When filing a T2 corporate tax return in Canada, you may need to complete Schedule 50 – Shareholder Information. One of the required fields is the Business Number (BN) for each shareholder.
But what happens if the shareholder is a foreign company that does not have a Canadian BN?
This situation is common when a Canadian corporation has shareholders that are international entities or non-resident corporations.
The Issue: Foreign Shareholders Without a BN
Many tax filing systems expect the BN field to follow the Canadian format.
However, foreign corporations often do not have a Canadian BN if they:
Are incorporated outside Canada
Do not operate directly in Canada
Do not have a CRA account or Canadian tax registration
Because of this, users may encounter validation errors when trying to leave the BN field blank or entering a non-Canadian identifier.
The Solution: Enter “NA”
If the shareholder does not have a Canadian Business Number, simply enter:
NA in the BN field.
This indicates that the BN is not applicable and allows the return to pass validation so you can continue filing.
CloudTax support confirms that entering NA in the BN field is the correct workaround when the shareholder is a foreign entity without a Canadian BN.
When This Applies
You can use NA when the shareholder is:
A foreign corporation
A non-resident company
An international holding company
Any entity that does not have a Canadian BN
The key requirement is that the shareholder does not have a CRA-issued Business Number.
Best Practices When Entering Foreign Shareholder Information
To ensure your Schedule 50 information is accurate, follow these steps:
Enter the legal name of the foreign corporation
Provide the country of incorporation
Enter NA in the BN field if no Canadian BN exists
Confirm the share ownership percentage
Verify the share class and number of shares
This ensures the shareholder information is correctly reported while avoiding system errors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I leave the BN field blank?
No. Most tax software requires an entry in the BN field. Entering NA is the recommended way to indicate the number does not apply.
What if the foreign company later obtains a Canadian BN?
If the shareholder later registers with the CRA and receives a BN, you can update that information in future filings.
Will CRA reject a return with “NA”?
No. Using NA simply indicates that the shareholder does not have a Canadian BN, which is acceptable when dealing with foreign entities.
Key Takeaway
If a shareholder is a foreign company without a Canadian Business Number, enter:
NA in the BN field
This allows the return to pass validation and ensures the shareholder information can still be properly recorded.