Tweet

Working at Home in Canada - Are the Rules that Different?

Written by: Chris Simpson

Article Overview: Starting a business (which is what working at home is in most cases - a self-employed business) can be overwhelming all on its own, but when you throw in the fact that most of the information you read isn't written with you or your country in mind you might get a little discouraged before you even begin. There's no need to do so.

Working at Home in Canada - Are the Rules that Different?

Starting a business (which is what working at home is in most cases - a self-employed business) can be overwhelming all on its own, but when you throw in the fact that most of the information you read isn't written with you or your country in mind you might get a little discouraged before you even begin. There's no need to do so.

There is a lot of information on the Internet about working at home however; most of it may seem to be based on the U. S. Business and tax laws.

If you are Canadian or live in some other country, it might be a little bit more difficult to find the correct information with regards to legal and insurance issues as well as the actual setting up and running of your business. If you look in the right places, it can be found.

As you are researching information about working from home keep in mind there is a lot of information that will help no matter where in the world you live. You will find that differences may comes in the form of legal, insurance and tax issues, but in actuality working at home in Canada is very similar to working at home in the U.S.

In addition to Canadian laws, each provincial area may have its own set of rules so make sure to check with the Canadian Small Business Association for details regarding your specific location.

You may find one of the biggest differences between working at home in the U.S. and working at home in Canada will come in the form of your customers or clients. You may find that Canadians are more leery about purchasing online products than their U. S. counterparts and Americans are probably more likely to purchase from a U.S. site than a Canadian site until they get comfortable with and establish a relationship with you.

Don't let this statistic scare you away. It doesn't mean that you can't have a successful work at home business if you live in Canada. It just means you might have a harder time building the trust of some of your United States residing customers in the beginning.

Adding things to your business such as a blog or using a social network like Twitter or Facebook to build relationships will go a long way to getting your work at home business built more quickly.

You will also find the currency difference in Canada may affect the way you do business. Most of the time it's not that big of a deal and if you are working for a company who is also based in Canada you have nothing to worry about.

However, the ability to broaden your search for work via the Internet to all areas of the world, whether you're working directly for or selling to people in other countries will pose differences in currency no matter where you live.

Online payment processors will convert the currency to your home currency and you may see differences, but for the most part they will be either in your favor or so menial that it won't make a huge difference to your bottom line.

Research your market and find other businesses that compete with or complement your own. See what you can do for each other to increase business on both sides of the fence.

Related Articles
  Mortgage Canada rates - some implications and considerations
  Business Opportunity: Evolving From Employee To Entrepreneur
  Starting a Work at Home Business in Canada
  Rule 20 Rules are Made to be Broken
  Working from Home

Article Tags: actuality, canadians, counterparts, harder time, insurance, insurance issues, legal insurance, little bit, provincial area, relationship, self employed business, small business association, statistic, united states, work at home business, working at home, working at home in canada, working from home



Related Forum Posts
Re: What is Your Favorite Thing About Owning A Business? - [quote="freddyb45":1t3lpfi8]For me it's the fact that all the time and effort you put in is worth a lot more, due to it making you "business" more profitable. Working for yourself is also a positive, although employing people you can trust is quite different.[/quote:1t3lpfi8] I like this idea. Working for yourself means you are investing in your own future, not someone else's, although there is value in working for someone else first to gain experience and confidence. Working for yourself does not automatically mean success, fame and fortune. For most entrepreneurs, it takes much work and dedication to get to the point of financial success and comfort - sometimes years. But the benefit is, again, you know you are investing in yourself and building equity for your own future. GT :-]
Accessing the Canadian Market - Leo, an idea that came to mind is try to align yourself with Hispanic Organizations in Canada. This will build your credibility within communities and get more referrals. Not sure if you plan on being based in Canada or operate your business from Columbia but either way being in the web development arena allows you to work from anywhere. You can also search for opportunities originating from Canada thru elance.com, getafreelancer.com, freelance.com or rentacoder.com
Re: Introducing a US franshise to a Canadian market - [quote="BuzzAroundBooks":1l00q6iy]Hi Everyone, If there was a franchise you liked and located exclusively in the U.S., how likely would you be able to introduce the first one in a new market like Canada? How open are franchisors to this sort of idea? Has anyone heard how this was done in the past?[/quote:1l00q6iy] US franchisors are really open to "export" their concept to Canada for 2 main reasons: the proximity and the culture: Canada is just a few hours away from any US city and both cultures are very similar. I am actually reading stats on this subject as I write and about 80% of american franchises tat go international go to Canada first.
Retired Executives - Hello everyone. Does anyone know where I could be in contact with retired executive? Reason I ask is because I am in seek of a mentor to assist me with my business and I am having a hard time finding a mentor in Canada. It seems like executives in the US and Europe are lot more helpful than in Canada, as I have contacted a few individuals in Canada and they have either been rude or simply did not reply back to my e-mail. Does anyone know where I can find some retired executives, as I might have a better luck with them? Thanks!
Re: Trade Shows - Are They Worth It? - HI, I have used trade shows (not participated) to collect potential clients. For example, the Home & Garden Industry is extremely behind the time in regards to their websites. I attended an Home & Garden Expo in Denver and collected all the companies contact information. I plan on cold calling & mailing information to each business. It also gave me time to research the industry more, talk directly to the owners in many cases, and learn more about what they need. Jeff


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

A New Year in the Pharmaceutical Industry

TRADE SHOW FOLLOW-UP: HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?

Looking for an Easy Online Business Opportunity?

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.