Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-176.3 STC/UES-425-75388

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
F - Industry characteristics
G - Personnel
H - Sales by type of client
I - Sales by client location
J - International transactions
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

The main activity of an enterprise engaged in consulting services is to provide client firms with expert advice and make recommendations such as the adoption of approaches and processes and the establishment of strategies. For the benefit of client firms, such a consulting enterprise can also undertake the work itself that arises from its own recommendations i.e., their actual implementation

However, for this survey, to be considered a consulting services enterprise, the enterprise must generate the majority of its revenues from advice that it provides to client firms and not from the implementation of its own recommendations.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Administrative management consulting and general management consulting services

This Canadian industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on administrative management issues, such as:

  • financial planning and budgeting;
  • equity and asset management;
  • records management;
  • office planning;
  • strategic and organizational planning;
  • site selection;
  • new business start-up;
  • business process improvement.

This Canadian industry also includes general management consultants that provide to their clients a full range of administrative, human resource, marketing, process, physical distribution and logistics consulting services or other management consulting services:

  • administrative management;
  • human resource management;
  • marketing management;
  • process management;
  • physical distribution management;
  • logistics consulting services management;
  • other management consulting services.

Include:

  • administrative management consultants;
  • business start-up consulting services;
  • financial management consulting services (except investment advice);
  • general management consulting services;
  • records management consulting services;
  • reorganization consulting services;
  • site selection consulting services;
  • strategic planning consulting services.

Exclude establishment where the principal activity is:

  • providing office or general administrative services on a day-to-day basis.

Human resources consulting services

This Canadian industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on human resource management issues such as:

  • human resource and personnel policies, practices and procedures;
  • employee benefits planning, communication, and administration;
  • compensation systems planning;
  • wage and salary administration.

Include the following consulting services:

  • actuarial;
  • benefit;
  • compensation;
  • labour relations;
  • employee assessment;
  • employee compensation;
  • human resource;
  • organization development;
  • personnel management.

Exclude establishments where the principal activity is:

  • executive search consultants;
  • providing professional and management development training.

Other management consulting services

This Canadian industry comprises establishments, not classified to any other Canadian industry, primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on management issues.

Include:

  • customer services management consulting services;
  • customs consulting services;
  • efficiency experts;
  • freight rate consulting services;
  • inventory planning and control management consulting services;
  • logistics management consulting services;
  • manufacturing operations improvement consulting services;
  • materials management consulting services;
  • new product development consulting services;
  • operations research consulting services;
  • physical distribution consulting services;
  • production planning and control consulting services;
  • productivity improvement consulting services;
  • sales management consulting services;
  • tariff consulting services;
  • telecommunications management consulting services.

Environmental consulting services

This Canadian industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on environmental issues, such as the control of environmental contamination from pollutants, toxic substances and hazardous materials. These establishments identify problems, measure and evaluate risks, and recommend solutions. They employ a multi-disciplined staff of scientists, engineers and other technicians, with expertise in areas such as

  • air and water quality;
  • asbestos contamination;
  • remediation;
  • environmental law.

Examples of establishments in this industry are environmental consultants, sanitation consultants and site remediation consultants.

Other scientific and technical consulting services

This Canadian industry comprises establishments, not classified to any other industry, primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on scientific and technical issues

Include the following consulting services:

  • agricultural (technical);
  • agrology;
  • agronomy;
  • economic;
  • energy;
  • hydrology;
  • livestock breeding;
  • motion picture;
  • nuclear energy;
  • occupational health and safety;
  • physics;
  • safety.

None of the above — Please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

F - Industry characteristics

Management consulting services

1. Strategic management consulting services

Providing advice and guidance concerning the overall strategic direction, planning, structuring and control of an organization.

Include consulting on:

  • business strategy and planning;
  • corporate development and restructuring;
  • crisis management;
  • the development of an organization’s overall direction and objectives;
  • the determination of the organization’s strategy to achieve the selected direction and objectives;
  • the selection of a method for carrying out the strategy, including selection among such methods as a merger or acquisition, joint venture, outsourcing, or other alliance, divestiture, new business venture or use of new technology;
  • designing or redesigning the organizational structure.

2. Financial management consulting services

Providing advice and guidance concerning financial strategies, planning and control.

Include:

  • advice and guidance on projects related to working capital and liquidity management;
  • the determination of an appropriate capital structure;
  • capital investment proposals, asset management;
  • accounting policy and procedures;
  • budgeting and budgetary controls;
  • financial consulting services related to mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures such as advice on methods of valuations, methods of payment, and methods of control;
  • international finance.

3. Marketing management consulting services

Providing advice and guidance on projects related to marketing strategy, market development and sales management and development.

Include:

  • identifying external opportunities and challenges that can be addressed by marketing;
  • analysing internal strengths and weaknesses;
  • determining which goods and services to offer;
  • target markets;
  • competitive position;
  • features of goods and services including customer service programs;
  • pricing;
  • advertising, and distribution channels (including franchising);
  • marketing expenditure level;
  • sales management and development.

4. Compensation and benefits consulting services

Providing advice and guidance related to compensation and benefits systems.

Include:

  • base salary or hourly wages;
  • fringe benefits, and incentive compensation;
  • non-cash compensation;
  • employee services and benefits such as pension and retirement and savings plans, welfare and health plans;
  • early retirement proposals.

Scope of services may consist of:

  • job evaluation and job rating systems;
  • performance appraisals;
  • executive compensation;
  • incentive and bonus plans;
  • job and positions analysis and evaluations;
  • comparative wage-and-salary surveys;
  • pay for performance programs, profit sharing plans, executive compensation, termination packages.

5. Other human resources management consulting services

Providing advice and guidance concerning the development or modification of human resource strategies, policies, practices and procedures except concerning compensation and benefits.

Include:

  • consulting on recruitment;
  • organizational development (improving functioning within and between groups);
  • employee training and development needs;
  • outplacement procedures and plans for assistance to employees;
  • succession planning;
  • compliance with government regulations in areas such as health, safety, workers’ compensation and employment equity;
  • labour-management relations;
  • employee assistance programs;
  • human resources audits.

6. Operations and supply chain management consulting services

Operations management is concerned with the management of physical, financial and human resources with the objective of producing goods and services. Supply chain management is a bundled service.

Include:

  • inventory management services;
  • warehousing and storage services and distribution services.

May include advice and guidance concerning:

  • productivity improvement;
  • cost reduction;
  • quality improvements in goods and services;
  • registration for quality management systems;
  • improvements to logistical operations such as production planning and control;
  • the management of supply sources, inventories, distribution networks, and transportation.

7. Other management consulting services

Services, related to the field of management consulting, that are provided by management consulting firms.

Include:

  • economic and social research services;
  • arbitration and conciliation services (except by lawyer, attorney, or paralegal offices);
  • other related products such as:

Actuarial consulting services, except for employee pensions and other benefits

Providing advice and guidance on actuarial matters such as life insurance and annuities; property and casualty insurance; public pension, health and other social insurance plans; income loss and marriage breakdown.

Expert witness services

Providing testimony before a court or administrative body, by a witness who, by virtue of experience, training, skill or knowledge, is recognized as being qualified to render an informed opinion on matters relating to a field or subject.

Training services, management

Providing management-related training and education services, in fields such as strategic management, financial management, marketing management, human resources management, and operations and logistics management on a stand-alone basis.

Information technology (IT)

The provision of advice or expert opinion on technical matters related to the use of information technology. This includes advice on matters such as hardware and software requirements and procurement, systems integration, and systems security.

The provision of technical expertise to design and/or develop an IT solution such as custom applications, networks, and computer systems.

Project management

Planning, supervising, and co-ordinating the activities involved in carrying out a project, with regard to time, cost, project team membership, performance requirements, and other constraints. This product refers only to those situations in which project management is offered as a stand-alone service.

Services may include:

  • conducting detailed interviews with the client organization’s management team;
  • developing job profiles;
  • conducting original research and advertising to locate potential job candidates;
  • screening possible candidates;
  • preparing, presenting, and discussing a confidential list of highly qualified applicants with the client;
  • making interview arrangements;
  • negotiating compensation;
  • providing post-hire follow-up.

The search firm typically provides two assurances to the client firm:

  • repeat the search at no extra charge (out-of-pocket expenses only) should a placed candidate subsequently fail for reasons attributed to lack of due diligence by the search firm;
  • not to recruit from the client firm for a stated period of time. The client makes the decision as to which candidate to hire. The search agency’s fee is charged whether or not the candidate is hired. This product is also known as retained search.

