Accountant for chiropractors and chiropractic clinics.
A specialist accountant for chiropractors, not a generalist who sees one chiropractic return a year. We handle tax, bookkeeping and corporate accounting for chiropractic clinics the way they actually run, from solo practitioners in Whitby, Oshawa and Ajax to multi-practitioner clinics across the GTA and chiropractors in Toronto, all from a chartered professional accountant (CPA, CA) with 20+ years working with health professionals.
Chiropractic accounting is its own animal.
Most general accountants treat a chiropractic practice like any other small business. It isn't. The manual treatment you bill is exempt from HST, but the supplements and products you sell at the front desk are taxable, and custom orthotics on prescription are zero-rated, three different treatments under one roof. Your equipment depreciates across several CCA classes. Your associates and RMTs get paid in ways the CRA pays attention to. And your chiropractic professional corporation runs on share-ownership rules the College of Chiropractors of Ontario sets.
So yes, chiropractic clinics genuinely need an accountant for chiropractors, not a generalist learning on your file. We have handled tax planning, bookkeeping and corporate accounting for chiropractors, manual osteopaths and other regulated health professionals across Durham Region and the GTA for over 20 years. The patterns are familiar, the mistakes are predictable, and the tax planning wins are real.
Chiropractic accounting services, the full picture.
One firm for tax, bookkeeping, payroll and advisory services. One point of contact, one consistent set of advice, and nothing falls between your accountant and your bookkeeper because they are the same team, so you can focus on patient care.
Personal and corporate tax
Your personal T1 and your professional corporation T2 tax return filed together, planned together, and on time every year, with the salary and dividend mix set for tax efficiency.
HST on supplements and products
Manual treatment is exempt, retail supplements are taxable, and prescribed orthotics are zero-rated. We register you when your taxable sales require it and apportion the input tax credits correctly, so you charge and remit on the right items and claim what you are owed.
Monthly bookkeeping and financial statements
Bookkeeping reconciled to your practice management software (Jane, ClinicSense, ChiroTouch) and your bank every month, with financial statements that show the real cash flow of the clinic.
Payroll and associate pay
Payroll for front desk staff, RMTs and associate chiropractors run cleanly, with the right T4s and T4As at year-end and source deductions remitted on time.
Incorporation and tax planning
Whether to incorporate a chiropractic professional corporation, when, and how to pay yourself once you do. Salary, dividends or both, modelled as part of your wider tax planning to optimize how you draw income.
Multi-practitioner clinic advisory
Advisory services for clinics with several owner-practitioners, buying in, or selling out. We model the asset deal versus share deal numbers, and the financial planning around them, before you sign.
Four things most accountants miss.
These are the questions that come up almost every time a chiropractic practice changes accountants. Worth knowing whether or not we end up working together.
HST is not just "we're exempt"
Chiropractic treatment supplied to a patient for their health is exempt from HST, which is why you do not charge it, and why you generally cannot claim input tax credits on the expenses behind it. But the retail supplements and most products you sell at the front desk are taxable, and custom orthotics dispensed on a written prescription are zero-rated, taxable at zero percent with the input tax credits still recoverable. A clinic selling all three has to apportion its input tax credits across the exempt, taxable and zero-rated sides. Most clinics either miss the partial credits they are owed or skip apportionment and create an audit risk.
Associate and RMT classification
The CRA pays close attention to whether the chiropractors and RMTs billing through your clinic are employees or independent contractors. An associate paid a percentage of billings is the classic grey area. Get the structure wrong and you are either overpaying source deductions or sitting on a future reassessment. We review the arrangement and document it so the answer holds up.
Who can own shares of your professional corporation
Ontario chiropractors can incorporate a chiropractic professional corporation, but the College of Chiropractors of Ontario sets a strict rule: only CCO members can hold the shares, voting or non-voting. Unlike some other professions, you cannot issue non-voting shares to a spouse or your children, so the family income-splitting structures that work for non-professional businesses are simply not available here. TOSI, the tax on split income, then applies to a professional corporation the same way it applies to any private company. It is worth a real conversation before you set up the structure.
