HST: RST refund for contractors involved in residential real property renovation.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Prior to the implementation of HST in Ontario on July 1, housebuilders, renovation contractors and about anyone involved in "real property" contracts were not considered as "vendors" for purpose of the Ontario Retail Sales Tax ...

HST: Are you ready?

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Tomorrow, July 1, HST becomes a reality for Ontario and B.C.; in addition  Nova Scotia's existing HST rate jumps from 13% to 15%. Registrants now must deals with rates of 5%, 12%, 13% and 15% not counting Quebec's "harmonize...

Ontario HST first transition payments issued

Monday, June 14, 2010

Did you notice a mysterious $100. or $330 deposit in your bank account?  Or did you receive a $100 or $330 check you did not expect? It's your first Ontario HST transition payment, its part of the program designed to help consumers c...

HST: Selling goods or services to the Ontario Government

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Businesses that sell their goods or services often misinterpret the law and either fail to collect tax or provide appropriate exemption when dealing with Provincial or Federal Governments. The introduction of HST in Ontario and the introduction of...

A reminder: April 30th, deadline to fill your Income Tax return

Monday, April 26, 2010

As discussed in our last column, May 1 triggers important changes related to the GST/HST; nevertheless, it's important not to lose track that for most Ottawa residents the Income Tax Return must be filed by April 30th, in other words, Friday, ...

May 1, 2010: Very important date for HST and GST

Friday, April 23, 2010

July 1 may be the official beginning date of the Harmonized Sales Tax in Ontario but all current GST registrants currently doing business in Ontario, which means most registrants of the Outaouais region must take note that they could be required t...

Quebec's 2010 Budget: New taxes of all kinds...

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Finance Minister Raymond Bachand presented his budget yesterday at 4:00 PM; it is a bold budget introducing a long list of higher, and in many cases, totally new levies or taxes. Many polls of the Quebec population  show that Quebeckers appea...

Ontario Budget 2010: Open Ontario

Friday, March 26, 2010

  Finance Minister Dwight Duncan presented his latest budget speech yesterday. The Budget, as announced contains no new taxes; in terms of tax matters, it contains in fact very few new measures. Generally speaking, the Ontario Government ...

Ontario and Quebec 2010 budgets: no new taxes in Ontario QST hike in Quebec

Monday, March 22, 2010

Dwight  Duncan, Ontario's Finance Minister announced Monday that the provincial Budget, to be presented this Thursday will not include any new taxes. However, governmental officials are looking at all their options to help pay down a...

Your tax dollars at work: alleged governmental overpayment for maintenance work.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

How much does it cost to install a new doorbell in the Public Works department's building ( Portage III in Gatineau)? $1,000.41 How much does it cost to install six new recessed lighting fixtures in the ceiling of the same building? $5...

Federal Budget: Not so obvious but important measures

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Everybody and their fathers comments on the Federal Budget. So it is with Finance Minister Jim Flaherty latest budget tabled at 4:00 pm in Ottawa. This time, the Ottawa Tax Matters Examiner chooses to focus on measures which are sig...

Federal Budget: More money for "We own the podium"

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Quoting reliable sources, this morning's La Presse states that the Harper government  has heard the calls of athletes and of Canadians made proud by the successful Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. All want to build on the success of our at...

HST: New "Place of supply" rules announced!

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

On February 25, Finance Canada announced the introduction of new "place of supply" rules. The rather long document is available here. Such rules are not new and became important when the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) first appeared in ...

March 4 2010 Federal budget: Live on Twitter!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Thursday next week, on March 4, the Honourable Jim Flaherty will rise in the House of Commons to deliver the federal 2010 budget. At the same time the Department of Finance Canada will start tweeting. Yup, links to relevant portion of the budget w...

HST: "Recaptured" input-tax credits?

Monday, February 22, 2010

The Ontario and British Columbia versions of the "harmonized" sales tax have adopted a feature  of the Quebec Sales Tax ("QST") by limiting the right to input-tax credits for large businesses with annual sales of $10 milli...

HST/GST: New filings requirements

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Last January 4, at the time when most are still in the Holiday spirits, Canada Revenue Agency, (CRA) announced sweeping changes to the GST/HST reporting and filing requirements. Effective July 1, 2010, all registrants with annual taxable...

HST/GST: Is it "Pay Later" time?

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

GST revenue hit hard by recession It is important to remember  that the GST was introduced in 1991 at the rate of 7%. The Conservative government fulfilled its election promise and reduced the rate to 6% in July 2006 and to 5% in January ...

HST Ontario: Selling to governments

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Most do not realize it, but the change from the combination GST/PST to the new Ontario HST on July 1, 2010 has significant implications for those selling to the governments, whether federal or provincial. Under the current system, and ess...

Ontario's HST transition credits, Who? When? How much?

Monday, December 14, 2009

Now that implementation of Ontario's somewhat Harmonized Sales Tax ("HST")  is  a sure thing, (enabling  legislation having been voted for by both levels of government), let's see what's in store for ...

Ontario's HST sales tax reform - good or bad?

Sunday, December 6, 2009

On July 1, 2010, Ontario will merge its current 8% retail sales tax (RST) with the 5% federal GST into a  blended harmonized sales tax (HST) of 13%. This new tax, administered by Canada Revenue Agency differs from the exis...