Environmental consulting services

8. Environmental assessments

Objective studies undertaken for any one or more of the following purposes:

  • identify whether or not environmental contamination exists at a particular site, and if so, determine the source, nature, and extent of the contamination;
  • assess the risk to public health and safety from environmental contamination associated with a project that is proposed or in place;
  • evaluate the impact on the ecology, society, or economy of environmental contamination resulting from human or natural activity.

9. Environmental audits

An independent assessment of the current status of a party’s compliance with applicable environmental requirements or of a party’s environmental compliance policies, practices, and controls.

10. Site remediation planning services

Preparation of a plan for the abatement of environmental contamination, usually at a specific site, and incorporating such technical or other criteria as may be prescribed by law or regulation.

11. Natural resource management consulting services

The provision of objective information, advice, and guidance concerning the best practices for the ecologically sustainable development and use of:

  • lands and forests;
  • bodies of water;
  • oil, gas, and mineral deposits;
  • wildlife populations;
  • other natural resources.

12. Waste management consulting services

The provision of objective information, advice, and guidance concerning the best practices for the minimization, transport, handling, disposal, and/or recycling of waste.

13. Environmental policy development consulting services

Advising public or private institutions on the design, development, and implementation of environmental statutes, regulations, standards, or practices. Consulting services of this type may extend to the drafting of such statutes, regulations, standards or practices on behalf of the client.

14. Other environmental consulting services

All other advisory services not elsewhere classified that are provided by environmental consultants.

Scientific and technical consulting services

15. Economic consulting services

Providing advice related to the description and analysis of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.

Include:

  • consulting services related to macroeconomic modeling;
  • economic forecasting;
  • economic issues arising from competition, regulations, public policy and finance;
  • expert witness services;
  • consulting in agricultural economics.

16. Geological and geophysical consulting services

Providing advice concerning the geology of mineral, oil and natural gas resource exploration and development.

Include:

  • geophysical methods;
  • expert witness services;
  • resource and reserve estimates, audits and reviews;
  • independent valuations of mineral, oil and natural gas properties;
  • preparation of independent reports for stock exchange listings;
  • feasibility studies of mineral, oil and natural gas properties;
  • mineral, oil and natural gas property and project evaluation services;
  • expert witness services;
  • geophysical survey design, including selection of methods;
  • appraisal of geological, geophysical or geochemical anomalies.

17. Soil management, crop and animal production consulting services

Providing advice in relation to the scientific management of agricultural land as well as crop or animal production. Includes expert witness services and consulting services.

Include:

  • related to tree farming;
  • crop fertilization;
  • animal breeding;
  • soil conservation.

18. Heritage consulting services

Providing advice concerning the identification, investigation, preservation and interpretation of historical or heritage resources. Includes advice related to the use of historical and archaeological research and expert witness services.

Include:

  • built heritage assessments;
  • archaeological site impact or mitigation;
  • advice on local, national or international regulations and standards for heritage sites or properties;
  • advice on obtaining government grants concerning heritage sites;
  • traditional uses of land, water and natural resources by aboriginal peoples.

19. Occupational health and safety consulting services

Providing advice concerning health and related safety standards in commercial, industrial, and government workplaces and facilities. Includes expert witness services.

Include:

  • industrial hygiene;
  • workplace health risk assessments;
  • ergonomics;
  • confined space entry;
  • health hazard testing and evaluations;
  • safety standard requirements.

20. Other scientific and technical consulting services

Providing advice on scientific and technical matters not elsewhere classified. Includes expert witness services.

Include:

  • pharmaceutical;
  • chemistry;
  • atomic energy.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

H - Sales by type of client

This section is designed to measure which sector of the economy purchases your services.

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your sales by type of client.

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

1. Clients in Canada

a) Businesses

Percentage of sales sold to the business sector should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to Crown corporations.

b) Individuals and households

Please report the percentage of sales to individuals and households who do not represent the business or government sector.

c) Governments, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions (e.g., hospitals, schools)

Percentage of sales to federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to hospitals, schools, universities and public utilities.

2. Clients outside Canada

Please report the share of total sales to customers or clients located outside Canada including foreign businesses, foreign individuals, foreign institutions and/or governments.

Include:

  • sales to foreign subsidiaries and affiliates.

I - Sales by client location

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your total sales by client location (first point of sale).

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

The percentage in question 14 must equal question 2 in section H.

J - International transactions

This section is intended to measure the value of international transactions on goods, services, and royalties and licences fees. It covers imported services and goods purchased outside Canada as well as the value of exported services and goods to clients/customers outside Canada. Please report also royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees paid to and/or received from outside Canada. Services cover a variety of industrial, professional, trade and business services.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-173.3 STC/UES-425-75381

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
F - Industry characteristics
G - Personnel
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Lessors of residential buildings (apartments, houses, etc.)

Business units primarily engaged in renting and leasing residential buildings and dwellings, except social housing projects. They may operate (lease, administer and maintain) their properties on their own account, or they may subcontract the operation to a third party, and they may provide additional services, such as security, maintenance, parking and snow and trash removal.

Lessors of non-residential buildings (office buildings, shopping malls, etc.)

Business units primarily engaged in owning, or owning and operating, non-residential buildings such as shopping malls, offices, etc. They may operate (lease, administer and maintain) their properties on their own account, or they may subcontract the operation to a third party, and they may provide additional services, such as security, maintenance, parking and snow and trash removal.

Exclude:

  • mini-warehouses.

Lessors - self-storage mini-warehouses

Business units primarily engaged in renting or leasing space for self-storage. They provide secure space (rooms, compartments, lockers, containers or outdoor space) where clients can store and retrieve their goods.

Lessors - other real estate property (mobile home parks, land, etc.)

Business units primarily engaged in renting and leasing real estate other than buildings (e.g., agricultural property rental, forest and land leasing, industrial park developing and operating, mobile home park operating, lessors of railroad property).

Property managers (residential and non-residential)

Business units primarily engaged in managing real estate properties on behalf of property owners (on a contract or fee basis). The work involves administrative and coordination activities, such as the negotiation and approval of lease agreements, the collection of rental payments, the administration of contracts for property services (e.g., cleaning, maintenance and security) and the preparation of accounting statements.

Exclude:

Social housing (if rental income derived from social housing exceeds 80% of revenue)

Business units primarily engaged in renting and leasing residential buildings and dwellings provided to low-income earners. These are typically operated or funded by non-profit government entities, but may also be operated by private, non-profit housing corporations. If social housing represents at least 80% of your total rental income, and if you have selected this box, please return the questionnaire.

Condo association

Associations or corporations of dwelling owners engaged in the management of properties on behalf of dues-paying members. If you have selected this box, please return the questionnaire.

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

F - Industry characteristics

Please exclude federal, provincial or territorial sales tax collected for remittance to a government agency.

1. Rental income - residential properties

Include:

  • apartments;
  • single family homes;
  • semi-detached or row houses.

a) Rental or leasing of residential space in houses, for use as the principal residence of a household

Houses are accommodation units in which each housing unit is separated from its neighbours by a ground-to-roof wall, with no units either above or below. Includes single detached houses, and attached houses such as side-by-side town houses, row houses and doubles. May include additional facilities, such as parking and recreational amenities.

Exclude:

  • rental of land;
  • renting space for use as temporary accommodation, such as hotel rooms, cottages and camp sites.

b) Rental or leasing of residential space in apartments and similar housing units, for use as the principal residence of a household

These are units in which each housing unit is not separated from its neighbours by a ground-to-roof wall, and/or adjoins units constructed above or below, including apartments, duplexes, triplexes. May also include additional facilities, such as parking and recreational amenities.

Exclude:

  • rental of mobile homes, motor homes, and rooms in boarding houses and dormitories, when used as principal residences;
  • renting space for use as temporary accommodation, such as hotel rooms and camp sites.

c) Rental or leasing of land for residential uses

Property with buildings or other structures is treated as land if the value of the land is greater than the value of the structures. Includes rental of serviced lots in trailer and mobile home parks.

d) Other rental of residential space (e.g., mobile homes, motor homes, houseboats, rooms in boarding houses and dormitories when used as a principal residence)

2. Rental income - non-residential properties

Include:

  • shopping centers;
  • plazas;
  • stores;
  • office buildings;
  • factories;
  • warehouses;
  • recreational spaces;
  • convention spaces in hotels;
  • convention centers.

a) Rental or leasing of buildings, or space within buildings or other facilities, for office and professional uses

Exclude:

  • rental of space for meetings, conventions and similar events;
  • rental of parking spaces.

b) Renting or leasing of buildings, or space within buildings or other facilities, for commercial uses such as stores, restaurants, cinemas, bank branches and beauty salons

Include rental of sites on a “concession” basis at entertainment, sports and other venues; and rental of commercial space in hotel and office building lobbies.

