T4A slip, explained
The slip follows the money, not the chair. A shop that pays commission or per-service fees to a barber it treats as self-employed is paying fees for services, and the CRA’s administrative policy is that a T4A is required once the year’s payments to that person pass $500, reported in box 048 without GST/HST. A booth renter who pays the shop rent is the opposite case: the shop received money, so no T4A is issued, and the renter reports their own income.
The deadline is the last day of February for both the copy to the barber and the return to the CRA. The CRA has said it is not currently assessing penalties for a missing box 048 outside the trucking sector, but a late or missing slip is still a late information return, and the barber still needs the number to file.
The mistake shops make most is mixing the two models on one person. A barber paid commission as an employee gets a T4 with CPP and EI deducted; a barber paid commission as a self-employed contractor gets a T4A and no deductions, and which one they are is decided by the working relationship, not by the slip. A shop that issues a T4A to someone the CRA later rules an employee owes both shares of the CPP and EI it never deducted.
BarberFlow keeps a payout history per barber, so the year’s commission paid to a self-employed barber is one export rather than a reconstruction from bank statements, and booth rent collected is recorded separately as the shop’s income. The slips themselves, and the employee-versus-contractor call, stay with your accountant or payroll provider.
See AccountingFrequently asked questions
Does a barbershop have to issue a T4A to a chair renter?
No. A chair renter pays the shop, so the shop issues no slip and reports the rent as its own income. A T4A goes the other way: to a self-employed barber the shop paid commission or fees to, once the year’s payments pass $500.
When is the T4A deadline?
The last day of February following the year the fees were paid, for both the barber’s copy and the return filed with the CRA.
What happens if I do not file a T4A?
The CRA has said it is not currently assessing penalties for a missing box 048 outside the trucking sector, but a late information return can still attract late-filing penalties and the barber is left without the figure they need to file. Issue it on time.
