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Canada Initial Compliance - Manitoba

Initial Filings for Manitoba Non-profit Organizations

  1. To Incorporate in Manitoba

    a. Submit the Request for Name Reservation to:

    Companies Office
    1010-405 Broadway
    Winnipeg, MB R3C 3L6
    Information: (204) 945-2500
    Fax: (204) 945-1459
    Web Site: companiesoffice.gov.mb.ca
    Filing Fee: $40 CND
    Note: This form can also be filed online at the Companies Office Name Reservation Page.

    b. If the name is reserved successfully, then submit the Registration of a Business Name within 90 days to:

    Companies Office
    1010-405 Broadway
    Winnipeg, MB R3C 3L6
    Information: (204) 945-2500
    Fax: (204) 945-1459
    Web Site: companiesoffice.gov.mb.ca
    Filing Fee: $45 CND
    Note: A Power of Attorney and additional $30 CND fee will be required if those registering the business name live outside of Manitoba. The Power of Attorney need not be a lawyer, but must reside in Manitoba.

    c. Submit 2 copies of the Articles of Incorporation (Form 2) to:

    Companies Office
    Woodsworth Building
    1010-405 Broadway
    Winnipeg, MB R3C 3L6
    Information: (204) 945-5999
    Fax: (204) 945-1459
    Web Site: companiesoffice.gov.mb.ca
    Filing Fee: $100 CND
  2. To Register as a Charity with the Charities Directorate

    Submit Form T2050, Application to Register a Charity under the Income Tax Act, to:

    Charities Directorate
    Canada Customs and Revenue Agency
    Ottawa, ON K1A 0L5
    Information: (800) 267-2384
    Forms: (800) 959-2221
    Web Site: www.cra-arc.gc.ca
    Filing Fee: $0
  3. To Register for the Goods and Services Tax and the Harmonized Sales Tax

    Submit the Request for a Business Number (BN), Form RC1, to a Tax Services Office nearest you. To find such a location, refer to the Canada Revenue Agency, or call the toll free number listed below.

    Information: (800) 959-5525
    Web Site: www.cra-arc.gc.ca
    Filing Fee: $0
    Notes: Organizations located in Quebec should contact Revenu Quebec which administers GST/HST. For more information, contact Revenu Quebec at (800) 567-4692 or refer to their publication, General Information Concerning the QST and the GST/HST.

    Charities meeting any one of the following conditions do not have to register for GST/HST:
    • The organization is in its first fiscal year;
    • The organization's gross revenue is $250,000 or less in either of its two previous years;
    • The organization's gross revenue is more than $250,000 but its sales of taxable goods and services (not including sales of capital property) are not greater than $50,000 in the current fiscal quarter or over the four previous quarters.


    Most goods and services provided by charities are exempt from GST/HST. For a list of qualified exemptions and a thorough discussion of GST/HST as they relate to charities, please refer to the Canada Revenue Agency's publication, GST/HST Information for Charities.
  4. To Register for Manitoba Retail Sales Tax Exemption

    Manitoba charities are not exempt from retail sales taxes on purchases made for their own use (such as office equipment, supplies etc.).

    Sales of goods by charities may be exempt from retail sales taxes if certain conditions are met by such sales. The conditions that must be met are as follows:

    1. The sale must not be publicly advertised
    2. The sale must not be in competition with sales by a for-profit
    3. The sale must not be commercial in nature
    4. For a more thorough discussion of these conditions and the Retail Sales Tax as it applies to charities, please refer to the bulletin Charitable & Non-profit Organization Fund Raising Activities.

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