Starting July 1, 2010, Ontario is harmonizing its provincial sales tax with the federal sales tax. The current retail sales tax (RST) will be replaced with a more modern, value-added tax that will be combined with the federal goods and services tax to create a harmonized sales tax (HST).
The HST is part of a comprehensive tax package to make Ontario’s businesses more competitive — a tax package strategy that was a cornerstone of the OCC’s lobbying on behalf of business. In addition to the HST, the package is delivering tax relief of $4.5 billion to business and $10.6 billion to people over three years, according to the Ontario government.
Benefits for Ontario Businesses:
- Increased Competitiveness = Greater Investment, More Jobs
- Cuts to Business Taxes
- Reduced Business Costs
- Lower Compliance Costs
Important dates:
- March 31, 2010 – RST Vendor compensation ends
- May 1, 2010 – For transactions on or after this date, suppliers may be required to collect HST under transitional rules
- July 1, 2010 – HST comes into effect
- July 23, 2010 – Final RST return due
- November 23, 2010 – Final supplemental RST return due
What do businesses have to do right now to get ready?
To help your business prepare for the HST, general transitional rules for the HST are available. Transitional rules have also been released for new housing. Information on temporarily restricted input tax credits is also available for large businesses and certain financial institutions.
For more information, please contact Derek Picard, Senior Policy Analyst, at 416 482 5222 ext. 246, or derekpicard@occ.on.ca.
