The Canadian government announced in its 2012 budget that the penny would be eliminated from the Canadian coinage system. On February 4, 2013, the Canadian Mint will officially stop circulating the coins.
How does this affect your business?
Retailers can continue to accept pennies or, for cash transactions they can elect to round up or down, as follows:
Rounding should be done on the total bill, including tax, not on individual items.
From the Canadian Federal Government's "Frequently Asked Questions: Businesses"
Are businesses required to accept pennies after February 4, 2013?
While businesses do not have a legal obligation to accept any particular Canadian coins or bank notes in a retail transaction, the penny will continue to be legal tender like all other Canadian coins, and businesses may accept the coin as a means of payment if they so choose.
After February 4, 2013, are businesses allowed to make change in pennies if they wish?
This is an individual business decision.
How will accepting foreign currencies, government cheques, gift cards and split payments be affected by rounding?
Payments made using non-cash methods such as cheques and electronic payments-debit, credit and other payments cards such as gift cards and prepaid credit cards-do not need to be rounded, because they can be settled electronically to the exact amount.
They should be calculated in the same manner as before. For any cash payment, only the final amount (or equivalently, the change owed) should be subject to rounding. Individual items, as well as any duties, fees or taxes, should be tabulated in their exact amount prior to rounding.
In all cases, businesses are expected to round final totals in a fair, consistent and transparent manner.
When a consumer requests a refund, is the amount subject to rounding?As is the case now, businesses can set their own policies regarding refunds. However, if a refund is paid out in cash and pennies are not used, businesses will be expected to round the final amount in a fair and transparent manner.
Will businesses need to update cash registers for rounding? This is an individual business decision.
Rounding for cash payments occurs after any tabulation of duties, fees or taxes. Businesses may choose to update their cash registers to automatically calculate rounding for cash transactions and to provide greater transparency and clarity to their customers by showing the rounding on receipts.
How will the GST/HST be calculated without a penny?The GST/HST should be calculated in the same manner as before. For any cash payment, only the final amount (or equivalently, the change owed) should be subject to rounding. Individual items, as well as any duties, fees or taxes, should be tabulated in their exact amount prior to rounding.
Again, payments made using non-cash methods such as cheques and electronic payments do not need to be rounded, because they can be settled electronically to the exact amount.
For more information visit:
Backgrounder - Withdrawing the Penny from Circulation
Fact Sheet and FAQs for Businesses
Fact Sheet and FAQs for Consumers 
