Certificate of Good Standing for an Ontario Company
January 31st, 2010 | by Holly Crosgrey |Ontario Certificates of Status are issued by the Ontario Ministry of Government Services for Ontario companies. Sometimes these are called Certificates of Good Standing or Certificates of Compliance and all companies registered in all jurisdictions in Canada and for that matter all companies registered in any country can obtain these certificates when needed. They are called Certificates of Status in Ontario.
Certificates of Status are issued when you need to provide some institution or person with confirmation that your Ontario company is in good standing and is up-to-date in its filings.
The Certificate of Status for an Ontario company will provide the name of the company, the Ontario corporation number issued by the Ministry of Government Services and its status whether it is or is not in good standing.
All Ontario companies have to file a federal tax return within six months of the financial year end of the company in each year. If returns are not filed the tax department will request the Ontario Companies Branch to dissolve the company. If a Certificate of Status is ordered for a dissolved company it will not be clear.
An Ontario company has a statute requirement to file an annual return each year and it the return is not filed the company will end up being dissolved by the Companies Branch. A clear Certificate of Status cannot be obtained if a company is in default of not filing its annual returns.
The government does not refund the money if a clear Certificate of Status cannot be issued. Basically it will issue a Certificate of Status that indicates the Ontario company is not in compliance and you will then need to file any outstanding returns and order a new Certificate of Status. A Certificate of Status is not cheap so if you know in advance you have not made your filings you should at the least ensure all Ontario annual returns are filed before ordering your Certificate of Status. If you have some outstanding tax returns but have not been dissolved then you will still receive a favourable Certificate of Status as long as your Ontario annual returns have been filed with the Ontario Companies Branch.
A Certificate of Status is not an Ontario corporate search. If you are trying to determine information about an Ontario company you should have an Ontario Corporate Profile search done rather than ordering a Certificate of Status.
Certificates of Status are sometimes required by banks, law firms, individuals on the other side of a corporate deals whereby the company might be sold, when the corporation registers a car, when a company buys property, or numerous other reasons. Any person or institution that an Ontario company is dealing with may ask the directors and officers to provide them with a Certificate of Status to ensure the company is in good standing with the Ontario government.
Resources for Canadian Business Owners provides information about Certificates of Good Standing for Ontario Companies and other legal products including Ontario Company Searches.
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