Canada: Sales Taxes: VAT, GST

CRA phishing scams and CRA impersonation fraud continue to increase across Canada, particularly during tax-filing season and periods involving government benefit payments.

Corporations are treated as distinct legal persons, separate from their shareholders, directors, and officers.

Canadian landlords operating short-term rentals now face strict new limits on claiming tax deductions if they fail to follow provincial or municipal rules. The Canada Revenue Agency can deny expenses related to short-term rental properties under the updated Income Tax Act.

Canadian landlords operating short-term rentals now face strict new limits on claiming tax deductions if they fail to follow provincial or municipal rules. The Canada Revenue Agency can deny expenses related to short-term rental properties under the updated Income Tax Act.

When a taxpayer misses the deadline to file a notice of objection to a CRA tax reassessment, the situation often feels irreversible. In practice, however, the law does provide a pathway to correct that mistake — but only if the process is followed precisely.

Canadian taxpayers, including content creators, influencers, and digital entrepreneurs, who earn income from digital marketing activities—including online advertising through platforms such as Google AdSense, promotional services linked to NFT projects, and sponsorship arrangements with offshore entities—often assume that this income is not subject to GST/HST or is automatically zero-rated because it involves non-Canadian counterparties.

La Colombie-Britannique a récemment proposé d’étendre l’application de la taxe de vente provinciale de 7 % (la « TVP de la C.-B. ») aux services professionnels autres que les services juridiques. Si cette mesure est adoptée, la TVP de la C.-B. s’appliquera aux services professionnels suivants à compter du 1er octobre 2026

Ontario's new HST rebate promises significant savings for new home buyers, but builders face mounting challenges as they navigate pricing uncertainties and construction deadlines while the enabling legislation remains unenacted. With rebates reaching up to $130,000 and complex eligibility requirements spanning multiple years, the gap between policy announcement and legislative reality creates operational complications for an industry already managing tight timelines and buyer expectations.

One way the federal and Ontario governments are addressing housing affordability pressures is through enhanced GST/HST rebates on the purchase of new housing. This includes the federal first-time home buyers GST rebate (the “Federal FTHB Rebate”) and the recent announcements by Ontario.