Exclude:

  • providing a location for the placement of vending machines.

c) Rental or leasing of buildings, or space within buildings or other facilities, for use in manufacturing, storage, distribution and similar industrial activities

Include rental of space for research activities. Includes rental of space for these uses in industrial, manufacturing and research parks.

d) Rental or leasing of land for non-residential uses

Property with buildings or other structures is treated as land if the value of the land is greater than the value of the structures. Include rents paid for the right to exploit inland surface waters for recreational or other purposes, including fishing.

Exclude:

  • rental of non-residential buildings and other facilities, including engineering structures;
  • rents, royalties or other payments paid for the right to explore for, or exploit deposits of minerals or fossil fuels;
  • providing a location for the placement outdoors of coin-operated machines such as children’s mechanical rides;
  • rental of parking spaces.

e) Other rentals of non-residential space (for banquets, parties, and social events, business conventions, theatres, sports venues, auditoriums, stadiums etc.).

3. Rental income - mini-warehouses and self storage units

Include:

  • rooms;
  • compartments;
  • lockers;
  • containers;
  • outdoor spaces.

4. Property management services

Please report revenue generated by managing real estate properties on behalf of the property owners.

a) Management of residential buildings, such as houses and apartments, on behalf of property owners

This service may comprise activities such as: negotiation of lease agreements; screening prospective tenants; collection of rental payments; tenant relationship; administration of contracts for property services (e.g., cleaning, maintenance and security); contract renewal or recovery of the building at the end of the renting contract, etc.

b) Management of non-residential buildings, such as office, retail and industrial space, on behalf of property owners

This service may comprise activities such as: negotiation of lease agreements; screening prospective tenants; collection of rental payments; tenant relationship; administration of contracts for property services (e.g., cleaning, maintenance and security); contract renewal or recovery of the building at the end of the renting contract, etc.

c) Land property management on behalf of property owners

This service may comprise activities such as: negotiation of lease agreements; screening prospective tenants; collection of rental payments; tenant relationship; administration of contracts for property services (e.g., cleaning, maintenance and security); contract renewal or recovery of the land at the end of the renting contract, etc.

5. Revenue from goods purchased for resale as is (drinks, food, games)

Include:

  • soft drinks;
  • food;
  • games;
  • laundry detergent, etc.

6. Other sales (please specify)

Include:

  • coin-operated laundry services;
  • parking;
  • bad debt recoveries;
  • operating subsidies;
  • any other operating revenue not reported above.

7. Total sales

The sum of amounts reported at questions 1 to 6.

8. Percentage of total revenue from real estate investment trust

Please report your percentage of total revenue from real estate investment trust.

Selected expenditure information

Please report expenses excluding the portion of federal, provincial or territorial sales tax refunded by government. If your bookkeeping practices make this impossible, please indicate which refunds are included.

9. Property management fees paid

Please report expenses generated by hiring a property management firm to manage an owner’s real estate property.

10. Real estate commissions paid

Please report commissions paid to an agent or middleman for providing the service to the

vendor or purchaser of bringing together the two parties to a transaction.

11. Value of inducements to tenants

Includes:

  • leasehold improvements;
  • loan interest;
  • free rent;
  • paid moving expenses.

Please only report the amount of expenses you capitalized during the reporting period.

12. Transfer taxes and lot levies paid

Please report expenses related to transfer taxes and lot levies.

13. Property taxes paid

Please report taxes paid on vacant land and buildings.

14. Mortgage interest paid

Please report the interest portion of the mortgage payments.

Excludes:

  • interest expenses related to bank loans.

Property information

15. Number of buildings owned and/or managed at year end

Please report the number of buildings you owned or managed at the end of the reporting period.

16. Number of rental units owned and/or managed at year end

Please report the number of units you owned or managed at the end of the reporting period.

17. Square feet rented or leased (non-residential only)

Please report the number of square feet you rented or leased at the end of the reporting period.

Renovations and alterations

Definition of additions:

Structural extensions or additions to the property (such as rooms, decks, garages, carports, garden sheds, swimming pools, fences, patios, driveways and major landscaping, etc.).

Definition of renovations:

Work done that was intended to upgrade the property to acceptable building or living standards, rearrange the interior space, and modernize existing facilities in order to suit changing needs without changing the type of occupancy.

Include:

  • room renovation;
  • adding or replacing doors and windows;
  • renovating exterior walls and balconies;
  • upgrading insulation;
  • adding eavestroughs.

Also include any finishing in new homes, and the cost of any equipment and built-in appliances that were part of the renovation project.

Definition of replacement of equipment:

Installation of equipment that replaces an existing unit.

Include:

  • upgrading to a superior quality of equipment and conversion from one type of unit to another (such as replacing an electric hot water heater with a gas-fuelled unit).

Definition of new installations:

The installation of equipment that did not previously exist on the property or that was installed in addition to the equipment on the property.

Include:

  • the installation of a shower stall in what had been a half-bathroom;
  • the installation of security equipment;
  • the installation of a ceiling fan;
  • the installation of light fixtures.

18. Total capital expenditures

Please report the total value of investment or capital expenditures which comprises additions, renovations or alterations, replacement and new installations of equipment.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-226.3 STC/UES-190-60181

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
F - Industry characteristics
G - Personnel
H - Sales by type of client
I - Sales by client location
J - International transactions
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Record production

This industry is comprised of business units primarily engaged in record production. These business units contract with musical artists, and arrange and finance the production of original master recordings. Business units in this industry hold the copyright to the master recording and derive most of their revenue from selling, leasing, and licensing master recordings.

Integrated record production and distribution

This industry is comprised of business units primarily engaged in releasing, promoting and distributing sound recordings. Business units in this industry manufacture or arrange for the manufacture of recordings, such as audio tapes/cassettes and compact discs, and promote and distribute these products to wholesalers, retailers or directly to the public. These business units produce master recordings themselves, or obtain reproduction and/or distribution rights to master recordings produced by record production companies or other integrated record companies.

Music publishing

This industry is comprised of business units primarily engaged in acquiring and registering copyrights for musical compositions and promoting and authorizing the use of these compositions in recordings, on radio and television, in motion pictures, live performances, print, multimedia or other media. Business units in this industry represent the interests of songwriters or other owners of musical compositions in generating revenue from the use of such works, generally through licensing agreements. These business units may own the copyright or act as administrator of the music copyrights on behalf of copyright owners.

Sound recording studio

This industry is comprised of business units primarily engaged in providing the facilities and technical expertise for recording musical performances. Business units in this industry may also provide audio production or post-production services for producing master recordings, and audio services for film, television and video productions.

Other sound recording services

This industry is comprised of business units, not classified to any of the above sound recording industries, that are primarily engaged in providing sound recording services, such as audio taping of meetings and conferences.

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

F - Industry characteristics

Revenue from net sales (questions 1 to 13)

Report all revenue from goods and services rendered by your establishment. Net sales exclude returns and taxes.

Exclude:

  • grants and subsidies and investment income such as dividends and interest;
  • revenue from royalties, licensing and rights, which should be reported in questions 14 to 16.

Recordings and music videos

1. Musical recordings (e.g., CDs, cassettes) from masters produced, licensed or purchased; (exclude music videos, retail sales).

Recordings, fixed in material form such as compact discs (CDs), cassette tapes, vinyl records, and electronic sound files, etc., consisting of sounds (music, plays, poetry, and comedic routines, etc.). These recordings are manufactured from masters either produced by your organization or from masters leased or bought from other organizations.

Exclude:

  • revenue from the sales of imported finished products, or sales of finished products distributed for another organization;
  • revenue from music videos;
  • retail sales of musical recordings, which are reported in question 11.

2. Non-musical recordings (e.g., comedic routine or play stored onto a physical or electronic medium)

Exclude retail sales of non-musical recordings.

3. Music videos (on VHS or DVDs)

Include videocassettes and DVDs containing recordings of the music video of an audio work or of the live performance of an audio work. These audiovisual works may contain interviews with the artists, behind-the-scenes footage, and other features, but are nonetheless primarily containing musical works with accompanying visual material, such as videos and concert footage.

Exclude retail sales of music videos and DVDs, which are reported in question 11.

Studio and live recording services

4. Studio recording services for music clients (e.g., recording, mixing, mastering)

Include is the recording of music albums, “singles,” and demos. A demo is a “test” recording made by an individual or group in hopes that the high quality of the talent exhibited on the recording will result in the individual or group being commissioned to make further recordings. Include recording, mixing, mastering, re-mixing, and re-mastering work done with material for motion picture soundtracks to produce a “soundtrack album.”

