Which companies need a BC attorney?

Every extraprovincial company whose charter puts its head office outside BC must have at least one BC attorney (section 386). That includes companies from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, which the New West Partnership exempts from BC fees and annual reports but not from the attorney requirement. The attorney must be an individual resident in BC or a BC company.

How much does extraprovincial registration in BC cost?

For companies from Ontario, Quebec, the Atlantic provinces, the territories and outside Canada: a $30 name reservation, a $350 registration fee, and a $43.39 annual report each year. Federal corporations pay $350 with no name reservation. Companies from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba pay only the $30 name reservation, and file no BC annual report.

What happens if a company doesn't register in BC?

Carrying on business in BC without registering is an offence under the Business Corporations Act, with fines of up to $100 for each day. A registered company that misses two annual reports in a row can have its registration cancelled.

Extraprovincial Registration in BC: Requirements, Fees & BC Attorney

Q: Does a company from another province need to register in BC?

Yes, if it carries on business in British Columbia. Under section 375 of the BC Business Corporations Act it must register as an extraprovincial company within two months after it begins to carry on business in BC. Having an office, warehouse or resident agent in BC, or a BC address or phone number in a directory or advertisement, counts as carrying on business.

Who has to register — and by when

Section 375 of BC's Business Corporations Act requires a company formed outside BC to register as an extraprovincial company within two months after it begins to carry on business in BC. The clock runs from when business starts here, not from when the company was formed.

The Act treats a company as carrying on business in BC if it has an office, warehouse or place of business here, a resident agent, or a BC address or phone number in a directory or advertisement — or if it otherwise carries on business here (s.375(2)). Hiring staff, signing BC customers or opening a BC location usually tips a company over the line.

Not registering is an offence. Carrying on business in BC without registering can bring fines of up to $100 for each day (s.426, Business Corporations Regulation s.35).

The BC attorney: required for every province

Every extraprovincial company must have at least one BC attorney unless its own charter puts its head office in BC (s.386(1)). The attorney accepts legal documents and receives notices on the company's behalf in BC, and is named in the registration statement.

It applies to every province and territory. Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba companies are exempt from BC fees and annual reports under the New West Partnership, but not from the attorney requirement.
Federal corporations need one only if their articles put the registered office outside BC. If yours is in BC, see federal corporations in BC.
Who can act: an individual who lives in BC, or a BC company (s.386(2)), with a BC street address that is open during business hours — not a PO box.

We act as your BC attorney for $249 a year plus tax. A practicing BC lawyer is named as attorney, anything served or mailed to you is scanned and emailed the same business day, and legal documents are also flagged by phone. You accept the agreement and pay online; the attorney's name and BC address follow the same business day. Sign up.

Government fees by where the company is from

Home jurisdiction	Name reservation	Registration	BC annual report	BC attorney
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba	$30	$0	None	Required
Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic provinces, territories	$30	$350	$43.39 / yr	Required
Federal (Corporations Canada)	Not needed	$350	$43.39 / yr	Only if registered office is outside BC
United States and other countries	$30	$350	$43.39 / yr	Required

Fees checked against the BC Business Corporations Act Schedule and B.C. Reg. 88/2009 on 24 September 2026. BC Registries adds $1.50 to most online filings.

How registration works

Reserve the name in BC (not needed for federal corporations)Use the same name as in your home jurisdiction. If it isn't available in BC, you register under an assumed name and give an undertaking to use it here.
Line up your BC attorneyYou need the attorney's name and BC delivery and mailing address for the filing.
File the registration statement on BC's Corporate OnlineCompany name, home jurisdiction and number, date of formation, head office addresses and the attorney. Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba companies use the New West Partnership version of the form and pay no registration fee. Companies from outside Canada first send BC Registries a certificate of status from their home jurisdiction dated within the last year; US LLCs file on paper by mail.
Receive the Certificate of RegistrationOnline filings are usually registered as soon as the fee is paid.

Prefer not to deal with it? We file the registration for $99 plus tax, plus the government fees at cost. Tick the box when you sign up for the BC attorney service.

Every year after

BC annual report within two months after each anniversary of the BC registration ($43.39). Two missed reports in a row and the Registrar can cancel the registration. Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba companies file none in BC. Our $249 attorney service files it for you where it's required.
Changes to the head office, the company's name, its home jurisdiction or its attorney must be filed in BC ($20 each; free for New West Partnership companies).
Leaving BC: file a notice that the company has stopped carrying on business here, so the registration and the fees end.

Common questions

We're an Alberta (or Saskatchewan, or Manitoba) company. Do we really need a BC attorney?

Yes. The New West Partnership removes the $350 BC registration fee and the BC annual report for companies from those provinces, but section 386 of the Act still applies to them. The registration can't be completed without an attorney's name and BC address.

Can our lawyer or accountant in our home province be the attorney?

Only if they live in BC or it's a BC company. The attorney has to be reachable at a BC street address during business hours.

Should we register in BC or move the company to BC?

Most companies simply register. Moving a company's home jurisdiction (continuation) is a bigger legal step and usually only makes sense if the company is relocating entirely. That is legal advice specific to your situation, available separately under a written retainer.

We've been doing business in BC for more than two months already. What now?

Register now, giving the real date business began in BC. That stops the problem getting larger. We can file it for you this week.

Is this legal advice?

No. This page explains the general rules. Acting as a company's BC attorney is an administrative service; legal advice is available separately under a written retainer.

Extraprovincial registration in BC: what's required, what it costs, and the BC attorney