Excise and GST/HST News - No. 108

September 2020

This publication has been modified to include additional text at the end of the article on the application of GST/HST to manual osteopathic services.

Table of Contents

Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance Program

On April 24, 2020, the Prime Minister of Canada announced that the federal government had reached an agreement in principle with all provinces and territories to implement the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program for small businesses. The CECRA program, which is part of the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan, provides rent relief for small businesses that have been affected by COVID-19.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is administering the CECRA program on behalf of the Government of Canada and its provincial and territorial partners. Details about the CECRA program can be found on CMHC’s website at cmhc-schl.gc.ca. Information about how the GST/HST applies to payments made under the CECRA program is set out below.

Brief description of the CECRA program

Under the CECRA program, CMHC will provide an unsecured forgivable loan to an eligible commercial property owner who enters into a rent reduction agreement that reduces an impacted small business tenant’s monthly gross rent payable by at least 75% for the 4-month period of April, May, June and July 2020. In other words, as a result of the rent reduction agreement, the impacted small business tenant must not be required to pay more than 25% of the monthly gross rent payable during the 4-month period.

The amount of the forgivable loan will equal 50% of the monthly gross rent payable by the impacted small business tenant during the 4-month period. Generally, as a condition of the forgivable loan, the commercial property owner must use the full amount of the loan in either refunding or adjusting any amount in excess of 25% of the monthly gross rent payable during the 4-month period that was paid or payable by the impacted small business tenant. Generally, the remaining part of the refund or adjustment (that is, the difference between the amount of the rent reduction and the amount of the forgivable loan) must be borne by the commercial property owner.

For example, if under a rent reduction agreement a commercial property owner reduces an impacted small business tenant’s monthly gross rent payable by 80% (meaning that the impacted small business tenant is required to pay 20% of the monthly gross rent payable), the commercial property owner must use the full amount of the forgivable loan (that is, 50% of the monthly gross rent payable) to refund or adjust the impacted small business tenant’s rent payable, and bear the remainder of the refund or adjustment (that is, 30% of the monthly gross rent payable) itself.

Only a commercial property owner can apply for a forgivable loan under the CECRA program. The deadline for submitting an application to CMHC is August 31, 2020.

GST/HST implications

There is no GST/HST applicable with respect to payments received by the commercial property owners from CMHC under the CECRA program.

Application of the GST/HST to the forgivable loan

The forgivable loans provided by CMHC under the CECRA program are exempt supplies of financial services. As such, CMHC will not charge and collect GST/HST on the forgivable loans provided to commercial property owners. To be clear, commercial property owners are not required to pay GST/HST on the forgivable loans.

Application of GST/HST to refunds or adjustments of the gross monthly rent paid or payable

The rent reduction agreement is an amendment to the lease agreement between the commercial property owner and the impacted small business tenant. The rent reduction agreement has the effect of reducing the amount of consideration payable for a taxable supply of real property made by way of lease, licence or similar arrangement, but it does not have the effect of changing the timing of when consideration becomes due under subsection 152(2) of the Excise Tax Act (the Act).

As explained above, pursuant to a rent reduction agreement, a commercial property owner agrees to subsequently reduce an impacted small business tenant’s monthly gross rent payable by at least 75% for the 4-month period. Pursuant to section 232 of the Act, in this case where a commercial property owner agrees to refund or credit an amount of GST/HST already collected, or agrees to adjust the GST/HST applicable to the reduction of the monthly gross rent payable, the commercial property owner must issue a credit note, meeting the prescribed requirements that are set out in the Act, to the impacted small business tenant.

Where a credit note is issued, the parties must adjust their net tax remittance accordingly in order to reflect that, in accordance with the CECRA program, GST/HST is applicable to only 25% (or less) of the monthly gross rent payable by the impacted small business tenant.

For information on commercial rent please see GST/HST Memorandum 19-4-1, Commercial Real Property – Sales and Rentals.

Application of GST to increased provincial tax rate in British Columbia on vapour products

On January 1, 2020, the provincial sales tax rate on sales and leases of certain vapour products in the Province of British Columbia (BC) increased from 7% to 20% (See BC Provincial Sales Tax Notice 2019‑005). As a result of this increase, the provincial sales tax imposed in such circumstances forms part of the consideration for a taxable supply of vapour products and is subject to the GST.

