Monetize · Canada
Affiliate programs in Canada
41 programs a Canadian publisher can actually join — plus the payout, tax and disclosure details that decide whether a program is worth your time.
The four questions that actually decide this
- Does it accept Canadian affiliates? Shipping to Canada and accepting Canadian publishers are separate questions. A brand can do the first and refuse the second.
- What currency lands in your account? A USD payout into a Canadian bank loses roughly 2–4% to conversion before you see it. On thin retail commissions that is a meaningful share of the margin.
- Can you actually get paid? Check the payout method and the minimum threshold together. A US$100 minimum on a program paying $5 a sale is a very different product than it looks on the rate card.
- What paperwork does the payer need? US-based networks generally want a W-8BEN from a Canadian affiliate before the first payout clears. This is the step that silently blocks new affiliates.
Getting paid from a US network
Most large affiliate networks are US-based. When a US payer sends money to a Canadian affiliate, they generally need a W-8BEN on file first — the form that certifies you are not a US person and claims treaty benefits. Networks rarely explain this up front, so the first payout stalls and the affiliate assumes the program is broken.
Fill it in when you join, not when the first payment is due. It takes minutes and it is the single most common reason a Canadian affiliate's first cheque does not arrive.
- A W-8BEN is filed with the payer, not with the IRS or the CRA.
- It expires — networks usually ask you to re-certify every few years.
- Without it, a payer may apply the default US withholding rate to your commissions.
Currency and what it costs you
A program that pays in USD costs you a conversion spread on every payout. Depending on your bank that is roughly 2–4%, which matters most on high-volume, low-rate categories like electronics and general retail where the commission itself is thin.
Canadian-run programs paying CAD by direct deposit avoid this entirely. If two programs in the same category are otherwise comparable, the CAD payer is worth more than its rate card suggests.
- Multi-currency accounts or a service like Wise can reduce the spread on USD payouts.
- Check the minimum payout threshold in the payer's currency, not in mental CAD.
Income tax and GST/HST
Affiliate commissions are business income. They are taxable from the first dollar and reported on Form T2125 with your personal T1 return — there is no threshold below which the income stops counting.
The $30,000 figure that circulates in affiliate forums is a different rule. It is the GST/HST registration threshold: once your total worldwide taxable revenue passes $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or across four consecutive quarters, registration stops being optional. Below that you are a small supplier and registration is voluntary.
Whether you charge GST/HST on a commission depends on where the payer is. Commissions from a non-resident payer are commonly treated as zero-rated exports; commissions from a Canadian payer may be taxable. This distinction catches people who register and then apply one rule to every payer.
- Track commissions by payer and by payer's country from day one — you will need the split.
- The CRA can assess retroactively on revenue earned after the threshold was crossed, with interest.
- Registering voluntarily below the threshold lets you claim input tax credits on business purchases.
Disclosure: the Competition Act and Ad Standards
Affiliate links are a material connection. Failing to disclose one clearly can be treated as a deceptive marketing practice under the Competition Act, which the Competition Bureau enforces.
Ad Standards updated its Influencer Marketing Disclosure Guidelines in October 2025, and that edition addresses affiliate marketing explicitly alongside AI-generated content and child audiences. The standard it sets is clear and prominent disclosure — not a hashtag buried in a block of others, not a line in a profile bio, not a footer nobody scrolls to.
- Put the disclosure adjacent to the link, before the reader clicks.
- Use plain words. Ambiguous tags and abbreviations do not satisfy the standard.
- Applies to refer-a-friend and gifted-product arrangements, not only paid placements.
Quebec and provincial rules
Quebec's Charter of the French Language sets French-language obligations for commercial publications directed at Quebec consumers. If a meaningful share of your audience is in Quebec, budget for French creative rather than treating it as an afterthought.
Several affiliate categories are provincially regulated rather than federally. Insurance, lending, securities, alcohol and cannabis all carry province-specific promotion rules, and a program that is straightforward to promote in Ontario may not be in Quebec or British Columbia.
- Financial and insurance offers can require licensing depending on how you present them.
- Provincial rules attach to where your reader is, not where you are.
Disclosure wording you can copy
Disclosure has to be visible where the link is, not buried in a footer or a bio. Put it above the first affiliate link, in the same text size as the surrounding copy.
English
This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Français
Ce billet contient des liens d'affiliation. Si vous achetez par leur entremise, je peux recevoir une commission, sans frais supplémentaires pour vous.