Exclude recordings produced primarily for spoken word clients, for radio material, for recordings made for synchronization with an audiovisual work, such as a television program, feature film, video release, etc.

5. Studio recording services provided for other purposes (e.g., spoken words, radio, sound editing and design services of audiovisual works; exclude live recording services)

Include:

  • commercial audio production;
  • revenue from studio recording services for the production of pre-recorded sound recordings intended for broadcast on the radio;
  • services rendered to producers of audiovisual works such as television, video, commercials and feature films;
  • revenue from services rendered to make recordings that are primarily non-musical in nature, such as audio books and comedic routines that are done inside a sound recording studio.

Exclude revenue from live recording services such as the recording of meetings, conferences and concerts.

6. Live recording services (e.g., recording of meetings, conferences, concerts)

Recording on-location a live, public event, such as a conference, seminar, meeting, or concert, etc.

Include all recording services performed on-location; and recording of live radio broadcasts done within a sound recording studio.

Exclude other recording services done within a sound recording studio.

Other services

8. Administration of copyrights for others (e.g., administration fees)

Administering copyright licences owned by others.

Include administration agreements, collective societies and music publishers administering some or all copyrights to a musical work on behalf of a copyright holder.

Exclude sub-publishing.

Administration agreements refer to contracts where one publisher administers the catalogues or works on behalf of another publisher. This may be domestically for one or more provinces or territories, or worldwide, in return for the retention of a predetermined percentage of the gross receipts.

9. Distribution of recordings (e.g., finished goods that do not involve buying or leasing a master, exclude imported goods).

Distribution services of recordings to wholesalers and retailers.

Include revenue from net sales of CDs, cassettes, vinyl albums, etc., distributed on behalf of other record labels, under a buy and sell arrangement or on a consignment basis.

Exclude revenue from the sale of imported finished products.

10. Print music sales (e.g., sheet music, folios or books in print or electronic text) (exclude retail sales of music books)

Musical works in printed form or electronic text.

Include prints of owned compositions and of those for which it has obtained rights to the composition copyright. Printed works are distributed as sheet music, folios, or books in printed form or electronic text.

Exclude licensing of rights to print a musical work, retail sales of print music.

12. Other sales (please specify)

Include revenue from the sale of goods or services not already reported (e.g., merchandising of T-shirts, mugs, etc.)

Exclude revenue from royalties, licensing and rights, which should be reported in questions 14 and 15.

Revenue from royalties and rights (include royalties from foreign sources)

14. Licensing of rights to use sound recordings

a) Licensing of rights to reproduce sound recordings onto another recording

Include licensing to use a sound recording in a thematic compilation or “Greatest Hits” recording.

Exclude licensing to use a musical work.

b) Licensing of rights to distribute sound recordings

Exclude licensing to use a musical work, recordings, soundtrack of a cinematographic work where it accompanies the cinematographic work.

c) Licensing of rights to broadcast or perform sound recordings in public (“Neighbouring Rights”)

Performer’s performances captured on sound recordings and the producers of those sound recordings have the right to be paid for the public performance of sound recordings. Examples of public performance are the playing of recordings in shopping malls, bars, nightclubs, hotels, airlines, and restaurants. An example of the broadcasting of performances and sound recordings is radio airplay.

d) Licensing of other rights to use sound recordings

Licensing rights to use a sound recording for purposes not elsewhere classified, such as for use in television, film, advertisements, etc., and to rent out sound recordings.

Include licensing of sound recordings to Internet Radio or other similar program.

15. Licensing of rights to use musical works

a) Performing rights include grand rights

Licensing rights to communicate a musical work to the public by telecommunication or to perform a musical work in public. The musical work may be either broadcast on the radio, or television, or performed in public at live entertainment in lounges, cafés, or at live concerts or other live events. Includes also licensing rights to perform a musical work in a live dramatic presentation such as operas, musicals or ballets, where the music was originally written for these productions.

Include licensing to use of musical works to Internet Radio or other similar programs.

Grand rights

The right associated with the live performance of operas, musicals or ballets where the music was originally written for these productions. These are known as dramatic performing or grand rights. These rights are normally licensed directly by the copyright holder. SOCAN is involved, however, when an excerpt from these works, such as a single song from a musical, is performed outside the live production.

b) Mechanical rights

Licensing rights to make reproductions of a musical work in mechanical form, for example on record, on tape, or on compact disc.

Exclude licensing to use a sound recording, licensing of “Videogram Rights”, licensing of “Electrical Transcription Rights”.

c) Synchronization rights

Licensing rights to use a musical work in motion picture films, television programs and other audiovisual works where the music is “synchronized” in timed relation with visual images.

Exclude licensing of “Videogram Rights” and licensing of “Commercial Advertisement Rights”.

d) Videogram rights

Licensing rights to make reproductions of videocassette, DVD, laserdisc copies of a musical work that is part of a motion picture film, a television program, and another audiovisual work, intended for distribution in the home video market.

e) Commercial advertisement rights

Licensing rights to use a musical work in product advertisements and commercials.

Include television commercials, theatrical commercials, and radio commercials, as well as print advertisements using copyrighted lyrics.

f) Print licensing rights (exclude revenue from the sales or rental of printed music)

Licensing rights to publish a musical work in printed form, including sheet music, songbooks, and folios.

g) Sub-publishing

Licensing rights to sub-publish a musical work in a specific region. Sub-publishing refers to contracts where an original publisher assigns the publishing rights to their copyright catalogue for a specific region to a second publisher (sub-publisher) based in, or controlling that region, for a specified period of time. This may be domestically, for part of the country, or worldwide.

h) Licensing of other rights to use musical works

Include licensing of “Electrical Transcription Rights”; private copying levy.

Revenue from the sales of recordings (questions 17 to 29)

To be completed by record producers, and integrated production/distribution companies.

In questions 17 to 29, include all sales (less returns and allowances and less provincial and federal sales taxes) during the reporting period, of records, tapes, CDs, and electronic music files including singles. Exclude revenue from the sale of recordings distributed for another organization and sales of finished products purchased for resale. Exclude the sale of music videos (VHS and DVD formats).

Canadian artist: A musical selection is deemed to be by a “Canadian artist” if the instrumentation or lyrics are principally performed by a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant. For recordings by more than one artist (e.g. compilations), count the recording as by a Canadian artist if 50% or more of the artists are Canadian.

New releases of sound recordings by Canadian and other artists (questions 30 to 42)

To be completed by record producers, and integrated production and distribution companies.

A definition for Canadian artist is in the previous section.

New release: A release is considered new if it has a new catalogue number. A recording containing already released material would be considered new if the content has changed in some way, such as a different selection of material, different packaging. However, a recording released in a different format (for example, tape to compact disc) would not be considered a new release if the content is identical.

Musical works of music publishers (questions 46 to 50)

To be completed by music publishers.

Musical work: A work which consists of music plus lyrics or music only.

NOTE: the definition used for Canadian songwriter/composer is different in this section. In cases of co-writing of music and/or lyrics with non-Canadian partners, count the work as Canadian if one or more of the songwriters/composers is a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

H - Sales by type of client

This section is designed to measure which sector of the economy purchases your services.

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your sales by type of client.

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

1. Clients in Canada

a) Businesses

Percentage of sales sold to the business sector should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to Crown corporations.

b) Individuals and households

Please report the percentage of sales to individuals and households who do not represent the business or government sector.

c) Governments, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions (e.g., hospitals, schools)

Percentage of sales to federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to hospitals, schools, universities and public utilities.

2. Clients outside Canada

Please report the share of total sales to customers or clients located outside Canada including foreign businesses, foreign individuals, foreign institutions and/or governments.

Include:

  • sales to foreign subsidiaries and affiliates.

I - Sales by client location

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your total sales by client location (first point of sale).

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

The percentage in question 14 must equal question 2 in section H.

J - International transactions

This section is intended to measure the value of international transactions on goods, services, and royalties and licences fees. It covers imported services and goods purchased outside Canada as well as the value of exported services and goods to clients/customers outside Canada. Please report also royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees paid to and/or received from outside Canada. Services cover a variety of industrial, professional, trade and business services.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-223.3 STC/UES-425-60172

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Theatre (except musical) company (include festival with in-house company)

These establishments are primarily engaged in producing live presentations that involve the performances of actors and actresses. Theatre companies that operate their own facilities, primarily for the staging of their own productions, are included.

Include:

  • theatre companies;
  • community theatres;
  • improvisational theatres;
  • repertory or stock theatrical companies;
  • summer theatres;
  • puppet theatres;
  • amateur theatrical companies;
  • comedy troupes.

