Opening a restaurant: the money checklist
Before you open, choose a sole proprietorship or a corporation, get a CRA business number with GST and payroll accounts, register for BC PST if you'll sell liquor or soda, apply for a liquor licence, budget the build-out and equipment, set up payroll, banking and your point of sale, and forecast your first year's cash.
Sole proprietorship or corporation?
Decide before you sign the lease, if you can. The lease, loans, bank accounts, tax accounts and liquor licence application all go in the name of whoever runs the business, and changing it later means redoing them.
A sole proprietorship is simpler and cheaper to set up, but you and the business are the same in law. A corporation is a separate legal person with its own tax return, which can matter for a business that signs a long lease and hires staff. If you'll have partners or more than one location, decide that now too: one company for everything, or one per location.
This is general information, not legal advice. Your lawyer handles the lease and the partnership or shareholder agreement.
Sole proprietorship
Quick to start. Profit is taxed on your personal return. You're personally responsible for the lease, loans and debts.
Corporation
Its own legal person and tax return, with corporate records to keep. Lenders and landlords may still ask you to sign personally for the lease or loans.
Partners and locations
Who owns what share, who puts in how much money, and whether each location is its own company.
Numbers, accounts and licences
The tax accounts and licences a restaurant usually needs before the first service. Some take weeks, so start early.
CRA business number
The number every other CRA account hangs off. A corporation gets one when it's incorporated. How to register with CRA.
GST account
Required once taxable sales pass $30,000 in a calendar quarter or four quarters in a row. Registering before you open lets you claim back GST on the build-out. CRA's registration rules.
Payroll account
Needed before the first pay, including paid training shifts before opening.
BC PST number
Required if you'll sell liquor, soda beverages or other taxable goods in BC. It also lets you buy liquor for resale without PST. Alberta has no PST. Register to collect PST.
Liquor licence
In BC, restaurants, bars and pubs are licensed by the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch, and servers need Serving It Right training. In Alberta, apply to AGLC (Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis).
Local licences and workers' compensation
A municipal business licence, health approval for the kitchen, and WorkSafeBC or WCB Alberta coverage before your first employee starts.
What goes into a startup budget
Every restaurant's numbers are different, so this is the list of lines, not the amounts. Get quotes for each before you commit to the space.
| Budget line | What it covers | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Leasehold improvements | Construction, plumbing, electrical, ventilation, finishes and anything built into the space. | Usually the biggest line. Generally capital, claimed over the lease term. |
| Kitchen and bar equipment | Ranges, hoods, fridges, coolers, ice machines, dishwashers, bar equipment. | Capital, claimed over several years. In BC, freestanding equipment carries PST. |
| Furniture and smallwares | Tables, chairs, dishes, glassware, cutlery, pots, pans and utensils. | Furniture is capital. Some low-cost smallwares can be expensed. |
| Point of sale and technology | Terminals, printers, kitchen screens, network and set-up. | Hardware is capital. In BC, PST applies to hardware and software. |
| Opening stock | Food, drink, liquor, cleaning and takeout supplies for the first weeks. | Counted on opening day, so your first month's food cost is right. |
| Deposits, licences and fees | Lease and utility deposits, business licence, health and liquor permits, legal and accounting fees. | Deposits are not expenses; they are generally returned later. |
| Wages before opening | Hiring, training and paid shifts before the doors open. | Runs through payroll like any other pay. |
| Marketing and opening | Signage, menus, website, photos and the opening itself. | Signage built into the space may be a leasehold improvement. |
| Cash reserve | Rent, wages and supplier bills for the first months while sales build. | Sized from your first-year cash forecast. |
Keep every invoice from day one, including those paid before the business had its own bank account. They're the record of your startup costs and your input tax credits.
Leasehold improvements and capital cost allowance
Most of what you spend before opening isn't an expense in the year you pay it. It's capital, claimed a share at a time.
Leasehold improvements
Work built into a space you rent, such as walls, plumbing, ventilation and finishes. For tax, these are generally claimed over the term of your lease rather than all at once.
Equipment and furniture
Kitchen equipment, furniture and point-of-sale hardware are capital too. Each goes into a capital cost allowance class and is claimed at that class's rate over several years.
GST and PST on the build-out
With a GST account, the GST on the build-out and equipment can generally be claimed back. In BC, a contractor who installs goods into the building pays the PST on them; you pay PST on freestanding equipment you buy.
Landlord allowances, equipment leases and loans each change how the build-out is recorded. Tell us about them before you sign, and we'll show how each one lands in the books.
Payroll, bank and point of sale
Set these up so each day's sales, tips and deposits land in the books without being untangled later.
Payroll
- A pay schedule and hours from your staff schedule
- A written tip policy that payroll can follow
- Vacation pay and stat holidays set for your province
- Workers' compensation in place before the first shift
Bank
- A business account used only for the business
- A business credit card for supplier and online purchases
- Card deposits going to one account, so they're easy to match
- A separate account set aside for GST, PST and payroll remittances
Point of sale
- Sales categories for food, non-alcoholic drinks, soda and liquor
- The right tax on each category
- Tips and mandatory gratuities kept apart from sales
- A daily report that matches each day's card and cash deposits
A first-year cash forecast
A new restaurant can be busy and still run short of cash. Rent, wages and suppliers are paid every month, while sales usually take time to build and some months are quieter than others.
