Corporate Registry

Frequently Asked Questions on the New West Partnership Trade Agreement

Information for B.C. Entities

Information for Alberta Entities

Information for Saskatchewan Entities

Back to topTop

Information for B.C. Entities

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR A BRITISH COLUMBIA COMPANY CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN ALBERTA AND/OR SASKATCHEWAN

When does the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA) take affect?

Seamless business registration between B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan under NWPTA commenced on July 1, 2012.

How do I extraprovincially register my company in Alberta and/or Saskatchewan at the same time as I incorporate a new British Columbia company?

The first step is to submit a name approval in Name Requests Online which will request staff to facilitate an Alberta name search (NUANS) and/or a Saskatchewan name search. Once the name(s) is approved, go to Corporate Online and at the end of the transaction, corporations will be asked to provide additional information to extraprovincially register in the other province(s).

If I am an existing company in British Columbia and would like to do business in Alberta and Saskatchewan what do I need?

To extraprovincially register in Alberta you will require a valid Alberta name search (NUANS). You will also need to establish an attorney for service in Alberta. To extraprovincially register in Saskatchewan you will need to have a valid Saskatchewan name reservation number. You will also need to establish a power of attorney for service in Saskatchewan.

Once your name(s) is approved in Alberta and/or Saskatchewan, go to Corporate Online at www.corporateonline.gov.bc.ca and choose the transaction called “Register a B.C. Company with a New West Partner”.

Are there any costs for me to register my corporation in Alberta or Saskatchewan?

You will be required to pay for the name search in Alberta and/or Saskatchewan. There are no additional fees to extraprovincially register your company in Alberta or Saskatchewan, as all registration and other filing fees were eliminated under NWPTA.

Why do I need to establish an attorney for service?

An attorney for service must be established in order to receive notices in that province. The address of the attorney for service must be in the same jurisdiction as the extraprovincial registration request.

After registration in Alberta and/or Saskatchewan, am I required to file any additional or subsequent information?

Under NWPTA you will no longer be required to file annual reports in the extraprovincial jurisdictions, however you will still be required to keep information about your head office and attorney for service up to date as well as any changes regarding corporate name or status such as amalgamation or continuation to another jurisdiction.

If my corporation is already extraprovincially registered in Alberta under TILMA, what action is needed to register under NWPTA?

Companies that were registered under TILMA have been automatically registered under NWPTA. No action is required on your part.

My B.C. Corporation is already extraprovincially registered in Saskatchewan, what action is required on my part to register under NWPTA?

No action is required. As part of the conversion process, B.C. companies extraprovincially registered in Saskatchewan have been automatically registered under NWPTA.

If your company is registered under NWPTA, you are no longer required to file an annual return with Saskatchewan. Other filings to update information about your registration such as the attorney for service in Saskatchewan or Head Office are done at no additional charge and can be submitted to Saskatchewan by going to Corporate Online.

What happens to my Alberta or Saskatchewan extraprovincial registration if my corporation is no longer active?

If your company is no longer active in British Columbia and an annual return is no longer being filed with the BC Registry Services, you will be notified of the dissolution of your corporation and, following a specified period, your corporation will be dissolved for failure to file its annual return. This information is transmitted to Alberta and/or Saskatchewan and they will automatically cancel your registration there.

Do I need to have my name approved for use in Alberta or Saskatchewan if I have a numbered company name?

No you do not need to have the numbered name approved, but you still need to choose an attorney for service and still need to submit information to register.

My corporation is registered extraprovincially in Alberta and Saskatchewan and we are changing our attorney. What do I need to do?

A self-service transaction exists in Corporate Online to update your Alberta and/or Saskatchewan attorney for service.

My company is registered extraprovincially in Alberta and Saskatchewan and we need to update our head office address. How do I do this?

A self-service transaction exists in Corporate Online to update your Head Office Address information. This information is shared with Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Where can I find more information on NWPTA?

Additional FAQ information on NWPTA is available on the New West website located at: www.newwestpartnershiptrade.ca

Back to topTop

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS AND LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIPS CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN ALBERTA

What do I need to register extraprovincially in Alberta?

If a limited liability partnership wishes to register extraprovincially in Alberta, it will have to provide an Alberta resident attorney for service. There is no requirement for a limited partnership to have an Alberta resident attorney for service.

What is the impact of the New West Partnership Trade Agreement on limited partnerships and limited liability partnerships in Alberta?

There is no change from TILMA. The staff at BC Registry Services will continue to facilitate extraprovincial registration in Alberta of both types of partnerships. To make the registration process easy, the Name Requests Online system will ask clients wanting to register limited partnerships and limited liability partnerships in British Columbia, whether they want to do business in Alberta. If you answer “yes”, you will be directed to the BC Registry Services website and asked to complete forms for registration in British Columbia and in Alberta. Both forms will be submitted to BC Registry Services. The registry will file the form to register the entity in British Columbia and send the other form to Alberta for extraprovincial registration. There is no requirement by Alberta for a registry names search (NUANS) to be conducted for limited partnerships or limited liability partnerships.