Exclude:

  • freelance producers and performing artists (e.g., actors, writers);
  • cinemas;
  • producers of corporate events;
  • drama schools;
  • arts organizations;
  • establishments primarily engaged in organizing and promoting, but not producing, performing arts productions (e.g., theatre festival promoters with or without facilities; and performing arts centres that promote events);
  • establishments primarily engaged in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises and that also present live entertainment (e.g., comedy clubs).

Dinner theatre

Establishments, known as dinner theatres, engaged in producing live theatrical entertainment and in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises, are included.

Exclude:

  • freelance musicians and vocalists;
  • freelance producers and performing artists (e.g., actors, writers);
  • establishments primarily engaged in organizing and promoting, but not producing, performing arts productions (e.g., theatre festival promoters with or without facilities; and performing arts centres that promote events);
  • establishments primarily engaged in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises and that also present live entertainment, such as comedy clubs (except dinner theatres).

Dance company

These establishments are primarily engaged in producing live presentations. Dance companies that operate their own facilities, primarily for the staging of their own production, are included.

Include:

  • ballet companies;
  • contemporary dance companies;
  • dance companies;
  • folk dance companies;
  • jazz dance companies.

Exclude:

  • freelance producers and dancers;
  • dance studios and schools;
  • dance instruction;
  • establishments primarily engaged in organizing and promoting, but not producing, dance productions;
  • establishments primarily engaged in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises and that also present live dance entertainment (e.g., exotic dance clubs).

Musical group or artist

These establishments are primarily engaged in producing live presentations that involve the performances of musicians and/or vocalists. Establishments in this industry may consist of groups or individual artists.

Include:

  • chamber and symphony orchestras;
  • country music groups;
  • jazz music groups;
  • pop and rock music groups;
  • independent musicians and vocalists.

Exclude:

  • agents and managers for musical groups and artists;
  • independent composers;
  • freelance producers;
  • integrated record companies;
  • sound recording studios;
  • establishments primarily engaged in producing theatrical, musical and opera productions;
  • establishments primarily engaged in organizing and promoting, but not producing, concerts and other musical performances (e.g., music festival promoters without facilities);
  • establishments primarily engaged in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises and also presenting live musical entertainment (e.g., nightclubs).

Other performing arts company

These establishments are not classified to any other industry and are primarily engaged in producing live performing arts presentations.

Include:

  • multidisciplinary companies (the term multidisciplinary encompasses forms of expression that use several artistic disciplines and where practice, language and works lie outside recognized artistic forms);
  • travelling show carnivals;
  • circuses;
  • ice skating companies;
  • magic shows.

Exclude:

  • musical groups and independent musicians and vocalists;
  • freelance producers and independent performing artists (e.g., magicians, independent);
  • carnival ride concession operators;
  • performing arts centres, promoting events;
  • establishments primarily engaged in producing musicals, plays, operas, and puppet and mime shows (see definition for Theatre (except musical) company, above);
  • establishments primarily engaged in producing dance performances;
  • establishments primarily engaged in organizing and promoting, but not producing, ice shows, circuses and other live performing arts presentations;
  • establishments primarily engaged in providing food and beverages for consumption on the premises and also presenting live entertainment (e.g., comedy clubs).

Organizational structure

3. Is this establishment a not-for-profit organization? (yes – no)

Not-for-profit organization

An organization usually formed for social, philanthropic or similar purpose in which there is normally no transferable ownership interest. The organization files a non-profit organization information return. It does not carry on business with a view to distribution or use of any profit or the pecuniary gain of the parties involved.

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-223.3 STC/UES-425-75176

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
F - Industry characteristics
G - Personnel
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below are descriptions of some heritage activities listed.

2. Indicate the organization or park’s additional or secondary heritage activities. Check all that apply.

Art museum and gallery, non-commercial

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in acquiring, researching, conserving, interpreting, and exhibiting art to the public.

Include:

  • art museums and art galleries with permanent collections.

Exclude:

  • commercial art galleries and art dealers who operate primarily for the sale of art objects.

History or science museum

An institution devoted to the procurement, conservation and display of objects of human and natural historic or scientific value.

Include:

  • human history museums;
  • insectaria;
  • marine museums;
  • military museums;
  • mobile scientific museums;
  • natural history museums;
  • science and technology museums;
  • war museums.

Exclude:

  • community history museums (see Other museums below).

Other museums (e.g., community museum, artist-run centre, exhibition centre)

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in the operation of exhibits, other than non-commercial art museums and galleries, and history and science museums.

Include:

  • community museums;
  • artist-run centre;
  • exhibition centre;
  • sports halls of fame;
  • wax museums.

Historic site, building or community

An institution which has been officially designated as being of unique historic value by one of the three levels of government and is maintained, protected and made accessible for public viewing, including plaques or monuments highlighting events or persons of particular interest.

Exclude:

  • national and provincial nature parks.

Nature park or conservation area

Natural land areas designated as parkland and protected and made accessible to the public; conservation areas are also natural designated areas, but whose purpose is to conserve and preserve animal or plant in its natural and original state.

Zoo

Include:

  • animal safari parks;
  • aviaries;
  • petting zoos;
  • zoos.

Other heritage activity (please specify)

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating other heritage institutions that are not elsewhere classified.

Include:

  • bird and other wildlife sanctuaries;
  • caverns and natural wonder tourist attractions.

5. Organization structure

Not-for-profit organization

An organization that is formed and operated for the common good and general welfare of the community, and in which there is normally no transferable ownership interest. The organization files a non-profit organization information return or a registered charity information return. The organization does not exist primarily to generate profits or to distribute any profits generated for the pecuniary gain of the parties involved.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

F - Industry characteristics

Revenue from sales of goods and services

Please provide a breakdown of your sales from Canadian locations (exclude revenue from royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees, grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising, interest revenue, and proceeds from the disposal of assets).

Amounts should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

1. Admission fees

Revenue generated from providing access to heritage institutions. Includes both single-occasion and multiple-occasion tickets and season passes. Admissions may include the use of games and rides, guided tours, or food and beverages when these items are packaged. Revenue for this product includes admission charges, surcharges for admission to special events, and “memberships” fees paid primarily for the right of admission.

Exclude:

  • revenue from public programs; report this in item 3 below.

2. Membership fees

Revenue generated from the provision of services by heritage institutions, to their members. Membership in the organization confers various rights upon the member, for example, relating to decision-making within the organization, and expresses support for its goals. Includes the services of “friends of” organizations supporting heritage institutions.

Exclude:

  • membership fees which are primarily a payment for admission to a heritage institution, should be included in the corresponding Admission fees in question 1;
  • rental of meeting rooms, halls, etc. (report this in question 5 below);
  • charitable donations, grants and subsidies.

3. Public programs

Providing programs to the public that use the facilities and staff of heritage institutions, to explain or expand upon the collections, exhibits or sites of the organization.

Include:

  • school visits, children’s parties, children’s day camps and sleepovers;
  • guided tours, classes, nature walks and similar services related to artistic, cultural or natural themes; these events may be conducted within a facility or may involve short local excursions such as a guided city walking tour;
  • classes that provide instruction related to museums, historic sites, zoos, botanical gardens, and natural areas, for example: drawing and painting workshops, historical investigation courses, environmental education courses, etc.; this service can include the instruction material and equipment used in a course;
  • academic trips and tours that provide formal instruction to accomplish an educational objective; the trip or tour may comprise a complete course of instruction or be designed as a component of a course of instruction;
  • providing tour packages designed to expose the tourist to the culture, history or natural environment of the destination(s); tour packages are combinations of transportation, accommodation, meals, and guide services; may include the provision of additional services such as the arrangement of visas and entrance to attractions; includes cruise packages and customized tour packages when sold as a bundle.

5. Rental of space and facilities (non-residential)

Revenue received from the rental of retail space, space for food service, conference and board rooms, etc.

8. Sales of merchandise

Revenue from the sales of items such as books, magazines, souvenirs, apparel, vending machine sales, etc.

Exclude:

  • sales of collection/objects and other proceeds from the disposal of capital assets or property;
  • sales of food and beverages prepared for immediate consumption.

10. Advertising and related services

Revenue obtained by providing services that attract attention to a product, business, cause, etc.

Include:

  • the provision of display space such as billboards;
  • advertising space and time in print, broadcast, or other media;
  • agent services involved in buying and selling space or time for advertising messages;
  • the sale of venue naming rights, sponsorship rights, endorsement services and exclusivity rights.

11. Conservation services

Providing technical services to repair or stabilize the condition of artistic, historic and cultural works and artifacts, and protect them from future deterioration.

