Credit card processing and merchant services in Burnaby, BC
Burnaby is one of six cities in the Metro West inter-municipal business licence, so eligible trades and home-visit health providers can work across all six on one licence.
Burnaby counted 249,125 residents at the 2021 Census, up 7.0% from 2016. For a business that travels to its customers, though, the more useful local fact is about licences. Burnaby is one of six cities in the Metro West Inter-Municipal Business Licence, along with Delta, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey and Vancouver, and an eligible business can work in all six on that one licence.
Eligibility is narrow. It covers construction and trades businesses that maintain, repair or inspect land and buildings, and health care professionals or providers who visit clients in their homes. The IMBL costs $300, isn't pro-rated, and comes on top of your home municipality's business licence fee. A business based in Burnaby applies through Burnaby.
If you work in clients' homes, you'll want to be paid there too. A physiotherapist or home care provider can take a tap or chip payment on a mobile card reader at the end of a visit. For care billed monthly, the virtual terminal sends invoices and can run recurring billing on a saved card, so nobody chases the same clients every month. Our medical and dental page has more on card payments for health practices.
Shops in Burnaby deal with different provincial rules. Most taxable sales carry the 5% GST plus 7% PST, and since July 15, 2024, B.C. businesses have had to charge at least 25 cents for a new paper shopping bag and at least $2 for a new reusable one.
Surcharging Visa and Mastercard credit cards is allowed in B.C. within the 2.4% cap. Before you choose a number, a free statement review will show your real cost of acceptance, and the British Columbia page lists every provincial rule with its source.
Rules that matter in Burnaby
Metro West inter-municipal business licence
Burnaby is one of six cities in the Metro West Inter-Municipal Business Licence, with Delta, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey and Vancouver. It's open to construction and trades businesses that maintain, repair or inspect land and buildings, and to health care professionals or providers who visit clients in their homes.
The licence costs $300, isn't pro-rated, and is in addition to your home municipality's business licence fee. Apply through the municipality where your business is located.
Source: City of Vancouver, Get a Metro West Inter-Municipal Business Licence (IMBL)
Payment services we provide
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Common questions
Can a home care business based in Burnaby work in Vancouver on one licence?
If it qualifies, yes. The Metro West Inter-Municipal Business Licence covers health care professionals and providers who visit clients in their homes, along with certain trades, across Burnaby, Delta, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey and Vancouver. It costs $300 on top of your home municipality's licence fee, and you apply through your home municipality.
Do Burnaby businesses charge PST as well as GST?
On most taxable sales, yes: the 5% GST plus the 7% PST, 12% in all. PST is registered and reported with the province, separately from your GST account with the CRA. A small seller with $10,000 or less in gross revenue from taxable sales over the past 12 months, and expecting the same over the next 12, doesn't have to register.
Can I take a card payment at the end of a home visit?
Yes. Tap to pay on a phone or a mobile card reader lets the client tap or insert their card before you leave, and our terminals accept Interac, Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay and Google Pay. For ongoing care, a virtual terminal can bill a saved card on a set schedule with the client's agreement.
What does a Burnaby shop have to charge for bags?
At least 25 cents for each new paper shopping bag and at least $2 for each new reusable one, under B.C. rules in force since July 15, 2024. Plastic shopping bags are banned. Ring bags up as their own items on your POS terminals so the charge shows on the receipt.
Disclaimer: general information, not professional advice
This page is general educational information, not legal, tax, accounting or financial advice. Rules and rates vary by place and change, so confirm them with the official source and a qualified professional before you act. Full terms are in our Terms of Service.
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