Update — September 18, 2026: B.C. has paused the planned October 1 expansion of PST to professional services. If you've been preparing to start charging PST on bookkeeping and accounting, architectural, geoscientist and engineering, non-residential real estate commissions and services, or security and private investigation services, that change is not going ahead on October 1 as originally scheduled.

Premier David Eby announced the pause today at the UBCM convention in Vancouver. The Province is pausing the expansion through a temporary regulation, tied to the ongoing Canada–U.S. trade disruption. There's no new effective date attached to it — the government hasn't set a timeline for revisiting the change.

What's actually paused

The existing PST exemption on these services stays in place. Nothing new is being collected on October 1 because of this expansion.

What this means for your business

If your business falls into one of the categories above, a few things are worth doing now:

1. Don't start charging the new PST on October 1 because of this expansion — it isn't taking effect.
2. Don't treat it as cancelled. The government's language is "pause," through a temporary regulation — not a permanent scrapping of the plan. It could still come back.
3. If you've already changed your invoicing, contracts, or pricing in anticipation of October 1, you have time to unwind that before it takes effect anywhere.
4. Check whether you have other PST obligations that have nothing to do with this expansion. BC PST already applies to plenty of goods and some services regardless of this announcement — this pause is specific to the professional-services expansion only.

None of this changes anything about GST/HST, which is federal and unrelated to this announcement.

If you're not sure whether something you sell falls inside or outside this pause, that's exactly the kind of question worth confirming with your own accountant or bookkeeper rather than guessing from a headline.

Why the pause happened

The government's framing is straightforward: with tariffs and trade uncertainty already squeezing businesses, adding a new tax on professional services right now works against the goal of keeping costs manageable. The Province estimates the pause saves businesses, local governments, and residents roughly $260 million in 2026–27.

Will this come back?

Unknown, and worth watching rather than assuming either way. There's no committed timeline for revisiting the expansion. We'll update this article if the Province announces anything further.

FAQ

Is the PST expansion cancelled or just delayed?
Delayed. The government's own language is "pause," implemented through a temporary regulation — the plan to eventually expand PST to these services hasn't been withdrawn, just postponed with no set restart date.

Does this affect GST/HST at all?
No. GST/HST is a separate federal tax and isn't touched by this announcement.

I already started charging PST in preparation for October 1 — what do I do?
Don't continue charging PST solely because of the planned professional-services expansion. If you've already issued invoices or collected amounts based on the anticipated October 1 change, review and correct them as appropriate, and confirm the treatment with the Province if you're unsure.

When will I know if the expansion is coming back?
There's no signal yet beyond the government's statement that it's paused. Treat any specific restart date you see elsewhere as unconfirmed until it comes from the Province directly.

Source: B.C. pauses PST expansion to professional services amid ongoing trade uncertainty — Province of British Columbia, Sept. 18, 2026.

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