Grants, subsidies, donations, and fundraising

2. Foundations

An institution financed by a donation or legacy to aid research, education, arts, etc.

3. Bequests

The act of giving, leaving by will, or passing on to another.

4. Endowments

An endowment is the transfer of money or property donated to an institution for current or/and capital activities or projects. Usually, there are built-in restrictions on how the money will be spent and what percentage of the fund will be disbursed annually.

The endowment is considered as a capital asset that would be disbursed or used over a period of time.

Funding for capital projects

Include revenues received, earmarked or made available for the purchase of goods with useful (normal) life of more than one year such as new buildings, equipment and major renovations or extraordinary repairs on existing buildings.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

2009 Survey of Service Industries: Book Publishers

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-31.3 STC/UES-425-75178

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-11.3 STC/UES-425-75120

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
G - Personnel
H - Sales by type of client
I - Sales by client location
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Passenger car rental (without driver)

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out passenger cars without drivers, generally for short periods of time.

Exclude:

  • renting or leasing passenger cars, hearses,
    with drivers;
  • leasing passenger cars without drivers, generally for long periods of time (please see Passenger
    car leasing (without driver) below).

Passenger car leasing (without driver)

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in leasing passenger cars without drivers, generally for long periods of time.

Exclude:

  • retailing passenger cars through sales or lease arrangements;
  • renting or leasing passenger cars, hearses,
    with drivers;
  • leasing and providing loans to buyers of goods and equipment, or to vendors and dealers to finance their inventories;
  • renting passenger cars without drivers generally for short periods of time (please see Passenger car rental (without driver) above).

Truck, bus, utility trailer and RV (recreational vehicle) rental and leasing (without driver)

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out or leasing trucks, truck tractors, buses, semi-trailers, utility trailers and RVs (recreational vehicles), without drivers.

Include:

  • renting/leasing modular space.

Exclude:

  • renting or leasing industrial trucks, such as forklifts, materials handling equipment, farm tractors and other industrial equipment;
  • retailing vehicles commonly referred to as RVs through sales or lease arrangements;
  • leasing and providing loans to buyers of goods and equipment, or to vendors and dealers to finance their inventories;
  • renting or leasing mobile home sites;
  • renting recreational goods, such as pleasure boats, canoes, motorcycles, mopeds or bicycles.

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

4. Is this business unit engaged in sales financing?

(yes - no)

Sales financing

Sales financing business units lend money to consumers and businesses for the purchase of goods and services, using a contractual instalment sales agreement, often either directly from, or through arrangements with, dealers of the products.

Include:

  • acceptance companies of motor vehicle manufacturers and heavy equipment manufacturers;
  • business units engaged in the purchase of instalment and credit card receivables.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

H - Sales by type of client

This section is designed to measure which sector of the economy purchases your services.

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your sales by type of client.

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

1. Clients in Canada

a) Businesses

Percentage of sales sold to the business sector should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to Crown corporations.

b) Individuals and households

Please report the percentage of sales to individuals and households who do not represent the business or government sector.

c) Governments, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions (e.g., hospitals, schools)

Percentage of sales to federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to hospitals, schools, universities and public utilities.

2. Clients outside Canada

Please report the share of total sales to customers or clients located outside Canada including foreign businesses, foreign individuals, foreign institutions and/or governments.

Include:

  • sales to foreign subsidiaries and affiliates.

I - Sales by client location

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your total sales by client location (first point of sale).

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

The percentage in question 14 must equal question 2 in section H.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-4.3 STC/UES-425-75119

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
G - Personnel
H - Sales by type of client
I - Sales by client location
J - International transactions
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Construction, transportation, mining and forestry machinery and equipment rental and leasing (without operators)

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting or leasing heavy machinery without operators.

Exclude:

  • renting or leasing heavy equipment for forestry, with operator;
  • renting or leasing heavy equipment for mining, with operator;
  • renting or leasing heavy construction equipment, with operators;
  • renting or leasing air, rail, highway and water transportation equipment, with operators;
  • leasing and providing loans to buyers of goods and equipment, or to vendors and dealers to finance their inventories;
  • renting or leasing automobiles or trucks without operators;
  • renting pleasure boats.

Office machinery and equipment rental and leasing

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting or leasing office machinery and equipment.

Exclude:

  • leasing and providing loans to buyers of goods and equipment, or to vendors and dealers to finance their inventories;
  • renting consumer electronics and appliances;
  • renting or leasing residential furniture.

Other commercial and industrial machinery and equipment rental and leasing (please specify)

This industry comprises business units not classified to any other industry, whose main activity is renting out or leasing commercial and industrial machinery and equipment.

Exclude:

  • renting or leasing agricultural machinery and equipment, with operators;
  • leasing and providing loans to buyers of goods and equipment, or to vendors and dealers to finance their inventories;
  • renting home furniture;
  • renting or leasing heavy equipment without operators (please see Construction, transportation, mining and forestry machinery and equipment rental and leasing (without operators) above);
  • renting or leasing office machinery and equipment (please see Office machinery and equipment rental and leasing above).

4. Is this business unit engaged in sales financing? (yes – no)

Sales financing

Sales financing business units lend money to consumers and businesses, for the purchase of goods and services, using a contractual instalment sales agreement, often either directly from, or through arrangements with, dealers of the products.

Include:

  • acceptance companies of motor vehicle manufacturers and heavy equipment manufacturers;
  • business units engaged in the purchase of instalment and credit card receivables.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

H - Sales by type of client

This section is designed to measure which sector of the economy purchases your services.

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your sales by type of client.

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

1. Clients in Canada

a) Businesses

Percentage of sales sold to the business sector should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to Crown corporations.

b) Individuals and households

Please report the percentage of sales to individuals and households who do not represent the business or government sector.

c) Governments, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions (e.g., hospitals, schools)

Percentage of sales to federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to hospitals, schools, universities and public utilities.

2. Clients outside Canada

Please report the share of total sales to customers or clients located outside Canada including foreign businesses, foreign individuals, foreign institutions and/or governments.

Include:

  • sales to foreign subsidiaries and affiliates.

I - Sales by client location

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your total sales by client location (first point of sale).

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

The percentage in question 14 must equal question 2 in section H.

J - International transactions

This section is intended to measure the value of international transactions on goods, services, and royalties and licences fees. It covers imported services and goods purchased outside Canada as well as the value of exported services and goods to clients/customers outside Canada. Please report also royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees paid to and/or received from outside Canada. Services cover a variety of industrial, professional, trade and business services.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-28.3 STC/UES-425-75105

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
G - Personnel
H - Sales by type of client
I - Sales by client location
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Consumer electronics and appliance rental

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out consumer electronics and appliances.

Exclude:

  • leasing or renting computers;
  • renting household furniture or party and banquet supplies (please see Other consumer goods rental below).

Formal wear and costume rental

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out formal wear, costumes (including theatrical) and other clothing.

Exclude:

  • laundering and renting uniforms and other work apparel.

Video tape and disc rental

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out pre-recorded video tapes and discs to the general public.

Exclude:

  • retailing pre-recorded video tapes and discs;
  • distributing motion pictures and videos to movie theatres and other distributors;
  • renting video recorders and players (please see Consumer electronics and appliance rental above).

Other consumer goods rental

This industry comprises business units, not classified to any other industry, primarily engaged in renting out consumer goods.

Exclude:

  • retailing and renting musical instruments;
  • renting consumer electronics and appliances (please see Consumer electronics and appliance rental above);
  • formal wear and costume rental (please see Formal wear and costume rental above);
  • renting pre-recorded video tapes (please see Video tape and disc rental above);
  • renting a general line of products such as lawn and garden equipment, home repair tools, and party and banquet equipment (please see General rental centres below);
  • renting commercial and industrial medical equipment.

General rental centres

This industry comprises business units primarily engaged in renting out a range of consumer, commercial and industrial equipment. These business units typically operate from conveniently located facilities in which they maintain an inventory of goods and equipment that are rented out for short periods of time.

Include:

  • home repair tools;
  • lawn and garden equipment;
  • contractors’ and builders’ tools and equipment;
  • moving equipment and supplies;
  • party and banquet equipment and supplies.

Exclude:

  • renting and leasing heavy construction equipment, without operator;
  • renting personal and household goods;
  • renting party and banquet supplies (please see Other consumer goods rental above).

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

4. Is this business unit engaged in sales financing?

(yes – no)

Sales financing

Sales financing business units lend money to consumers and businesses for the purchase of goods and services, using a contractual instalment sales agreement, either directly from, or through arrangements with, dealers of the products.