Extraprovincial registration filing fees have been eliminated for Alberta. In addition, filing of annual reports is no longer required.

Alberta requires a limited liability partnership to maintain an attorney for service if it registers extraprovincially.

In order to comply with NWPTA, British Columbia requires an Alberta limited partnership to have a resident attorney in British Columbia.

Back to topTop

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR B.C. COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATIONS CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN ALBERTA

Are British Columbia cooperative associations doing business in Alberta impacted?

There is no change from the TILMA process. The same benefits afforded British Columbia corporations also apply to British Columbia cooperative associations. Existing cooperative associations registered in Alberta no longer have to file an annual return in Alberta. However, they must still keep their attorney information up to date. All filing fees have been eliminated as well.

If you are a cooperative association and you want to incorporate in British Columbia and do business in Alberta, BC Registry Services will help you with your name approval in Alberta and will also facilitate registration for you.

Go to the BC Registry Services website for more information on British Columbia cooperative associations and NWPTA.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS AND LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIPS CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN SASKATCHEWAN

Do I need to register extraprovincially in Saskatchewan?

In July 2013, NWPTA will be expanded to include businesses registering as limited partnerships or limited liability partnerships in British Columbia, and cooperative associations incorporating in British Columbia, that wish to extraprovincially register in Saskatchewan, and vice versa.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATIONS CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN SASKATCHEWAN

Are British Columbia cooperative associations doing business in Saskatchewan impacted?

In July 2013, NWPTA will be expanded to include businesses registering as limited partnerships or limited liability partnerships in British Columbia, and cooperative associations incorporating in British Columbia, that wish to extraprovincially register in Saskatchewan, and vice versa.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR SOLE PROPRIETORSHIPS, GENERAL PARTNERSHIPS

I have a sole proprietorship in British Columbia. Can I register it in Alberta and Saskatchewan?

Currently there are no requirements to register extraprovincially sole proprietorships or general partnerships in another jurisdiction in order to do business in another jurisdiction. However, you are required to obtain the necessary licences and permits as required by local governments in their jurisdictions.

Back to topTop

Information for Alberta Entities

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR AN ALBERTA COMPANY CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

Do I still need to register my Alberta Corporation as an extraprovincial company in British Columbia?

Yes. The British Columbia Business Corporations Act requires an Alberta corporation to register as an extraprovincial company within two months after it begins to carry on business in British Columbia.

Do I need to file any documents with BC Registry Services if I am an Alberta corporation doing business in British Columbia as a NWPTA company? What about the filing of annual reports?

All records and information needed to register and update an Alberta corporation in British Columbia will be facilitated by the Alberta Registry and/or its service providers.

Once the Alberta Corporation’s name is approved for use in British Columbia, the corporation will only need to provide the name and addresses of the attorney in British Columbia and the addresses of its head office. This information will be sent to BC Registry Services by the Alberta Registry on behalf of the Alberta Corporation and BC Registry Services will issue the Corporation a Certificate of Registration.

Once the Alberta Corporation is registered in British Columbia it must keep the information on the register up to date by advising the Alberta Registry of any changes. The Alberta Registry will send this information to BC Registry Services to file.

The requirement to file an annual report in both British Columbia and Alberta has been eliminated.

How long will it take to do an extraprovincial registration of an Alberta company in British Columbia?

Under TILMA, BC Registry Services receives registration information from Alberta once a day and file the registration form promptly The certificate along with any other documentation are issued on the following business day. Effective July, 2012 registration information received from Alberta will be filed throughout the day as received and Certificate of Registration along with any other documentation will be issued on the following business day.

Back to topTop

Information for Saskatchewan Entities

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR A SASKATCHEWAN COMPANY CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

Do I still need to register my Saskatchewan Corporation as an extraprovincial company in British Columbia?

Yes. The British Columbia Business Corporations Act requires a Saskatchewan corporation to register as an extraprovincial company within two months after it begins to carry on business in British Columbia.

Do I need to file any documents with BC Registry Services if I am a Saskatchewan corporation doing business in British Columbia as a New West Partnership Trade Agreement company? What about the filing of annual reports?

All records and information needed to register and update a Saskatchewan corporation in British Columbia will be facilitated by the Saskatchewan Registry.

Once the Saskatchewan corporation’s name is approved for use in British Columbia, the corporation will only need to provide the name and addresses of the attorney in British Columbia and the addresses of its head office. This information will be sent to BC Registry Services by the Saskatchewan Registry on behalf of the Saskatchewan Corporation and BC Registry Services will issue the Corporation a Certificate of Registration.

Once the Saskatchewan Corporation is registered in British Columbia it must keep the information on the register up to date by advising the Saskatchewan Registry of any changes. The Saskatchewan Registry will send this information to BC Registry Services to file.

The requirement to file an annual report in both British Columbia and Saskatchewan has been eliminated.

Back to topTop