Interior Design Firm Owners Under $1.5M: Your Simple Guide to GST in QuickBooks

The Promise

As an interior design firm owner focused on corporate and commercial projects, you know the creative side of your business. But when it comes to GST returns, even successful designers running thriving firms sometimes feel overwhelmed. Whether you're billing for design consultations, space planning, or project management fees, we can help make GST simple.

Why This Matters Now

For interior design firms with a November 30 fiscal year end, your GST filing and payment are due February 28. Here's what happens when your books aren't ready:

• The CRA charges both interest and penalties on late filings

• You might miss claiming back GST you paid on business expenses (called "input tax credits") - like design software subscriptions, office supplies, and professional development

• You risk triggering a CRA review if your filing seems incomplete

• You end up paying your accountant extra for rush work

Finding Your GST in QuickBooks Online: A Guide for Design Firms

Note: Don't try to catch up on bookkeeping right now. This is just about organizing what you have so you can start fresh.

Step 1: Make Sure Your Books Are Ready

Before you can trust your GST numbers, check that:

• All your design consultation invoices are entered

• All your commercial project billings are recorded

• Your business expense receipts are captured

• Your bank accounts are reconciled

• Any missing documentation is found and entered

Step 2: Run Your GST Reports

In QuickBooks Online:

1. Go to the "Taxes" menu

2. Click "Sales Tax"

3. Look for "Tax Return Filing"

4. Set your date range (December 1, 2023 - November 30, 2024)

You'll see two important numbers:

• GST you collected from your design clients (called "GST collected on sales")

• GST you paid on business expenses (called "input tax credits")

The difference between these is what you owe the CRA.

Step 3: Review Your Numbers

Check these key areas:

• Do your total design service billings look right for the year?

• Are all your business expenses included?

• Does anything look unusually high or low?

• Are there any transactions marked "uncategorized"?

When the Numbers Don't Look Right

Here's what often happens in design firms:

• Some receipts might be missing GST amounts

• Bank transactions might not be properly categorized

• Old transactions might need to be fixed

• Some GST might not be properly tracked

This is normal! Many design businesses find issues when they start looking closely at their GST.

The Real Problem (And Solution)

The truth is, getting your GST right isn't just about running reports - it's about having clean, current books all year round. As your design firm grows, this becomes even more important.

Signs Your Design Firm Might Need Help

• Your books are more than a month behind and your bookkeeper seems overwhelmed by your growing firm

• You're not sure if your design fees are properly categorized

• You have outstanding GST owing from previous years and you're losing sleep over this mounting debt

• You're worried about CRA penalties but you want to focus on design work, not tax compliance

How We Can Help Interior Design Firms

Propela specializes in:

1. Catching up messy books for design businesses

2. Setting up proper GST tracking for your service-based revenue

3. Making sure you claim all eligible input tax credits

4. Getting you ready for CRA deadlines

5. Keeping your design firm organized going forward

Our catch-up service can:

• Get your books current before your GST deadline and ensure proper GST tracking for all your design services

• Help you claim all eligible input tax credits on business expenses and save you money by avoiding CRA penalties and interest

• Get you back on track if you're behind on previous years

• Get you ready for a stress-free filing and keep you organized for next year

The Reality for Your Design Firm

Here's the reality for corporate and commercial design firms: your GST owing can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars. Why? Because while you're charging GST on substantial design fees, you typically don't have many project expenses where you can claim GST back. This means most of what you collect needs to be remitted to the CRA.

When these large amounts fall behind, the snowball effect is serious - each late filing adds penalties and interest to an already significant sum. But you don't have to face this alone. We've helped many design firm owners just like you get back on track and finally sleep well at night, knowing their GST is handled properly.

Ready to Stop Worrying About GST?

Book a Free Consultation

• 30-minute discovery call to review your current bookkeeping situation

• Get a clear plan for catching up and learn how we've helped other design firms like yours

• Understand what you can claim as input tax credits

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P.S. March 30 might seem far away, but catching up months of bookkeeping takes time. The sooner we start, the more likely you are to meet your deadline without rushing - and the sooner you can stop worrying about the CRA and get back to creating beautiful spaces for your clients.