Blog

Advice and compliance for service businesses

Practical guides for running a service business in Quebec: taxes, Law 25, dispatch, field payroll, mileage and more.

Why we built MainteQC in Quebec

Field-service software is American, English-only, billed in USD — and knows nothing about GST/QST, Law 25 or Bill 96. We decided to fix that.

June 11, 2026

Operations· 5 min read

The two clocks: why payroll and billing don’t measure the same time

The time you pay your technician and the time you bill your client are not the same thing. Confusing them costs margin — or employees.

June 9, 2026

Product· 6 min read

Choosing dispatch software in Quebec: the checklist

Jobber, Housecall Pro, ServiceTitan… none of them speak QST or Law 25. Here are the 10 questions to ask before you sign.

June 8, 2026

Compliance· 6 min read

Law 25 for service SMBs: the practical guide

Privacy officer, incident register, consent, access requests: what Law 25 actually requires from a 5-to-50-employee business.

June 5, 2026

Money· 6 min read

GST and QST for service businesses: the headache-free guide

5% + 9.975%, calculated independently, never compounded. The rules, the common traps, and worked examples.

June 2, 2026

Compliance· 4 min read

Bill 96: do your quotes and invoices have to be in French?

The Charter of the French Language governs business documents. What it means for a service business — and the simple rule to never get it wrong.

May 29, 2026

Operations· 4 min read

Missed appointments: the reminder sequence that cuts them in half

A no-show client means a wasted trip and a hole in the schedule. The reminder mechanics that actually work.

May 28, 2026

Product· 4 min read

The client portal: your best retention tool

A property manager who can see their history, invoices and your technician’s GPS-confirmed arrival doesn’t shop around.

May 26, 2026

Money· 4 min read

The anatomy of a compliant Quebec invoice

Tax numbers, NEQ, RBQ, language requirements: the checklist of everything that must appear on a service-business invoice.

May 25, 2026

Compliance· 5 min read

RBQ licence: what every service contractor needs to know

When the licence is mandatory, what must appear on your quotes, and why an expired licence can void your contracts.

May 22, 2026

Operations· 5 min read

Emergencies: the E1-E2-E3 triage that saves your nights (and your clients)

Not every "emergency" is one. A three-level triage system, with on-call rotation and premium rates, turns chaos into process.

May 21, 2026

Product· 5 min read

Going from paper to digital without paralyzing your operations

Paper work orders, Excel invoices, whiteboard schedules: the 4-week transition plan that breaks nothing.

May 19, 2026

Money· 5 min read

Mileage: reimbursing your technicians, billing your clients — or both

CRA reasonable rates, GPS versus logbooks, and pass-through billing: how to stop losing money on the road.

May 18, 2026

Compliance· 4 min read

The CNESST holdback on your subcontractors, explained simply

Why hold back part of a construction subcontractor’s payment, how the compliance certificate works, and what happens if you skip the step.

May 15, 2026

Operations· 4 min read

Van inventory: stop losing parts (and margins)

Installed-but-never-billed parts are the trade’s most silent margin leak. The minimal system that plugs it.

May 13, 2026

Money· 5 min read

Hourly rate or flat rate: structuring your service pricing

Travel fees, diagnostic fees, emergency multipliers: the building blocks of a profitable, defensible rate card.

May 11, 2026

Compliance· 5 min read

Tracking your technicians legally: consent, purpose, transparency

GPS on your employees’ phones is a powerful tool — and a minefield if deployed without a framework. The 4 rules.

May 8, 2026

Operations· 5 min read

Maintenance contracts: turning unpredictable calls into recurring revenue

A maintenance contract smooths your revenue, fills your seasonal valleys and locks in clients. How to structure it profitably.

May 6, 2026

Money· 6 min read

Field-employee payroll in Quebec: what makes it different

QPP, QPIP, paid holidays, travel time, overtime: the particularities of payroll when your employees work on the road.

May 4, 2026

Compliance· 3 min read

Winter tires and commercial fleets: the dates that cost you

From December 1 to March 15, your vehicles must be winter-ready. How a service fleet organizes itself to never get caught.

April 30, 2026