GST/HST info for drivers
Rideshare drivers are responsible for collecting and reporting Goods and Services Taxes (GST). In some provinces this is called the Harmonized Sales Taxes (HST).
This tax is already calculated into the fares your passengers pay, so this doesn’t impact your earnings.
You must obtain a HST number to drive in Ontario. You must obtain a GST number to drive in Alberta and British Columbia.
You’ll receive a Quarterly Earnings Summary and Part XX Information Return from Lyft in your Driver Dashboard. These summaries show the taxes received and taxes you paid for the quarter/year, as well as your earnings.
You may be required to include this information when completing your own tax filings. You’re responsible for filing GST/HST returns and reporting them to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
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Registering for your GST/HST account
Drivers are required by the Canada Revenue Agency to register for a GST/HST account within 30 days of completing their first ride.
To register online, visit the CRA's website here.
When you complete your GST/HST registration, you’ll get a GST/HST registration number. You’ll need to add this GST/HST registration number in the ‘Driver info’ tab in your Dashboard.
If you’re having trouble registering for your GST/HST account, contact a tax professional for help.
Driving in Québec
If you plan to drive in Québec, you are required to register for QST/GST, obtain a mandatory billing number, and obtain a SRS authorisation code.
Note: You can't copy and paste your SRS authorisation code into the required field. You'll have to manually put in the code.
Drivers in Québec must contact Revenu Québec to register for both the GST and the QST. Request your tax numbers here.
Lyft will collect and remit GST/QST on your behalf, however you are responsible for filing returns and any additional amount of taxes that may be owed to Revenu Québec.
Depending on your tax situation and how you want to file the GST/QST return, you’ll need:
- The GST and QST amounts Lyft collected on your behalf.
- The total amounts Lyft remitted to Revenu Québec on your behalf at the rates established in the agreement.
- The GST and QST amounts to be reported, calculated using the quick accounting method.
- The total amounts Lyft remitted to you.
- The GST/QST paid on Lyft & 3rd party fees (only if you’re not using the quick accounting method).
- Your GST/QST number.
Drivers in Québec can use the quick accounting method to calculate GST and QST amounts. Your ridesharing services are subject to 14.975% combined GST/QST.
Under the quick accounting method, this combined amount is split between a 6.0864% payment to you and 8.8886% remitted to Revenue Québec on your behalf.
You can’t claim GST/QST input tax credits for tax paid on operating expenses under the quick accounting method. However, you may be eligible for credits on capital expenses such as the purchase of a vehicle.
For more information, see Revenue Québec’s information on the Quick Accounting Method.
Tax obligations can differ depending on your commercial activity. Learn more about the requirements of applying the GST/QST and special cases here.
Lyft's GST/QST registration number
If you’re planning on claiming input tax credits, you’ll need our GST/QST registration number.
Lyft's GST registration number is 706647328 RT0001.
Lyft's QST registration number is 1226728291 TQ0001.
Note: While onboarding, use your own tax numbers and not Lyft's QST number. Request your tax numbers here.
Getting your Quarterly Earnings Summary
We'll provide your Quarterly Earnings Summary in the ‘Tax Centre’ tab of your Dashboard. You can download your Quarterly Earnings Summary after the end of any quarter you’ve received earnings.
To download your summary:
- Go to the ‘Tax Centre’ tab in your Dashboard.
- Under the ‘Documents’ header, select ‘Download’ to download your Quarterly Earnings Summary.
You can expect your earnings summary for each quarter to be published in your Dashboard by the dates below:
- First quarter: By the end of April
- Second quarter: By the end of July
- Third quarter: By the end of October
- Fourth quarter: By the end of the following January
Continue below for a breakdown of what's included in your Quarterly Earnings Summary.
Note: If you drive in Québec, your Monthly Earnings Summaries will include GST/QST paid to Lyft on any Lyft and third party fees.
Getting your Part XX Information Return
In accordance with Part XX of the Income Tax Act, Lyft is required to report to the CRA details regarding earnings and ride data for the previous year. A copy of the reported information specific to each Driver is available to download in the Tax Centre of the Driver Dashboard. You may be required to include this information when completing your tax own filings.
You can expect your Part XX Information Return to be published to your Dashboard once available.
To download your Part XX Information Return:
- Go to the ‘Tax Centre’ tab in your Dashboard.
- Under the ‘Documents’ header, select ‘Download’ to download your Part XX Information Return.
Understanding your summary
You’ll see the following sections on your Lyft quarterly earnings summary:
Gross fares
Your gross fare is the total amount you earned from the Lyft rides you provided. This also includes tips, bonuses, and any other incentives you may have received.
Bonuses
A bonus or incentive is money you earned outside of ride fare, not including your GST/HST payment. A referral bonus is a common example.
Tips
This shows 100% of all the tips you earned. We don’t calculate GST/HST on tips.
Lyft & 3rd party fees
These are the total fees paid to Lyft, excluding any GST/HST you paid. This includes Lyft fees and any third party fees, such as city fees.
Lyft fees are payments to Lyft, such as The Service Fee. You can view your Driver Addendum for more details.
GST/HST received from passengers
This includes all the GST/HST that Lyft collected from passengers on your behalf. You’ll report this amount to the CRA.
GST/HST received on bonuses
This includes any GST/HST Lyft paid to you on bonuses. You’ll report this amount to the CRA.
GST/HST paid to Lyft on 3rd party fees
You paid this GST/HST to Lyft on any Lyft fees and third-party fees, such as local city fees.
You may be eligible to claim this amount as an input tax credit. Talk to a tax professional for more help.
Ride kilometres (GST/HST)
This is the number of kilometres travelled during rides. This includes kilometres travelled on your way to pick up passengers.
Kilometres may be deductible as an input tax credit. Talk to a tax professional for more help.
Tolls
This is the total amount paid to reimburse you for tolls you paid out of pocket.
What you need to file your tax return
You’ll need two things to file your return:
- Your net tax
- Lyft's GST/HST registration number
Net tax
Net tax is the difference between the GST/HST you collected, and the amount you paid.
To calculate your net tax, subtract the GST/HST you paid from the amount you collected. The result is your net tax amount.
You’ll find both of these numbers on your quarterly tax summary:
- The GST/HST you collected: Amount shown for ‘GST/HST received from passengers’ plus the amount shown in ‘GST/HST received on Bonuses’
- The GST/HST you paid: Amount shown under ‘GST/HST paid on Lyft & 3rd party fees’
Lyft's GST/HST registration number
If you’re planning on claiming input tax credits, you’ll need our GST/HST registration number.
Lyft's GST/HST registration number is 706647328 RT0001..
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Note: You must access TurboTax through your Dashboard to get the discount.
If you go to TurboTax directly through their website, you won't get the discount. Lyft can't reimburse you for any charges from TurboTax.
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