Equipment and leasehold CCA classes
Adjustment and treatment tables, modality and decompression equipment, computer and imaging hardware, and leasehold improvements all sit in different CCA classes, roughly Class 8, Class 50 and Class 13, each with its own write-off rate, plus Class 12 for instruments under $500. Put an item in the wrong class and you lose years of tax deferral. We sort the classification once, claim the accelerated first-year deduction where it is available, and run depreciation cleanly from then on.
Three kinds of chiropractic clients.
Solo practitioners
One chiropractor, one or two support staff, one location. We handle the personal tax return, the professional corporation return, payroll for a small team, and quarterly check-ins on cash flow.
Multi-practitioner clinics
Wellness clinics with chiropractors, RMTs, naturopaths and acupuncturists under one roof, where the exempt and taxable billing mix and the shareholder structure all have to line up. We work alongside your lawyer and keep the chiropractic accounting consistent across the clinic.
Associates buying in or selling out
Moving from associate to owner, or planning your exit from the chiropractic practice. We model the share deal versus asset deal numbers and the tax around them before you commit.
You'll work directly with Elena.
EK CPA Pro is owner-operated. When you call, you're talking to the CPA, CA who's actually doing the work, not a junior who hands the file off at year-end. Elena has been working with owner-operated businesses across Durham Region since 2009, and is a graduate of CPA Canada's In-Depth Tax Program.
Questions chiropractors ask first.
Do chiropractic clinics really need a specialized accountant?
Most do. A chiropractic practice has a three-way HST mix of exempt treatment, taxable supplements and zero-rated orthotics, equipment spread across several CCA classes, associate and RMT pay the CRA scrutinizes, and a professional corporation the College of Chiropractors of Ontario regulates. A general accountant can miss all of it. A specialized accountant for chiropractors has seen the patterns before, which usually means cleaner books, lower tax and fewer surprises. That is the whole reason chiropractic accounting exists as its own thing.
Should a chiropractor incorporate or stay a sole proprietor?
Usually incorporate once your practice income clears what you need to live on, because the small business deduction gives a chiropractic professional corporation a much lower tax rate on retained earnings than you pay as a sole proprietor. But it depends on your debt, your spouse's income, what you are saving for and how soon you might sell. We model both options with your real numbers before you decide.
Are chiropractic services subject to HST, and when do I have to register?
Chiropractic treatment provided for a patient's health is exempt, so you do not charge HST on it. Retail supplements are taxable and prescribed orthotics are zero-rated. Once your taxable and zero-rated sales together cross the $30,000 small supplier threshold over four consecutive quarters, you have to register and charge HST on the taxable items. Exempt treatment never counts toward that threshold. We set up the tracking and apportion the input tax credits every month.
Can I income-split with my spouse through my chiropractic corporation?
In Ontario, not through the corporation. The College of Chiropractors of Ontario only lets CCO members own shares, so a spouse or child cannot hold even non-voting shares of a chiropractic professional corporation and cannot receive dividends from it. The TOSI rules would apply on top of that anyway. There are still planning opportunities through salary and timing. We will walk through what is actually available in your situation.
Are chiropractic fees tax deductible, and what can I deduct as a chiropractor?
Two different questions. For a patient, fees paid to a licensed chiropractor are an eligible medical expense for the medical expense tax credit. For you as the clinic owner, you deduct most operating costs of the practice: rent, staff wages, supplements bought for resale, association dues, malpractice insurance, continuing education and equipment depreciation. The grey areas are usually vehicle use, home office, conferences with travel and meals. We go through the list in the first meeting and tell you what holds up with the CRA.
How much does an accountant cost, and how do you bill?
Fixed-fee, quoted up front. You will know the cost of your year-end, your corporate and personal tax returns and your monthly bookkeeping before we start. No surprise invoices, no hourly billing. Most chiropractic clinics fall into a predictable range once we see the size of the practice and how many practitioners bill through it.