incorporate under The Business Corporations Act:

• Name: reserve one ($50) or incorporate as a numbered company with no reservation.
• Articles: nature of business, share details, the number of directors and any restrictions.
• Registered office: a physical Saskatchewan address, not a P.O. box.
• Directors and officers: names and addresses. Saskatchewan has no director residency requirement, but a power of attorney is required if no director or officer has a physical address in the province.
• Fee: $255, or add $500 for priority service (within one business day where possible).

Once incorporated, the corporation files an annual return each year ($60 on time, $110 late). A Canadian-controlled private corporation in Saskatchewan pays 1% provincial tax on its first $600,000 of active business income, plus the 9% federal rate on the first $500,000. Start a Saskatchewan incorporation with us, or compare costs on our pricing page.

Already incorporated elsewhere?

A corporation from another province or a federal corporation that carries on business in Saskatchewan registers as an extra-provincial corporation for $255, plus $60 a year to maintain the registration. Corporations whose home jurisdiction is Alberta, British Columbia or Manitoba register free under the New West Partnership Trade Agreement and don't file a Saskatchewan annual return.

After registration: business number, PST and GST

CRA business number (automatic)

ISC is the CRA's business number partner for Saskatchewan, so every business registered in the province automatically receives a 9-digit business number. If you gave an email address, the BN arrives within 48 hours; otherwise it's mailed within 10 business days. There are no registration or maintenance fees for the BN.

Saskatchewan PST

Saskatchewan's provincial sales tax is 6% on taxable goods and services consumed or used in the province. The Ministry of Finance says all businesses operating in Saskatchewan must be licensed or registered for PST purposes, and depending on the business you'll get either a vendor's licence number or a registered consumer number. You can opt in to Ministry of Finance registration during your ISC registration, or apply separately online through the ministry's SETS service or by mail or email.

GST

Saskatchewan charges the 5% federal GST, separately from PST. You must register for a GST/HST account with the CRA once taxable revenue goes over $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over the last four consecutive quarters, and you may register earlier to claim input tax credits.

Workers' compensation and licences

During registration you can ask the Saskatchewan Workers' Compensation Board to contact you about coverage. Municipal business licences and sector permits are separate from the Corporate Registry, so check with your city and any regulator for your industry.