Standard Ontario Incorporations

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We offer Ontario incorporations because many of our clients wish to locate their head office in cental Canada, particularly in or near Toronto, Canada's largest city and its financial centre. Ontario is also Canada's largest province by population, although not the best jurisdiction in Canada for income or sales taxes. As with Alberta or Canada federally, Ontario requires at least one Canadian-resident director.

4 Steps to Incorporating in Ontario:

Proposed corporate name

Before incorporating a named company in Ontario, a name reservation must first be obtained. Except for number name corporations (such as 453236 Ontario Ltd.), a valid Ontario-biased NUANS name search report must be obtained before an application for an Ontario named corporation is filed.  Ontario's Corporate Registry does not itself vet corporate or business names. It is the responsibility of the corporation orbusiness in question to be sure that it's name does not infringe another's name.

A three-element name format is usually the safest choice, especially in Ontario: distinctive element / descriptive element / legal ending; such as Smith Enterprises Inc. Names with unique first elements are more likely to be approved. Common or popular words are often rejected.  In Ontario, there are three choices of legal ending: Limited (Ltd.), Corporation (Corp.) or Incorporated (Inc.). The designations all have the same meaning: that the entity is a corporation with limited liability for its shareholders. 

You may choose a numbered name for your corporation for faster filing results. The government automatically assigns the next corporation number on filing that kind of application. You can later change to a named corporation, though at some extra cost.

People

For each person who will be a director, officer or shareholder in the corporation, supply the full name (first, middle, last -- just as printed in a person's birth certificate or valid drivers licence or passport) and full street address (not post office box). Directors and officers must be legal adults, and at least 25% of the directors must be "Canadian-resident," meaning a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who in fact usually lives in Canada (there are exceptions for those on active military or government service). One person corporations are allowed in Ontario, and are quite common.

Share structure

Decide upon a simple or complex share structure with common or preferred shares (Class "A" or "B" shares). We can help you select what are the best choices for you.

Registered office location

Provide the street address in Ontario for the corporation's registered office. Post office box numbers are not allowed. Please tell us if you need this service when you order your Ontario corporation. We can refer you to a suitable registered office located in Ontario.

Ready to start?

Download our Incorporation Instructions form now.

How long will it take to incorporate in Ontario?

Incorporating will take (usually) three or four business days, once we have full information and payment from you. (As with federal or Alberta corporations, because only one name choice can be reserved at a time, if the name you choose runs into trouble at the name reservation stage, the process can take a little longer.) The Ontario Corporate Registry provides only PDF files of the incorporation documents. After the date of incorporation, allow an extra week or two for creation and shipping of the corporate records book.

Our standard Ontario Incorporation Package includes:

• An Ontario corporation.
• Complete Corporate Records book with corporate tabs, certificate of incorporation, articles of incorporation, corporate by-laws, registers of shareholders and directors, share certificates, director and shareholder post-incorporation resolutions, director's consents and share subscriptions.
• Legal advice with respect to forming your Ontario corporation.
• Choice of corporate structures designed to suit the needs of the corporation.
• An Ontario-biased NUANS search to ensure that you do not infringe on someone else's name from elsewhere in Canada. Infringement can result in a lawsuit against your corporation for damages or cause you to lose the right to use the name you chose for your corporation. For federal corporations, we recommend that the free federal name pre-approval be obtained (which we handle for you).

All this for Only $795.00 CAD (taxes included!).

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Or download our Incorporation Instructions form now.

Extras not included in the above price (but please ask):

• registered office services (for Ontario, provided by a third party)
• shipping corporate records book outside Canada or the continental USA
• ordering and shipping a corporate seal (usually not needed, but useful for some)
• extraprovincial registration outside Ontario, if your purposes so require
• for non-Canadians, help with filings under the Investment Canada Act