A month-by-month forecast for the first year shows when cash is tightest, how big your reserve needs to be, and what sales you need to cover your costs. Update it each month with real numbers once you're open.
What the forecast includes
- Sales by month, building up from opening and allowing for quieter seasons
- Food, drink and labour cost as a share of those sales
- Rent, including common area and other charges in the lease
- Loan and equipment lease payments
- GST, PST and payroll remittances on their due dates
- The cash reserve left at the end of each month
Your first 90 days
The habits that keep the books current from the start, when there's least time for them.
Get the routine going
- Count opening stock on day one
- Match daily sales reports to deposits
- Run the first payrolls and tip payouts
- Keep every supplier invoice
First month closed
- Close the first month's books
- Count stock again for a real food cost
- Make the first payroll remittance on time
- Compare sales and costs with the forecast
Look at the numbers
- Check food and labour cost against your targets
- Adjust menu prices or schedules if needed
- File your first PST return if you're on monthly returns
- Update the cash forecast with real numbers
Start with the books. Step up to a CFO.
Most new restaurants start with the business full suite. Once you're open, Restaurant CFO adds monthly analysis and planning.
Business full suite
Monthly books by location, payroll with tips, GST/HST filing and year-end files, from your first month.
- Monthly bookkeeping and bank reconciliation
- Payroll, with T4 and T4A slips
- GST/HST filing
- Year-end files prepared
Restaurant CFO
Once you're open: prime cost and profit against your own targets, a forecast of where you're heading, and a monthly planning meeting with a senior manager.
- Monthly analysis of sales, prime cost and profit
- Comparisons with your own targets
- A forecast of where this pace takes you
How pricing works
Pricing is explained on the business membership page. We confirm your price before any work starts.
Opening a restaurant, answered
Should I incorporate before opening a restaurant?
It depends on your partners, your plans and how much profit and risk you expect. Incorporating before you sign the lease means the lease, loans and accounts can be in the company's name from the start. A sole proprietorship is simpler to set up, but you and the business are the same in law. We can go through the choice with you on a call.
When do I need to register for GST?
You must register once your taxable sales pass $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over four calendar quarters in a row. Registering before you open lets you claim back the GST you pay on the build-out, equipment and opening stock as input tax credits, which is why many new restaurants register early.
Do I need a PST number to open a restaurant in BC?
Only if you'll sell taxable items, such as liquor, soda beverages or merchandise, and most restaurants do. A restaurant that sells only food and non-soda drinks doesn't have to register, but it still pays PST on taxable things it buys for the business.
Can I write off leasehold improvements in the first year?
Generally not all at once. Leasehold improvements and equipment are capital costs, so they're claimed over several years through capital cost allowance rather than as an expense in the year you pay for them. Leasehold improvements are generally spread over the term of your lease. We sort each cost into the right category.
How much cash do I need to open a restaurant?
It depends on the space, the build-out, the menu and how long sales take to build. Beyond the build-out and equipment, budget for opening stock, deposits, licences, wages before opening and a cash reserve for the first months, when sales are often still growing. A first-year cash forecast shows how big that reserve should be.
What does Finvo charge to help a new restaurant?
Monthly books, payroll and GST/HST filing are part of the business full suite. Restaurant CFO adds forecasting and monthly planning once you're open. Your price depends on what you need, and we confirm it before any work starts. Prices are on the business membership, Fractional CFO and incorporation pages.
Sources, checked 4 Nov 2026. Rules have exceptions and can change. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice for your situation.
- Government of BC, Food and beverage service providers and retail liquor sellers (published 22 Apr 2026), gov.bc.ca: who must register for PST, PST on equipment and supplies, contractors and affixed improvements.
- Government of BC, Register to collect PST (last updated 1 Oct 2026) and Reporting and paying PST (last updated 21 Sep 2026), gov.bc.ca: liquor sellers start on monthly returns.
- Government of BC, Liquor and cannabis regulation (last updated 24 Jul 2026), gov.bc.ca: the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch licenses restaurants, bars and pubs; Serving It Right training.
- AGLC, Apply for a liquor licence, aglc.ca: liquor licences for restaurants and bars in Alberta.
- CRA, How to register for a business number, canada.ca. WorkSafeBC, I hire and pay workers, worksafebc.com; WCB-Alberta, Worker coverage, wcb.ab.ca: coverage when you hire.
- CRA, When to register for and start charging the GST/HST, canada.ca: the $30,000 small supplier test.
- CRA, Claiming capital cost allowance, canada.ca: described here in general terms only; the class and rate for each cost depend on what it is and when it was bought.
Opening soon? Let's talk first.
Book a free 15-minute call by video or phone. Tell us where you are: looking at spaces, signing a lease or nearly open. We'll go through the money side of your plan and explain what we'd do and what it would cost.
Which office?
Book a free 15-minute call15-minute calls every weekday at 10 am and 2 pm Pacific (11 am and 3 pm Mountain), except holidays.
Typical next slots, confirmed when you book:
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