Generally, under the Excise Tax Act (the Act), every recipient of a taxable supply (other than a zero-rated supply) made in Canada is required to pay GST/HST on the value of the consideration for the supply. Consideration is defined in the Act to include any amount payable by operation of law.

Section 154 of the Act provides, in part, that taxes, duties, and fees imposed by a provincial government (referred to as provincial levies) and payable by a recipient of a supply, or by the supplier in respect of a supply, are generally included in the value of the consideration for the supply unless they are prescribed under the Taxes, Duties, and Fees (GST/HST) Regulations (the Regulations).

Under the Regulations, certain provincial levies which exceed the specified tax rate for a province are not prescribed for purposes of section 154 and would therefore be included in the value of the consideration for the related supply on which the GST/HST is calculated. For the purposes of the Regulations, the specified tax rate in BC is 12%.

Although taxes imposed under BC’s Provincial Sales Tax Act are in most cases prescribed and therefore excluded from the consideration for a supply, the new provincial sales tax rate of 20% on sales and leases of vapour products exceeds BC’s specified tax rate of 12% set out in the Regulations. As such, it is not a prescribed tax and is therefore included in the value of the consideration for the supply of vapour products in BC.

Therefore, for all sales and leases of vapour products in BC, the GST is calculated on the total value of the consideration paid or payable for the vapour product, including the amount of the provincial sales tax imposed on the purchase price of the vapour product.

Example:

A retailer in BC sells vapour products that are subject to the provincial sales tax rate of 20%. The retail price of the products is $350.00. In accordance with section 154 of the Act, the GST on the sale of the vapour products is calculated on the value of the consideration payable for the sale, including the BC provincial sales tax of 20%, as follows:

Cost of the vapour products

$350.00

BC provincial sales tax ($350 × 20%)

$70.00

Total consideration for the vapour products

$420.00

GST ($420 × 5%)

$21.00

Total amount charged to customer ($420.00 + $21.00)

$441.00

For more information regarding the application of GST/HST to federal, provincial and territorial taxes, duties, and fees, see GST/HST Memorandum 3-5, Application of GST/HST to Other Taxes, Duties, and Fees.

The application of GST/HST to manual osteopathic services

This article outlines the tax status of supplies of manual osteopathic services rendered by osteopathic manual practitioners who are not medical practitioners (licensed physicians or dentists) for GST/HST purposes.

There is a difference between the profession of osteopathy engaged in by an osteopathic physician (Doctor of Osteopathy) and an osteopathic manual practitioner. In certain provinces, including Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec, an osteopathic physician who has the required educational background may be admitted to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the province.

Please note that, in this article, the terms “manual osteopathic services”, “osteopathic manual practitioner” and “manual osteopathy” do not refer to the profession of osteopathy that is practised by an osteopathic physician. Supplies of health care services rendered by osteopathic physicians would generally be exempt pursuant to section 5 of Part II of Schedule V to the Excise Tax Act (the Act).

Section 7 of Part II of Schedule V to the Act exempts supplies of certain health care services, including osteopathic services, where the services are rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service.

For purposes of section 7, to be a practitioner in respect of osteopathic services, a person must be

Manual osteopathy is not recognized as a regulated health profession in any province or territory in Canada. As such, the conditions in paragraphs (b) or (c) of the definition of practitioner cannot be met. Therefore, supplies of osteopathy services rendered by manual osteopathic practitioners do not meet the conditions for exemption in paragraph 7(f) of Part II of Schedule V as the osteopathic services are not rendered by a practitioner of the service. Such services are subject to the GST/HST at the rate of 5%, 13% or 15% depending on the province in which the supply is made when the supplier is a registrant.

There have been no changes to the legislation related to supplies of manual osteopathic services and the CRA has consistently communicated the tax status of these supplies over the years. However, we understand that some in the osteopathic community may have believed that their services were exempt and are not currently registered for the GST/HST. To assist the community, the CRA is taking an educational approach and encouraging the manual osteopathic practitioners to register, if they are not a small supplier. Moving forward, they will need to collect, file, and remit (pay) the GST/HST on their manual osteopathic services.

