POS system for Ontario businesses
Ontario uses a single harmonized sales tax, so most sales need just one rate: HST at 13%. The work in SeroPOS is in the exceptions, such as the point-of-sale rebate on some items, and in reporting HST cleanly for your return.
Ontario in SeroPOS
One HST rate
Add HST at 13% once and set it as the default, so new products are taxed correctly from the first sale.
Rebated items at 5%
Items that get Ontario's point-of-sale rebate of the provincial part take a 5% rate instead of 13%.
Zero-rated at 0%
Basic groceries and other zero-rated items take a 0% rate, shown clearly on the receipt.
HST number on receipts
Print your HST registration number in the receipt header from Edit Restaurant or Business Settings.
HST collected by period
The Tax Report shows HST on sales against HST paid on purchases and expenses, the figures your return needs.
Moneris or Global Payments
Take Interac debit, tap and credit on terminals that get the amount straight from the till.
Ontario sales tax at a glance
Ontario charges HST at 13%, made up of the 5% federal part and an 8% provincial part. It is a single tax filed with the Canada Revenue Agency, so unlike BC or Saskatchewan you don't keep two taxes apart. One rate covers most taxable sales.
Ontario does give a point-of-sale rebate of the 8% provincial part on certain items, so they are charged 5%. Well-known examples include qualifying prepared food and drinks sold for $4 or less, children's clothing and footwear, and printed books. Basic groceries are zero-rated. The rules have conditions, so check the CRA and Ontario guidance for your items, and confirm rates as of 2026.
Setting up HST in SeroPOS
In the back office go to Settings, then Tax Rates, and add HST at 13%. Add a second rate called something like "HST rebated" at 5% for items that qualify for the point-of-sale rebate, and a 0% rate for zero-rated items. In the app the same list is under Admin, then Taxes, where you can make HST 13% the default.
Assign the rate to each product as you add it, or fill the tax column before a bulk import. If you show prices tax-in, for example at a café counter, tick "price includes tax" on those products and SeroPOS works the HST back out of the price on the receipt and in the reports.
- HST 13%: most taxable sales
- HST rebated 5%: items that qualify for the point-of-sale rebate
- 0%: zero-rated groceries and exempt items
Coffee shops and the $4 rule
Toronto and Ottawa coffee shops and bakeries feel the rebate most. A coffee or a muffin at $4 or less can qualify for the rebate and be charged 5%, while the same customer's larger order may be charged 13%. The rules depend on the total of the qualifying food and drink, not just the price of one item, so read the CRA guidance carefully.
In SeroPOS the tax sits on each product. If your menu has small items that usually sell on their own under the threshold, you can set them up on the 5% rate, and keep larger items on 13%. For orders where the rule changes the answer, talk to your accountant about how to handle them, and check the Product Taxes section of the Daily Sales Report.
Card terminals that talk to the till
In Ontario most customers pay by Interac debit or tap, so the card terminal matters as much as the till. SeroPOS works with Moneris Go terminals and with Global Payments, either through Global Pay Cloud, which needs no cable or IP address, or with SeroPOS running on the Global Payments T650P handheld itself through Terminal Plus.
Each till can have its own terminal, set under Card Terminal for This Till, so a front counter and a bar charge on separate devices. Tips entered on the terminal print on the receipt, partial approvals ask for the balance on another card or in cash, and Close Batch prints a day-end summary from the till.
Already have a merchant account? Keep it if your processor is supported. If you want to compare costs, send us a recent statement and we'll quote a rate. Card processing is arranged separately from your SeroPOS plan. Tell us your monthly card volume and the terminals you use today, and we can say which setup fits your counter before you commit.
Tax reports and QuickBooks Canada
The Tax Report in the back office shows output tax on sales, input tax on purchases and tax on expenses, with an overall figure and the invoices behind each number, filtered by location and date range. The Daily Sales Report adds a tax summary for remittance, and it can be downloaded as a PDF or emailed at day end.
On the Pro plan SeroPOS sends sales, payments, customers and items to QuickBooks. QuickBooks Desktop, Canadian edition 2021 or later (Pro, Premier or Enterprise on Windows), connects through the Web Connector, and SeroPOS can build the HST tax items, groups and codes there for you, matched by rate rather than by name. QuickBooks Online for Canadian companies is supported too, with each SeroPOS rate mapped to a QuickBooks tax code.
Frequently asked questions
What is the HST rate in Ontario?
As of 2026 Ontario HST is 13%: 5% federal and 8% provincial, filed together with the Canada Revenue Agency. Some items qualify for a point-of-sale rebate of the provincial part and are charged 5%. Confirm current rates and rules with the CRA before you set up.
Do I need a tax group for HST?
No. HST is one tax, so a single 13% rate is enough for most products. You only need extra rates for exceptions: 5% for items that get the point-of-sale rebate and 0% for zero-rated items. Tax groups are for provinces with separate GST and PST.
Where do I see HST collected for my return?
Open the Tax Report in the back office and choose the location and date range of your filing period. It shows HST on sales, HST on purchases and on expenses, and an overall figure, with the invoices behind each total. Your accountant can export it.
Are these Ontario tax rates current?
The rates on this page are the well-known public rates as of 2026. Rates and exemptions change, so confirm them with the Canada Revenue Agency before you open, and again whenever a budget is announced. In SeroPOS a rate is stored once and reused by every product and group, so a change is a single edit.
How much does SeroPOS cost in Canada?
Standard is $30 a month and Pro is $50 a month, with a 14-day free trial and no card needed. Standard covers the full POS for one location and three users. Pro adds the floor plan designer, multi-till, CRM, recipes, advanced reports, QuickBooks and WooCommerce.