Include:

  • acceptance companies of motor vehicle manufacturers and heavy equipment manufacturers;
  • business units engaged in the purchase of instalment and credit card receivables.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

G - Personnel

To fully measure the contribution of all human capital in this industry, we require information on the number of partners and proprietors as well as the number and classification of workers.

1. Number of partners and proprietors, non-salaried (if salaried, report at question 2 below)

For unincorporated businesses, please report the number of partners and proprietors for whom earnings will be the net income of the partnership or proprietorship.

2. Paid employees

a) Average number of paid employees during the reporting period

To calculate the average number employed, add the number of employees in the last pay period of each month of the reporting period and divide this sum by the number of months (usually 12).

Exclude:

  • partners and proprietors, non-salaried reported at question 1 above.

b) Percentage of paid employees (from question 2a) who worked full time

Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week. Please specify the percentage of paid employees who have been working full time by rounding the percentage to the nearest whole number.

3. Number of contract workers for whom you did not issue a T4, such as freelancers and casual workers (estimates are acceptable)

Contract workers are not employees, but workers contracted to perform a specific task or project in your organization for a specific duration, such as self-employed persons, freelancers and casual workers. These workers are not issued a T4 information slip. Please report the number of contract workers employed by your organization during the fiscal year.

H - Sales by type of client

This section is designed to measure which sector of the economy purchases your services.

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your sales by type of client.

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

1. Clients in Canada

a) Businesses

Percentage of sales sold to the business sector should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to Crown corporations.

b) Individuals and households

Please report the percentage of sales to individuals and households who do not represent the business or government sector.

c) Governments, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions (e.g., hospitals, schools)

Percentage of sales to federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments should be reported here.

Include:

  • sales to hospitals, schools, universities and public utilities.

2. Clients outside Canada

Please report the share of total sales to customers or clients located outside Canada including foreign businesses, foreign individuals, foreign institutions and/or governments.

Include:

  • sales to foreign subsidiaries and affiliates.

I - Sales by client location

Please provide a percentage breakdown of your total sales by client location (first point of sale).

Please ensure that the sum of percentages reported in this section equals 100%.

The percentage in question 14 must equal question 2 in section H.

J - International transactions

This section is intended to measure the value of international transactions on goods, services, and royalties and licences fees. It covers imported services and goods purchased outside Canada as well as the value of exported services and goods to clients/customers outside Canada. Please report also royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees paid to and/or received from outside Canada. Services cover a variety of industrial, professional, trade and business services.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!

Unified Enterprise Survey - Annual

5-3600-3.3 STC/UES-425-60129

Reporting Guide

This guide is designed to assist you as you complete the 2009 Survey of Service Industries. If you need more information, please call the Statistics Canada Help Line at the number below.

Help Line: 1-888-881-3666

Your answers are confidential.

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information from this survey which would identify a person, business, or organization, without their prior consent. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation. The Canada Revenue Agency cannot access identifiable survey data from Statistics Canada.

These survey data will only be used for statistical purposes and will be published in an aggregate form only.

Table of contents

B - Main business activity
C - Reporting period information
D - Revenue
E - Expenses
K - Provincial/territorial distribution
General information
Survey purpose
Data-sharing agreements
Record linkages

B - Main business activity

1. Please describe the nature of your business.

To ensure that you have received the appropriate questionnaire, you are asked to describe the nature of your business. The description should briefly state the main activities of your business unit.

2. Please check the one main activity which most accurately represents your main source of revenue.

Below is a description of each main activity.

Personal care services

Barber shops

This industry group comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing hair care services to men, including hair cutting and styling, and the trimming or shaving of beards and moustaches.

Exclude:

  • unisex hair salons;
  • hair replacement centres.

Beauty salons and/or esthetic services

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing hair care services to women, providing esthetic services such as manicures and pedicures, non-medical skin treatments, or a combination of these services.

Exclude:

  • cosmetician/esthetician schools;
  • practices of dermatologists;
  • unisex hair salons;
  • hair removal and hair replacement studios.

Unisex hair salons

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in cutting and styling men’s or women’s hair. Establishments that combine hair care services for men or women with esthetic services are also included.

Other personal care services

This industry comprises establishments, not classified to any other industry, primarily engaged in providing personal care services.

Include:

  • bath houses;
  • ear piercing services;
  • hair removal (electrolysis);
  • hair replacement services;
  • massage parlours;
  • saunas;
  • scalp treatment services;
  • tattoo parlours;
  • turkish baths;
  • weight reduction centres (non-medical).

Exclude:

  • health clubs and similar facilities featuring exercise and other active physical fitness conditioning.

Laundry services

Coin-operated laundries and dry cleaners

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing self-service, coin-operated laundry and dry cleaning facilities for public use.

Dry cleaning and laundry services, except coin-operated

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in laundering, dry cleaning, and pressing apparel and linens of all types, including leather. These establishments may also provide clothing repair and alteration services. Laundry pick-up and delivery stations, operated independently from power laundries and dry cleaning plants, and establishments primarily engaged in cleaning, repairing and storing fur garments are also included.

Exclude establishments primarily engaged in:

  • retailing fur garments, combined with cleaning, repairing or storing;
  • storing furs for the trade;
  • operating clothing alteration and repair shops.

Linen and uniform supply

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in supplying and laundering towels, napkins, tablecloths, sheets, gowns, aprons, diapers and other linen items, for household or commercial use, typically on a contract basis. Establishments engaged in supplying and laundering commercial and industrial uniforms, laboratory coats, safety gloves, and flame and heat resistant clothing are also included.

Exclude establishments primarily engaged in:

  • renting formal wear and costumes.

Funeral services

Funeral homes

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in preparing the dead for burial or interment and conducting funerals.

Cemeteries and crematoria

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating sites or structures reserved for the interment of human or animal remains, and cremating the dead. Includes mausoleums, memorial gardens, and pet cemeteries.

Other personal services

Pet care services, except veterinary

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in grooming and boarding pet animals.

Include:

  • animal shelters;
  • boarding kennels;
  • pet grooming, sitting, or training services.

Exclude:

  • breeding and raising pets;
  • operating animal hospitals;
  • operating humane societies.

Photo finishing laboratories (except one-hour)

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in developing film and making photographic slides, prints and enlargements, on a large-scale basis, typically for commercial clients, and providing specialty services not normally available from one-hour finishing laboratories.

Exclude:

  • laboratories that process film for the motion picture industry.

One-hour photo finishing

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in developing film and printing still photographs for the public, through the use of automated photo finishing equipment located in shopping malls and other convenient locations. These establishments may also retail photographic supplies.

Exclude establishments primarily engaged in:

  • providing access to coin-operated photo machines.

Parking lots and garages

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating parking lots and parking garages. These establishments provide temporary parking services for motor vehicles, usually on an hourly, daily, or monthly basis.

Include:

  • valet parking services.

Exclude establishments primarily engaged in:

  • the dead storage of automobiles.

All other personal services

This industry comprises establishments, not classified elsewhere, primarily engaged in providing personal services.

Include:

  • bail bonding;
  • checkroom services;
  • coin-operated service machine operation (i.e., scales, shoe shine, lockers, blood pressure, photo);
  • comfort station operation;
  • escort services;
  • party planning services;
  • personal shopping services;
  • psychic services;
  • shoeshine services;
  • special occasion greeting services.

Exclude:

  • private households employing nannies or other domestics;
  • babysitting (child care) in own home.

If none of the above activities describes your main source of revenue, please call 1-888-881-3666 for further instructions.

C - Reporting period information

Please report information for your fiscal year (normal business year) ending between April 1, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Please indicate the reporting period covered by this questionnaire.

A detailed breakdown may be requested in other sections.

1. Sales of goods and services (e.g., rental and leasing income, commissions, fees, admissions, services revenue) Report net of returns and allowances.

Sales of goods and services are defined as amounts derived from the sale of goods and services (cash or credit), falling within a business’s ordinary activities. Sales should be reported net of trade discount, value added tax and other taxes based on sales.

Include:

  • sales from Canadian locations (domestic and export sales);
  • transfers to other business units or a head office of your firm.

Exclude:

  • transfers into inventory and consignment sales;
  • federal, provincial and territorial sales taxes and excise duties and taxes;
  • intercompany sales in consolidated financial statements.

2. Grants, subsidies, donations and fundraising

Please report contributions received during the reporting period.

Include:

  • non-repayable grants, contributions and subsidies from all levels of government;
  • revenue from private sector (corporate and individual) sponsorships, donations and fundraising.

3. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

A royalty is defined as a payment received by the holder of a copyright, trademark or patent.

Please include revenue received from the sale or use of all intellectual property rights of copyrighted musical, literary, artistic or dramatic works, sound recordings or the broadcasting of communication signals.