The CRA reserves the right to assess retroactively where continuous and/or severe non-compliance is observed for the period prior to September 2020. This could be the case where a manual osteopathic practitioner was previously advised that their services were taxable, that they needed to register, and neglected to do so.

Additional information on how to register and start collecting GST/HST can be found at canada.ca/register-gst-hst.

The supply of epinephrine – Patterson Dental Canada Inc. v Canada

The Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) delivered its decision in Patterson Dental Canada Inc. v Canada 2020 FCA 40 on February 7, 2020. The issue in the decision under appeal was whether the supplies by the appellant (Patterson) of local anesthetic solutions containing epinephrine used in dental surgeries were zero-rated supplies of epinephrine under subparagraph 2(e)(x) of Part I of Schedule VI to the Act.

The Tax Court of Canada had found in 2018 that the local epinephrine-containing anesthetic solutions sold by the appellant were not zero-rated supplies of mixtures of substances. It reasoned that when epinephrine is sold separately, with the specific objective of treating life-threatening conditions of a patient, the supply is zero-rated. However, the anesthetics supplied by the appellant were not designed to serve as an emergency relief for patients suffering from major life-threatening conditions as required for being listed in paragraph 2(e) of Part I of Schedule VI to the Act. Therefore, allowing epinephrine or any other drug listed in paragraph 2(e) to be mixed with other substances and to characterize the supply of this type of mixture as a zero-rated supply would be contrary to the policy established by the Department of Finance. The appellant appealed the 2018 decision of the Tax Court of Canada to the FCA.

On appeal, the FCA agreed with the Tax Court of Canada that the appellant’s epinephrine-containing solutions were not used to treat life-threatening conditions, but rather that the epinephrine in the solutions was added to act as a vasoconstrictor to control bleeding at the surgical site and decrease the absorption rate of the local anesthetic into the blood. Therefore, the epinephrine in the anesthetic solutions was performing a different function than when administered in a life-threatening circumstance, where it was the sole active ingredient in the medication.

Accordingly, the FCA dismissed the appeal and upheld the decision of the Tax Court of Canada, holding that the supply of epinephrine in combination with an analgesic in the appellant’s solutions was not a single supply containing a taxable element and a zero-rated element, and was therefore not zero-rated under paragraph 2(e) of Part I of Schedule VI to the Act.

The FCA also determined that, even if the anesthetic solutions sold by the appellant were to be regarded as such a supply, the case law had established that the zero-rated element of a mixture had to be the principal element in a supply in order for the supply to be zero-rated. In the case of the anesthetic solutions sold by the appellant, even though epinephrine was an important element in the appellant’s anesthetic solutions, the FCA held that it was not the main or predominant element, and that the local anesthetic was the main element.

The CRA’s existing policy regarding the application of the GST/HST to drugs that are mixed substances or solutions is consistent with the decisions of the Courts.

Additional First Nations implement the First Nations Goods and Services Tax

Recently, several additional First Nations implemented the First Nations Goods and Services Tax (FNGST). The FNGST is imposed on lands listed in Schedule 1 to the First Nations Goods and Services Tax Act (FNGST Act).

The Skowkale First Nation has entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada allowing it to impose a value-added tax under the Skowkale First Nations Goods and Services Tax Law, 2018. Effective January 31, 2020, an FNGST was imposed on Skowkale lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Skowkale lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Each reserve of Skowkale that is not shared with another band.” Therefore, starting on January 31, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Skowkale lands that are not shared with other First Nations.

The Toquaht Nation has entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada to impose a value-added tax under the Toquaht Nation Government Goods and Services Tax Act, TNS 1/2020. Effective February 18, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Toquaht Nation lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Toquaht Nation lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Maanulth Lands, as defined in the Maanulth First Nations Final Agreement Act, S.C. 2009, c. 18, of the Toquaht Nation.” Therefore, effective February 18, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Toquaht Nation lands.

