For a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, the skills that make you a strong tradesperson, discipline, a safety culture, working under pressure and running complex equipment, also make you a natural at running your own trade business once you are certified. This guide is about that next step: going self-employed after the trade itself is sorted. If you are still making the jump from service into a trade, start with the veterans into trades guide on this site, which covers Helmets to Hardhats Canada and the apprenticeship pathway. This one assumes you have, or are close to, your certificate and are weighing being your own boss.
First, get certified; the business comes after
Be clear on the order. Military experience makes you a strong candidate and, through a skills assessment, can sometimes earn credit for prior learning, but it does not skip certification. You still register with your provincial apprenticeship authority, log your hours and certify, and for the 54 Red Seal trades you can earn a Red Seal endorsement that is recognised across Canada. Helmets to Hardhats Canada, the free national program run through Canada's Building Trades Unions, exists to help with exactly that transition; use the Canadian site, helmetstohardhats.ca, not the separate United States program. Only once the trade ticket is in hand does the self-employed question really open up.
Use your Veterans Affairs supports before you commit
Leaving service comes with supports that are worth understanding before you sink savings into a business. Veterans Affairs Canada runs transition services and benefits, and some of these can matter when you are deciding between a steady job and self-employment. Check what you are entitled to, and whether any of it supports retraining or starting out, before you decide. The detail changes, so confirm current programs directly with Veterans Affairs Canada rather than relying on what a friend remembers.
What going self-employed actually involves
The trade is the easy part; the business has its own discipline, which, fortunately, suits you.
- Pick a structure. A sole proprietorship is simplest and your SIN is your tax ID, with unlimited personal liability. A corporation is a separate legal entity with limited liability and more admin, and tends to make sense once income is consistently higher. An accountant will tell you when to switch.
- Register for GST/HST on time. Once your revenue passes $30,000 over four consecutive quarters or in a single quarter, you must register within 29 days and charge it. Put the BN on every invoice.
- Sort workers' compensation. As a sole proprietor with no employees, coverage is usually optional for yourself, but many general contractors will not let you on site without proof of it. It is inexpensive; buy it before your first contract.
- Separate the money and save the tax. Keep business and personal accounts apart and set aside 25 to 30 percent of gross for income tax and GST/HST. This is the single habit that prevents a year-two crisis.
Plan for the income that does not arrive in winter
Trades income is seasonal and lumpy, and as a self-employed person you do not get the EI regular benefits that cover a laid-off employee over the off-season. The buffer is yours to build: a 3 to 4 month operating reserve put aside in the busy months, a steady amount paid to yourself year round from a separate account, and where you can, winter-proofing the work with indoor jobs, maintenance retainers or snow contracts. Treat the reserve as a non-negotiable cost of doing business, the way you would treat insurance.
Mind the transition itself
The move out of uniform is a big one, and going straight into running a business adds pressure on top of it. That is worth respecting, not powering through. Veterans Affairs Canada transition services are there for the adjustment, and if it is weighing heavily you can call or text 988, Canada's Suicide Crisis Helpline, any time. Looking after the transition is part of building the business well, not a distraction from it.
Common mistakes
- Starting the business before the ticket. Service strengthens your application and may earn prior-learning credit, but you still certify first. Get the trade sorted, then go self-employed.
- Skipping the Veterans Affairs supports. Some can help with retraining or the start-up period. Check before you spend your own savings.
- Treating self-employment income like a salary. It is seasonal and the EI cushion does not cover you. Build the reserve in the busy months.
- Ignoring the toll of two transitions at once. Leaving service and starting a business together is a lot. Use the transition services, and 988 if you need it.
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Keep reading
Need help pricing your work? Read Section 14: Pricing Your Work - day rates, job prices and how to stop underselling yourself.
Finished your apprenticeship? Read our guide: After Your Apprenticeship - the stuff nobody teaches you in college.
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In crisis? 988 Suicide Crisis Helpline (call or text 988) ·