4. Investment income (dividends and interest)

Investment income is defined as the portion of a company’s income derived from its investments, including dividends and interest on stocks and bonds.

Include interest from:

  • foreign sources;
  • bonds and debentures;
  • mortgage loans;
  • G.I.C. interest;
  • loan interest;
  • securities interest and deposits with bank interest.

Exclude:

  • equity income from investments in subsidiaries or affiliates; these amounts should be reported in Section E, at question 25.

5. Other revenue (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 4 above.

6. Total revenue

The sum of questions 1 to 5.

E - Expenses

1. Salaries and wages of employees who have been issued a T4 statement

Please report all salaries and wages (including taxable allowances and employment commissions as defined on the T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid) before deductions for this reporting period.

Include:

  • vacation pay;
  • bonuses (including profit sharing);
  • employee commissions;
  • taxable allowances (e.g., room and board, vehicle allowances, gifts such as airline tickets for holidays);
  • severance pay.

Exclude:

  • all payments and expenses associated with casual labour and outside contract workers; please report these amounts in this section, at question 5.

2. Employer portion of employee benefits

Include contributions to:

  • health plans;
  • insurance plans;
  • employment insurance;
  • pension plans;
  • workers’ compensation;
  • contributions to any other employee benefits such as child care and supplementary unemployment benefit (SUB) plans;
  • contributions to provincial and territorial health and education payroll taxes.

3. Commissions paid to non-employees

Please report commission payments to outside workers without a T4 – Statement of Remuneration Paid.

Include:

  • commission payments to independent real estate agents and brokers.

4. Professional and business services fees

Include:

  • legal;
  • accounting and auditing;
  • consulting;
  • education and training;
  • research and development;
  • architect;
  • appraisal;
  • management and administration.

5. Subcontract expenses (include contract labour, contract work and custom work)

Subcontract expense refers to the purchasing of services from outside of the company rather than providing them in-house.

Include:

  • hired casual labour and outside contract workers.

6. Charges for services provided by your head office

Include:

  • parent company reimbursement expenses and interdivisional expenses.

7. Cost of goods sold, if applicable (purchases plus opening inventory minus closing inventory)

Report cost of purchased goods that were resold during the reporting period. If applicable, report cost of goods and material used in manufacturing of sold products.

Include:

  • goods purchased for resale: purchases during the period (including freight-in) plus opening inventory less closing inventory;
  • materials used in manufacturing of products sold: report only the material component of cost of finished manufactured goods that were sold during the reporting period.

Exclude:

  • direct and indirect labour costs (salaries, wages, benefits, and commissions);
  • overhead and all other costs normally charged to cost of goods sold, such as depreciation, energy costs, utilities, sub-contracts, royalties, transportation, warehousing, insurance, rental and leasing; these expenses should be reported elsewhere in the detailed categories provided.

8. Office supplies

Include:

  • office stationery and supplies, paper and other supplies for photocopiers, printers and fax machines;
  • diskettes and computer upgrade expenses;
  • data processing.

Exclude:

  • postage and courier;
  • telephone, Internet and other telecommunications expenses (please report this amount in this section, at question 14).

9. Rental and leasing (include rental of premises, equipment, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • lease rental expenses, real estate rental expenses, condominium fees and equipment rental expenses;
  • motor vehicle rental and leasing expenses;
  • rental and leasing of computer and peripheral expenses;
  • studio lighting and scaffolding, and other machinery and equipment expenses;
  • fuel and other utility costs covered in your rental and leasing contracts.

10. Repair and maintenance (e.g., property, equipment, vehicles)

Include expenses for the repair and maintenance of:

  • buildings and structures;
  • vehicles (including vehicle fuel);
  • machinery and equipment;
  • security equipment;
  • costs related to materials, parts and external labour associated with these expenses.

Also include janitorial and cleaning services and garbage removal.

11. Insurance (include professional liability, motor vehicles, etc.)

Include:

  • professional and other liability insurance;
  • motor vehicle and property insurance;
  • executive life insurance;
  • bonding, business interruption insurance and fire insurance.

Insurance recovery income should be deducted from insurance expenses.

12. Advertising, marketing and promotions (report charitable donations at question 22)

Include:

  • newspaper advertising and media expenses;
  • catalogues, presentations and displays;
  • meeting and convention expenses;
  • tickets for theatre, concerts and sporting events for business promotion;
  • fundraising expenses.

13. Travel, meals and entertainment

Include:

  • passenger transportation, accommodation and meals while travelling;
  • other travel allowances as well as meal, entertainment and hospitality purchases for clients.

14. Utilities and telecommunications expenses (include gas, heating, hydro, water, telephone and Internet expenses)

Include:

  • diesel, fuel wood, natural gas, oil and propane;
  • sewage.

Exclude:

  • energy expenses covered in your rental and leasing contracts;
  • vehicle fuel.

15. Property and business taxes, licences and permits

Include:

  • property taxes paid directly and property transfer taxes;
  • vehicle licence fees;
  • beverage taxes and business taxes;
  • trade licence fees;
  • membership fees and professional licence fees.

16. Royalties, rights, licensing and franchise fees

Include:

  • amounts paid to holders of patents, copyrights, performing rights and trademarks;
  • gross overriding royalty expenses and direct royalty costs;
  • resident and non-resident royalty expenses;
  • franchise fees.

17. Delivery, warehousing, postage and courier

Include:

  • amounts paid for courier, custom fees, delivery and installation;
  • distribution, ferry charges and cartage;
  • freight and duty, shipping, warehousing and storage.

18. Financial service fees

Include:

  • explicit service charges for financial services;
  • credit and debit card commissions and charges;
  • collection expenses and transfer fees;
  • registrar and transfer agent fees;
  • security and exchange commission fees;
  • other financial service fees.

Exclude:

  • interest expenses.

19. Interest expenses

Please report the cost of servicing your company’s debt.

Include interest on:

  • short-term and long-term debt;
  • capital leases;
  • bonds and debentures and mortgages.

20. Amortization and depreciation of tangible and intangible assets

Include:

  • direct cost depreciation of tangible assets and amortization of leasehold improvements;
  • amortization of intangible assets (e.g., amortization of goodwill, deferred charges, organizational costs, and research and development costs).

21. Bad debts

A bad debt is the portion of receivables deemed uncollectible, typically from accounts receivable or loans.

Include:

  • allowance for bad debts.

Bad debt recoveries are to be netted from bad debt expenses.

22. All other expenses (please specify)

Include:

  • amounts not included in questions 1 to 21;
  • charitable and political expenses;
  • research and development expenses;
  • education and training expenses;
  • recruiting expenses.

23. Total expenses

The sum of questions 1 to 22.

24. Corporate taxes, if applicable

Include:

  • federal, provincial and territorial current income taxes and federal, provincial and territorial provision for deferred income taxes.

25. Gains (losses) and other items

Include:

  • realized gains/losses on disposal of assets and realized gains/losses on sale of investments;
  • foreign exchange gains/losses, subsidiary/affiliate share of income/losses and other division
    income/losses;
  • joint venture income/losses and partnership income/losses;
  • unrealized gains/losses, extraordinary items, legal settlements, and other unusual items;
  • write-offs.

26. Net profit/loss after tax and other items

Total revenue less Total expenses minus Corporate taxes plus Gains (losses) and other items.

K - Provincial/territorial distribution

This section is intended to collect information on the locations operated by your business during the reporting period.

Please report the number of business units or locations operating in Canada during the reporting period. Business unit is defined as the lowest level of the firm for which accounting records are maintained for such details as revenue, expenses and employment.

Please report data for the provinces or territories in which you have business units and indicate if you are reporting in Canadian dollars or percentages.

General information

Survey purpose

Statistics Canada conducts this survey to obtain detailed and accurate data on this industry, which is recognised as being an important contributor to the Canadian economy. Your responses are critically important to produce reliable statistics used by businesses, non-profit organizations and all levels of government to make informed decisions in many areas.

The information from this survey can be used by your business to benchmark your performance against an industry standard, to plan marketing strategies or to prepare business plans for investors. Governments use the data to develop national and regional economic policies and to develop programs to promote domestic and international competitiveness. The data are also used by trade associations, business analysts and investors to study the economic performance and characteristics of your industry.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which must keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. Please specify the organizations with which you do not want to share your data.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Please note that Statistics Canada does not share any individual survey information with the Canada Revenue Agency.

For more information about these data-sharing agreements, please contact Statistics Canada at 1-888-881-3666 or visit our website at
www.statcan.gc.ca/survey-enquete/index-eng.htm.

Thank you!