The Ucluelet First Nation, also known as the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ First Nation, has entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada allowing it to impose a value-added tax under the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ Government Goods and Services Tax Act, YFNS 64/2020. Effective March 10, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Maanulth Lands, as defined in the Maanulth First Nations Final Agreement Act, S.C. 2009, c. 18, of the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ First Nation.” Therefore, as of March 10, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ lands.

The Uchucklesaht Tribe has entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada allowing it to impose a value-added tax under the Uchucklesaht Tribe Government Goods and Services Tax Act, UTS 59/2020. Effective March 17, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Uchucklesaht lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Uchucklesaht lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Maanulth Lands, as defined in the Maanulth First Nations Final Agreement Act, S.C. 2009, c. 18, of the Uchucklesaht Tribe.” Therefore, as of March 17, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Uchucklesaht lands.

The Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations have entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada allowing it to impose a value-added tax under the Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations Government Goods and Services Tax Act, KCFNS 62/2020. Effective March 17, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Maanulth Lands, as defined in the Maanulth First Nations Final Agreement Act, S.C. 2009, c. 18, of the Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations.” Therefore, as of March 17, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations lands.

The Huu-ay-aht First Nations have entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada allowing it to impose a value-added tax under the Huu-ay-aht FNGST Act. Effective March 27, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Huu-ay-aht lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Huu-ay-aht lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Maanulth Lands, as defined in the Maanulth First Nations Final Agreement Act, S.C. 2009, c. 18, of the Huu-ay-aht First Nations.” Therefore, as of March 27, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Huu-ay-aht lands.

The Mosquito, Grizzly Bear's Head, Lean Man First Nation has entered into an agreement with the Government of Canada to impose a value-added tax under the Mosquito, Grizzly Bear’s Head, Lean Man Community Betterment Levy Law, 2020. Effective June 23, 2020, the FNGST was imposed on Mosquito, Grizzly Bear's Head, Lean Man First Nation lands listed in Schedule 1 to the FNGST Act. Currently, Mosquito, Grizzly Bear's Head, Lean Man First Nation lands listed in Schedule 1 include “Reserves of the Mosquito, Grizzly Bear’s Head, Lean Man First Nation”. Therefore, as of June 23, 2020, the FNGST applies to taxable supplies made on the Mosquito, Grizzly Bear's Head, Lean Man First Nation lands.

FNGST

Everyone, including Indians, will be required to pay the FNGST on taxable supplies of property or services acquired on the lands named above.

As the FNGST is designed to work within the GST/HST framework, no additional forms or changes to registration are required. Vendors will simply apply the FNGST to their taxable supplies of property and services made on the above-noted lands in the same manner as the GST/HST. The GST, or the federal part of the HST, does not apply to sales on these lands when the FNGST applies.

For more information, including information on the special rules for specified motor vehicles and the requirement to self-assess the FNGST on property brought onto lands of a First Nation that imposes the FNGST, please see the First Nations Goods and Services Tax web page, the List of First Nations, the lands affected, and the effective date that the FNGST was implemented, GST/HST Technical Information Bulletin B-102, First Nations Goods and Services Tax - Place of Supply, and the following GST/HST Notices:

Excise duty rate adjustments – April 1, 2020 reminder

Under the Excise Act, 2001 and the Excise Act, inflationary adjustments are made on April 1 of each year to excise duty rates. The most recent adjustment occurred on April 1, 2020. The Excise duty rates web page lists all the current and historical rates.

Excise Act, 2001

Spirits and wine

The adjusted rates of excise duty payable on spirits and wine on or after April 1, 2020 are set out in Excise Duty Notice EDN62, Adjusted Rates of Excise Duty on Spirits and Wine Effective April 1, 2020. This annual adjustment does not apply to the rate of special duty on spirits.

Tobacco products

The adjusted rates of excise duty payable on tobacco products on or after April 1, 2020 are provided in Excise Duty Notice EDN63, Adjusted Rates of Excise Duty on Tobacco Products Effective April 1, 2020. This annual adjustment does not apply to the excise duty rate on raw leaf tobacco or to the special duty rates on stamped tobacco products.

Cigarette inventory tax

In addition to the April 1, 2020 rate adjustment, an inventory tax applies to the following cigarettes that were held in inventory at 12:01 a.m. on April 1, 2020:

Excise Duty Notice EDN64, Cigarette Inventory Tax on April 1, 2020, provides more information.