Programs available to Canadian publishers
Filter by payout currency, network, or whether the terms have been verified. The CA payout column shows the currency you get paid in and flags programs that will ask for a W-8BEN.
| Program | Category | Commission | Model | Cookie | CA payout | Network | Terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FreshBooks | saas | Program terms vary by product, region, and network | varies | — | USD | cj | unverified |
| Thinkific | education | Program terms vary by product, region, and network | varies | — | USD | partnerstack | unverified |
| Amazon Associates Canada | retail | Category-based rate card, low single digits for most categories | one-time | 1d | CAD | amazon | unverified |
| Canadian Tire | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Best Buy Canada | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Indigo | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Well.ca | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Sport Chek | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Hudson's Bay | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Simons | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Staples Canada | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | rakuten | unverified |
| Endy | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | impact | unverified |
| Structube | retail | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Wealthsimple | finance | Referral bonus per funded account; affiliate terms separate | one-time | — | CAD | in-house | unverified |
| Questrade | finance | Cost-per-acquisition once the referred account qualifies | one-time | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| EQ Bank | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| KOHO | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | impact | unverified |
| Neo Financial | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Borrowell | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Ratehub | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Silver Gold Bull | finance | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| TELUS | telecom | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Koodo | telecom | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Fido | telecom | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Public Mobile | telecom | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Virgin Plus | telecom | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Air Canada / Aeroplan | travel | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | cj | unverified |
| Porter Airlines | travel | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| VIA Rail | travel | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| FlightHub | travel | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Hootsuite | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | USD | impact | unverified |
| Later | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | USD | other | unverified |
| Jane App | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | in-house | unverified |
| Wave | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | CAD | other | unverified |
| Clio | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | USD | other | unverified |
| Lightspeed Commerce | saas | Current rates published on the program page | varies | — | USD | other | unverified |
| Rakuten Advertising | network | Per-merchant terms set inside the network | varies | — | multi | rakuten | unverified |
| Awin | network | Per-merchant terms set inside the network | varies | — | multi | awin | unverified |
| CJ Affiliate | network | Per-merchant terms set inside the network | varies | — | multi · W-8BEN | cj | unverified |
| Impact | network | Per-merchant terms set inside the network | varies | — | multi · W-8BEN | impact | unverified |
| FlexOffers | network | Per-merchant terms set inside the network | varies | — | USD · W-8BEN | flexoffers | unverified |
How to read this page
Commission rates and cookie windows are not restated here from other people's articles. They move often, and roundups copy each other's stale numbers. Rows point at the program page instead, and the Terms column says plainly whether anyone has checked them.
Nothing here is tax or legal advice. The tax and disclosure sections summarise published CRA, Competition Bureau, and Ad Standards material so you know which questions to ask — confirm your own situation with an accountant.
Found something out of date? Tell us and it gets fixed at the source.
Common questions
- Do I need to register for GST/HST as an affiliate in Canada?
- Only once your total worldwide taxable revenue passes $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or across four consecutive quarters. Below that you are a small supplier and registration is voluntary. The $30,000 figure is a registration threshold, not an income-reporting threshold — commissions are taxable business income from the first dollar regardless.
- Why hasn't my first affiliate payout arrived?
- The most common cause for a Canadian affiliate on a US network is a missing W-8BEN. The payer needs it on file to certify you are not a US person before releasing funds. The second most common cause is a payout threshold you have not reached yet, measured in the payer's currency.
- Do I have to disclose affiliate links in Canada?
- Yes. An affiliate link is a material connection, and failing to disclose it clearly can be a deceptive marketing practice under the Competition Act. Ad Standards' October 2025 Influencer Marketing Disclosure Guidelines address affiliate marketing directly and require disclosure that is clear and prominent — next to the link, in plain language.
- Is it better to join a Canadian program or a US one?
- It depends on your audience, not your location. If your readers are Canadian, a Canadian merchant converts better and usually pays CAD without a conversion spread or a W-8BEN. If your audience is global, a US or international program with a stronger rate card will out-earn it even after FX.
- Can I promote Amazon to Canadian readers using an amazon.com link?
- You will not earn on it. Amazon runs separate country programs, and a Canadian reader who buys on amazon.ca does not generate a commission on an amazon.com tag. Join Amazon Associates Canada for Canadian traffic, and use a link localiser if your audience is split.