An e-commerce seller preparing for year-end often hands their accountant a bank statement and a login to one platform’s seller dashboard, and assumes that covers it. It doesn’t. A platform payout is a net deposit figure, already stripped of fees, ad spend, and refunds; it is not the underlying transaction detail a tax return or GST/HST filing is actually built from. This checklist covers what a complete year-end file needs, by category, for a Canadian e-commerce seller running one or more marketplace or direct-to-consumer channels.
Platform Transaction and Payout Reports
For every platform sold on during the year:
- full transaction-level sales reports, not just the payout summary, since the payout is net of fees, ad spend, and refunds already deducted
- fee reports broken out by category (referral fees, fulfillment fees, storage fees, advertising spend, subscription costs) for each platform
- returns and refund reports for the year, since a refunded sale still generated a fee and often an ad cost that was never recovered
- year-end payout reconciliation tying total platform-reported gross sales to what actually deposited into the bank account
Amazon, Etsy, and other qualifying platforms now issue year-end information to CRA directly under Canada’s digital platform reporting rules, covered in the Digital Platform Reporting Rules guide. The seller’s own reconstructed figures need to match what the platform reported, or the mismatch becomes the first thing a CRA review flags.
GST/HST and QST Records
- copies of every GST/HST return filed during the year, along with the corresponding notices of assessment
- QST returns if the seller has a Quebec establishment or exceeds the Quebec registration threshold, covered in the QST for Quebec E-Commerce Sellers guide
- input tax credit (ITC) support: supplier invoices showing GST/HST paid on inventory, packaging, shipping supplies, and platform fees where applicable
- a record of the date the small supplier threshold was crossed, if registration happened partway through the year, covered in the GST/HST registration timing guide
- marketplace facilitator remittance statements, where the platform itself collects and remits GST/HST on the seller’s behalf, so the seller’s own filings don’t double-count tax the platform already handled
Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold Records
- year-end inventory count or system-generated inventory valuation, by SKU, using a consistent costing method, covered in the Inventory Costing Methods guide
- supplier invoices supporting landed cost: unit price, inbound freight, duties, and any prep or packaging cost
- records of inventory write-downs, damaged stock, or obsolete inventory disposed of during the year
- 3PL or fulfillment center statements showing storage and handling costs allocated to inventory on hand at year-end
US Tax Exposure Documents
For sellers with any US sales or FBA inventory:
- Amazon inventory placement and storage reports showing which US states held inventory during the year, relevant to the state nexus exposure covered in the Amazon FBA US Inventory and State Nexus Exposure guide
- any 1099-K forms issued by US payment processors or marketplaces
- records of any US state sales tax registrations, filings, or payments made during the year
- year-end balances for any US-based payout accounts, Payoneer, Wise, or other foreign payment processor holdings, needed to assess the T1135 foreign property threshold covered in the T1135 for Sellers with US Marketplace or Payment Accounts guide
Bookkeeping and Chart of Accounts Records
- a trial balance for the year, not just a year-end profit and loss summary
- bank and credit card statements for every account used in the business, reconciled against the books
- the chart of accounts structure used during the year, so platform fees, ad spend, and COGS are separated rather than pooled into a single expense line, covered in the Chart of Accounts Setup guide
- payroll records and T4 slips if the business has employees or the owner draws a salary through a corporation
Corporate and Structure-Specific Records
For incorporated sellers:
- prior-year T2, notices of assessment, and the corporate minute book
- shareholder loan continuity schedule showing the running balance through the year
- any dividend declarations or T5 slip preparation for the year
- records supporting whether the corporation should be incorporated in the first place remain relevant only if the structure decision is still open; covered in the Should I Incorporate as a Canadian E-Commerce Seller guide for sellers not yet incorporated
What Happens When the File Is Incomplete
A year-end file missing platform transaction detail, relying only on bank deposits and a rough inventory estimate, forces the preparer to reconstruct figures that should already exist, which adds cost and delay, and increases the risk that the return understates income, misses ITCs the seller was entitled to, or fails to match what the platform already reported to CRA. Building this list into a standing year-end routine, collected from each platform and reconciled before handing anything to a preparer, is what turns year-end from a reconstruction project into a review.
Scope of This Guide
This guide covers the document categories a Canadian e-commerce seller’s year-end file needs to be complete. It does not cover how to prepare the return itself, provincial filings beyond QST, or documentation specific to platforms not named above; the same categories generally apply regardless of which marketplace or storefront platform is involved.
Related Guides
- Digital Platform Reporting Rules and CRA Seller Income Verification covers what CRA already receives independently of the seller’s own filing.
- Chart of Accounts Setup for E-Commerce Sellers covers the bookkeeping structure that makes year-end reconciliation possible in the first place.
- Inventory Costing Methods: FIFO vs Weighted Average covers how the year-end inventory valuation itself is calculated.
Get in touch to discuss your situation.