Excise Act

Beer

The adjusted rates of excise duty payable on beer on or after April 1, 2020, are provided in Excise Duty Notice EDBN27, Adjusted Rates of Excise Duty on Beer Effective April 1, 2020.

Fuel charge rate adjustments – April 1, 2020 reminder

Under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, fuel charge rates increase April 1 of each year through 2022. The most recent adjustment occurred on April 1, 2020. The fuel charge rates are available on the Fuel Charge Rates web page.

Fuel charge changes for New Brunswick – April 1, 2020 reminder

Effective April 1, 2020, New Brunswick introduced a provincial tax on carbon-emitting products that meet the federal stringency requirements for the sources of carbon-emitting products it covers. The Department of Finance Canada has published draft regulations proposing to stand down the federal fuel charge under Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act in New Brunswick effective April 1, 2020. As a result, New Brunswick is no longer considered a listed province for purposes of applying Part 1 of this Act and the CRA will no longer apply the federal fuel charge in that province as of that date. For more information, see Fuel Charge Notice FCN13, New Brunswick No Longer a Listed Province Under Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act Effective April 1, 2020.

Application of the HST to the New Brunswick carbon tax

Effective April 1, 2020, New Brunswick (NB) imposed a tax on carbon emitting products under NB’s Gasoline and Motive Fuel Tax Act. This tax applies to purchases in NB of fuels such as gasoline, propane, diesel, and ethane.

Generally, under the Excise Tax Act (the Act), every recipient of a taxable supply (other than a zero-rated supply) made in Canada is required to pay GST/HST on the value of the consideration for the supply. Consideration is defined in the Act to include any amount payable by operation of law.

Section 154 of the Act provides, in part, that taxes, duties, and fees imposed by a provincial government (referred to as provincial levies) and payable by a recipient of a supply, or by the supplier in respect of a supply, are generally included in the value of the consideration for the supply unless they are prescribed under the Taxes, Duties, and Fees (GST/HST) Regulations (the Regulations).

The carbon tax levied by the Province of NB under the Gasoline and Motive Fuel Tax Act is not prescribed under the Regulations. As a result, the carbon tax is included in the value of the consideration for the supply on which the HST is calculated at a rate of 15%.

For more information regarding the application of GST/HST to federal, provincial and territorial taxes, duties, and fees, see GST/HST Memorandum 3-5, Application of GST/HST to Other Taxes, Duties, and Fees.

GST/HST acceptance of electronic signatures

The CRA is committed to making it easier for businesses to submit their GST/HST documents, including returns, rebate applications and election forms. As a temporary measure the CRA is accepting electronic signatures for GST/HST documents submitted online. In particular, effective July 6, 2020, businesses are able to use a new electronic service to submit a GST/HST document with an electronic signature.

The link to this new service is found on the MyBA main web page of the GST/HST program account menu.

In some cases the signature on a form submitted through MyBA will not be that of the person submitting the form, and there will be reliance on the person submitting the form to obtain a valid signature. This new service will not affect the paper submission process in any way. If you would like to switch to electronic submission for your returns, elections, and forms, go to E-services for businesses for more information.

This new service is available for GST/HST forms where no online filing option already exists. This new service has been launched as a temporary measure to provide more flexible options during the COVID-19 crisis.

Prescribed rates of interest

The prescribed annual rate of interest in effect from July 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020 on overdue amounts payable to the Minister is 5%. The prescribed annual rate of interest on amounts owed by the Minister (such as, rebates or refunds) is 1% for corporate taxpayers and 3% for non-corporate taxpayers. These rates are applicable to income tax, excise tax, GST/HST, the air travellers security charge (ATSC), the fuel charge (under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act) and excise duty on wine, spirits, tobacco and cannabis.

The prescribed annual rate of interest respecting excise duty on beer, on overdue amounts payable for the indicated period, is set at 3%. Refund interest rates are not applicable for amounts owed by the Minister (such as, rebates or refunds) for excise duty that is in relation to beer.

