Business Setup
Set the company up the way a lender will want to read it.
Incorporation is the first financing decision, not the last housekeeping item. The way you structure the company, file registrations, and handle initial compliance sets the ceiling on what lenders can approve and how fast they can move.
PFG handles incorporation and registrations so you are compliant and fundable from day one. PMG, our accounting arm, keeps you that way after.
Why Setup Matters
Corporate structure is a lender question.
Owners often think of incorporation as a legal box to tick. Lenders think of it differently. They read the articles of incorporation, the registrations on file, and the compliance record to understand what kind of business you are, what liabilities are insulated, and what tax treatment applies. A company set up wrong for financing can cost you eight weeks of rewrites in the middle of your application.
The registrations matter equally. An HST account that is not open when it should be, or a payroll account missing before your first hire, signals the lender that the file is incomplete or the owner does not understand tax obligations. These are not minor. They are the differences that turn a five-week approval into a three-month stall or a decline.
Setup is the first step toward fundability. We do it the way the lender will read it.
The Scope
What gets done.
The Process
How setup runs.
The System
First, we read your file the way lenders read it.
The company is set up; the registrations are live. What it qualifies for is the next question, and that is where the System assessment answers it. Every engagement starts with the same assessment: your financials and your ask, weighed against what each lender desk actually approves. It ends in one of two places, and both of them move you forward.
If the file is fundable
It goes to the right desk, and only the right desk.
We match your profile to the lenders whose approval patterns fit it. No blasting your file across forty inboxes, no surprise calls from lenders you never chose.
If it is not fundable yet
You get a plan that names what blocks you.
What stopped the file, what changes it, and how long that takes. Most declines are fixable; the plan is the work of fixing them, on a timeline you can hold us to.
Questions, answered
What owners ask us about setup.
Should I incorporate or stay a sole proprietor?
It depends on three things: tax timing (corporations defer tax until you take it out as salary or dividend; sole proprietors pay as they earn), liability (a corporation separates personal assets from business debt; a sole proprietor does not), and what you can finance. Most commercial lending and the government-guaranteed programs are built around corporations, so the structure decision is quietly a financing decision. The tradeoff: corporations cost money to maintain, with registrations, year-end filings, and ongoing compliance. For a small bootstrapped operation, sole proprietorship often wins on cost. For anything you plan to borrow against, incorporation usually wins. We run the math on both sides.
Federal or provincial incorporation, which one?
Federal incorporation is accepted everywhere in Canada and simplifies things if you ever operate in multiple provinces. Provincial incorporation is regional: a BC corporation is recognized in BC and can operate there, but operating in Ontario requires extra steps. Federal is the safer default for growth; provincial is fine if you are purely local. The choice also affects what registrations follow.
What registrations does a new corporation actually need?
It depends on your revenue and employees. HST/GST: if your revenue crosses $30,000 in any 12-month period, you must register. Before that threshold, it is optional but often beneficial (you can claim input tax credits). Payroll account: if you hire anyone, even a contractor who looks like an employee, the CRA expects a payroll account open before you pay them. WSIB (Ontario, others by province): if you have employees in a province where WSIB applies, you must register. Business license (municipal): some cities require one, some do not. Regulated trades (electricians, plumbers, etc.): if you are in one, the province has specific licensing and bond rules. We audit your situation and file what applies.
How long does incorporation take?
The filing itself is the fast part; online incorporation often clears in days. The real clock runs on everything after: HST/GST and payroll accounts, licenses, and the business bank account, each with its own agency and its own queue. The pattern that costs owners months is discovering a missing registration in the middle of a financing application, when the lender asks for it. Done in the right order, the registrations overlap instead of stacking, which is most of what you are paying us for.
I already incorporated. What happens next?
We audit whether your registrations are complete and on file. Missing HST account? Payroll setup incomplete? License expired? These are the gaps lenders find during underwriting, and finding them yourself first saves weeks. We also check compliance status: year-end filings made, minutes recorded, director registers current. If anything is behind, we catch up before you approach a lender.
Facts follow CRA and provincial guidelines current as of June 2026. Registration timelines are typical but vary by province and processing queue.
Get the company set up right.
One engagement handles incorporation, registrations, licensing, and a compliance handoff. You are fundable and compliant from day one.