Business BCeID and BC Registry Accounts: What You Actually Need to File in B.C.

Just need the filing done? File your B.C. annual report → · $99 + GST including the BC Registries fee — no BCeID or BC Services Card app, just your company password.

A Business BCeID is a login credential. It proves two things to a B.C. government service: who you are, and which business you are associated with. You need one — or an equivalent login — before you can get into a BC Registry account and file anything online yourself.

What nobody tells you up front is that the login is only the first of three things you need, and that for a lot of small corporations the whole setup costs more time than the filing it unlocks. This page covers how to get one properly, and when you genuinely shouldn't bother.

What is a Business BCeID?

BCeID is the province's identity service for people logging into B.C. government systems. There are two kinds that still matter:

Basic BCeID — self-registered online. You choose a user ID and password, answer some security questions, and the account is active immediately. No identity verification, no documents, no in-person visit. It proves you control an email address and nothing more.

Business BCeID — proves both your identity and your association with a specific business. It is the one that lets you act for a company. Because it makes a claim about a real organisation, registering is a heavier process, and that is where most of the friction sits.

Personal BCeID was retired on 31 July 2025 and is no longer available.

A Business BCeID is not the same thing as a BC Registry account. The BCeID is the key; the BC Registry account is the room it opens. You need both, and then a third thing on top, which we come to below.

BCeID or BC Services Card — which do you need?

A BC Registry account accepts more than one login method, and the right choice depends on what you already have:

Login method	What it takes to set up	Best for
BC Services Card app	Identity verification with government ID; app on a phone	People who already have one for health or ICBC services
Business BCeID	Business verification, often in person (see below)	Someone acting for a company, especially an employee or bookkeeper
BC Token device	User ID, password, and a code from a hardware token	People who don't want a smartphone in the loop

The BC Services Card app is the option BC pushes hardest, and if you already have one because of MSP or ICBC, it is far and away the fastest route — you are simply logging in.

If you don't, the calculation changes. Setting up a BC Services Card means verifying your identity against government ID, which is the same category of effort as the Business BCeID in-person step. Neither is a five-minute job.

How do you register for a Business BCeID, and how long does it take?

There are two paths, and which one you land on depends on a detail most people don't anticipate.

If your company is incorporated in B.C., you can usually complete registration online using your incorporation number — the number the BC Corporate Registry assigned at incorporation, printed in the top right corner of your Certificate of Incorporation, Amalgamation, Continuation or Change of Name. If you don't know where that certificate is, you can look the corporation up in the registry or order a B.C. corporate profile report, which shows it.

If all you have is a Business Number, the online path closes. Registering with only a BN means completing registration in person at a BCeID Point of Service location, with original supporting documentation. This catches out sole proprietors, partnerships, and extra-provincially registered companies.

Where in-person verification is required, you must present two primary identification documents, or one primary and one secondary. Primary means things like a B.C. driver's licence, a B.C. Services Card with photo, a Canadian passport, a birth certificate, a permanent resident card or a certificate of citizenship. Secondary covers a non-photo BC Services Card, another province's driver's licence, Canadian Forces ID, or a bank card carrying your name and signature. Photocopies are not accepted and nothing expired counts. If your ID doesn't show your current address, you need address verification as well — a vehicle registration, or posted mail from a utility or government source.

On timing: once submitted, the account is typically authorized within three business days, and BCeID's own guidance is to contact them if you have heard nothing after six. Where verification assistance is needed, allow up to three weeks. If you have a deadline, do not start this the week it falls due.

The part everyone forgets: affiliating the business

Here is the step that surprises people who have done everything right.

A BCeID gets you into a BC Registry account. It does not give that account any power over your corporation. Before you can file anything, the business has to be affiliated to your account — and B.C. gates that with a per-company credential, not with your identity.

There are three ways to affiliate a business:

1. The passcode — the access code from your annual report reminder notice, or the company password if one was set. Fastest by far, if you have it.
2. A link emailed to the registered office address on file — useful when the passcode is lost, but only if you can still receive mail or email at the address the registry has.
3. Requesting access from another account that already manages the business, such as your lawyer's or accountant's.

So the full self-serve path is: get a login, create a BC Registry account, then find your company passcode. Three separate obstacles, any one of which can stall you. The passcode is the one that stops most people, because it arrives on a notice that gets thrown away.

Do you actually need a Business BCeID?

Sometimes genuinely yes. If you manage several corporations, file frequently, or want direct access to the registry for your own reasons, the setup pays for itself and you should do it.

But run the arithmetic for a single corporation filing once a year:

• Business BCeID registration, possibly in person with two pieces of original ID
• Up to three business days for authorization, longer if verification is needed
• A BC Registry account to create
• A company passcode to find, or a recovery process to start if you can't

…to file one annual report. For most one-corporation owners the login is not the product; the filing is. A B.C. annual report through CRS is $99 all-in + GST, and you need none of the above — just the company password; we file it as your agent.

The same is true of the other B.C. filings people assume require a portal login: a certificate of good standing, a corporate profile report, or a new incorporation.

Where we will ask you for something is the company passcode, and only for filings the registry gates behind it. If you don't have it, we recover it with you rather than sending you away — that is a normal part of the job, not a reason to abandon the order.

Related B.C. filings

• How to file your B.C. annual report — due within two months of your incorporation anniversary
• BC transparency register — required of every private B.C. company since October 2020
• What it costs to incorporate in B.C.
• B.C. corporate minute books

Frequently asked questions

Is a Business BCeID free?

Yes, there is no fee to register for a Business BCeID. The cost is in the time and the verification requirements — potentially an in-person visit with original identification, and up to three business days for your account to be authorized.

What's the difference between a Basic BCeID and a Business BCeID?

A Basic BCeID is self-registered online in minutes with no identity verification; it proves you control an email address. A Business BCeID additionally proves your association with a specific business, which is why it requires verification and, in some cases, attending a Point of Service in person with original identification documents.

Can I use a BC Services Card instead of a BCeID?

Yes. A BC Registry account accepts the BC Services Card app, a BCeID, or a BC Token device. If you already hold a BC Services Card for health or ICBC purposes, it is usually the quickest way in, because you are simply logging in rather than registering for something new.

How long does a Business BCeID take to set up?

Accounts are typically authorized within three business days of submission, and BCeID advises contacting them if you have not heard back within six. Where verification assistance is required — for example, registering with only a Business Number — allow up to three weeks.

Do I need a BCeID to file my B.C. annual report?

Only if you intend to file it yourself through the registry. CRS files B.C. annual reports as your agent for $99 all-in + GST, which requires no BCeID, no BC Registry account, and no portal login on your side. For filings the registry gates behind a company passcode, we will ask you for it, or help you recover it.

I have a BCeID but still can't file — why?

Because a login is not authorisation over a specific company. The business must be affiliated to your BC Registry account first, which B.C. gates with the company's access code or password, an emailed link to the registered office address on file, or a delegation request to an account that already manages it. A BCeID on its own gets you into the account, not into your corporation.

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Turnaround: 1 business day from order. Price: $99 + applicable tax — all-in, including the government fee.

Skip the setup. File your B.C. annual report → or look up your corporation first.