Prescribed annual rates of interest for GST/HST, excise tax, fuel charge, ATSC, excise duty (wine, spirits, tobacco, cannabis), income tax
PERIOD

July 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020

April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020 January 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020 October 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019
Refund interest
Corporate taxpayers
1% 2% 2% 2%
Refund interest
Non-corporate taxpayers
3% 4% 4% 4%
Arrears and instalment interest 5% 6% 6% 6%
Prescribed annual rates of interest for excise duty on beer
PERIOD July 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020 April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020 January 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020 October 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019
Arrears interest excise duty - beer 3% 4% 4% 4%

Prescribed interest rates for previous years are available on Canada.ca at Prescribed interest rates.

What’s new in publications

The following is a list of new or revised Excise and GST/HST forms and publications:

GST/HST forms

GST/HST guides

GST/HST notices

GST/HST info sheets

Excise forms

Excise duty notices

Fuel charge notices

Fuel charge forms

All GST/HST, excise duty, and excise taxes and special levies publications can be found on the Canada.ca website. Go to the Technical information – GST/HST, Excise taxes and other levies and Excise duty web pages.

To receive email notification as soon as a document is published on the CRA website, go to electronic mailing lists and subscribe to the RSS feed for all new CRA publications and forms, or subscribe to any number of mailing lists for different types of publications.

Contact us

More information

Forms and publications

  • All GST/HST technical publications and GST/HST related forms are available on the Canada.ca website. Go to GST/HST related forms and publications.
  • To access all other forms and publications on the CRA website go to Forms and publications.
  • To order forms and publications by telephone, call 1‑800‑959‑5525.

To make a GST/HST enquiry by telephone:

  • for GST/HST general enquiries, call Business Enquiries at 1-800-959-5525;
  • for GST/HST technical enquiries, call GST/HST Rulings at 1‑800‑959‑8287.

If you are located in Quebec, call Revenu Québec at 1-800-567-4692 or visit their website at revenuquebec.ca.

If you are a selected listed financial institution (whether or not you are located in Quebec) and require information on the GST/HST or the QST, go to GST/HST and QST - Financial institutions, including selected listed financial institutions or

  • for general GST/HST or QST enquiries, call Business Enquiries at 1-800-959-5525;
  • for technical GST/HST or QST enquiries, call GST/HST Rulings SLFI at 1-855-666-5166.

Go to the Contact Information – Excise Duties, Excise Taxes, Fuel Charge and Air Travellers Security Charge webpage for technical enquiries, publications and forms, and regional office contact information.

Account enquiries

For general information and to make enquiries regarding your account, you can:

  • view answers to common enquiries, or submit an enquiry using the online “Enquiries service” on “My Business Account”;
  • view account information online at E-services for Businesses; or
  • call Business Enquiries at 1‑800‑959‑5525.

For online access to your GST/HST, air travellers security charge, excise tax and duty accounts (such as viewing up-to-date account balances and transactions, transferring payments and more), go to:

For enquiries regarding the status of specific GST/HST domestic rebate claims, call Business Enquiries at 1‑800‑959‑5525.

Help

For technical support using our online services:

  • business accounts, call 1‑800‑­959‑­5525
  • teletypewriter users, call 1‑800‑665‑0354
  • calls outside of Canada and the United States, call collect at 1‑613‑940‑8497

Please have the screen number (bottom right) and, if applicable, the error number and message received on hand when calling.

The Excise and GST/HST News is published quarterly and highlights recent developments in the administration of the GST/HST, the QST for SLFIs, First Nations goods and services tax (FNGST) and First Nations tax (FNT), air travellers security charge (ATSC) as well as excise taxes and duties. If you would like to receive a link to each new edition of the Excise and GST/HST News as it is published, subscribe to the electronic mailing list.

This publication is provided for information purposes only and does not replace the law, either enacted or proposed. Please note that any commentary in this newsletter regarding proposed measures should not be taken as a statement by the CRA that such measures will in fact be enacted into law in their current form. Comments or suggestions about the newsletter should be sent to the Editor, Excise and GST/HST News, Excise and GST/HST Rulings Directorate, Legislative Policy and Regulatory Affairs Branch, CRA, 11th Floor, Place de Ville, 320 Queen Street, Ottawa  K1A 0L5.

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