What GST/HST rates do I charge for each province?

[billybee99]

I recently registered for a GST/HST Business Number and I'm a bit confused as to what tax rates I charge to each individual province (I live in New Brunswick, by the way).  Would I be correct in charging 13% HST to NB, ONTARIO, NFLD. 14% to PEI. 15% to NS. And 5% GST to MANITOBA, QUEBEC, SASK, ALB, BC, NUNAVUT, YUKON, and NWT. Additionally, do I have to collect Provincial Sales Tax from the 5% provinces or is it up the the buyer to "self report" this PST? And if I have to collect PST, do I have to register or get a license in that province in order to remit the PST?Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[cumos55]

Here is a link to GST/HST as per  Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) information

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/bsnss/tpcs/gst-tps/menu-eng.html

This is just the beginning..

Knowing exemptions is important....

One does not worry about PST  for provinces other than the one in which you live...

PST Is a part of HST in HST provinces.

In Manitoba....  One registers if one sells more than $10,000 , one must register for PST in Manitoba... and only if one sells item on which PST is charged.

I sell books....  which are exempt from PST, or the PST component of HST  in all provinces of Canada.

There are lettermail rules,  there are parcel rules...  and then there are rules for items where GST or HST are charged,  and where GST or HST are not charged....  lettermail for me is GST to all provinces, while Parcels are GST or HST depending on the destination province.

Lettermail rules with respect to GST as opposed to HST vary among provinces

All of the information needed is on the CRA site....

Do the reading... find out what to do in relation to what you sell.

and then come back with more questions.....if necessary

[billybee99]

Trust me, I have done all the reading. But I am still confused.

[billybee99]

Just to be clear, you are saying that I don't have to collect any PST (Manitoba included). I just collect HST from the participating provinces and GST from the others?

[cumos55]

Just about right...

Quebec is unique when it comes to GST and PST..... anyone from outside of Quebec only has to deal with GST

With respect to PST....  and HST  for HST Provinces, check the rules for your home province.....  Alberta is GST only....  never had a PST

The key to understanding GST/HST is to know the rates for each province.

Which items are exempt, if any.....  such as Books in relation to the PST component of HST.

Then how GST/HST applies to postage... might have to go to Canada Post to see this.

It is most important to keep records.... and remit GST/HST as required... I do this  at the same time I deliver my income tax to CRA....

No GST/HST on sales outside of Canada.... For lettermail leaving Canada,  There is GST on postage less than $5.00 per transaction.

Read in stages... It took me two years to catch onto some of the subtleties

[rose-dee]

Are you registering for GST because you're planning to ramp up your business significantly? 

I'm asking because you show just under 120 transactions for the last 12 calendar months, for what looks like around $50 average gross per transaction.  I'm assuming you are aware of the GST threshold of $30,000 for small businesses, so am wondering why you would need or want to register at this point:

Small supplier

A small supplier includes charities, and other public service bodies, that are engaged in commercial activity with revenues from worldwide taxable supplies (not including sales of capital property and financial services) equal to or less than $50,000 in the current calendar quarter and over the preceding four consecutive calendar quarters. The threshold for businesses that are not public service bodies is $30,000. Charities are also small suppliers if they meet the gross revenue test of $250,000 or less.

[pierrelebel]

"so am wondering why you would need or want to register at this point"

Many Canadian sellers with worldwide sales well below $30,000 register with GST/HST and benefit substantially if most of their sales are exported.  Being GST/HST registered means getting back 100% of all GST/HST paid on purchases and business related expenses.

For example if a seller's worldwide annual sales are $8,000 with cost of goods (purchases) of $5,000 and taxable expenses of $1,000 (shipping and supplies for example), this would translate into Input Tax Credits (ITCs) of $300.00 to $900.00 depending on the province of residence.  Well worth it in my opinion.

"you show just under 120 transaction..."

What is shown on eBay may not necessarily represent the true nature of one's business.  Most eBay sellers running a business also sell using other channels.

[rose-dee]

All good points, thanks Pierre.  I realize that what's shown on eBay isn't necessarily the whole of a seller's activity, but I was curious to ask in case the OP registered for a reason other than his gross sales volume.

I wasn't aware that a small business could opt to register for GST in order to claim input tax credits even if they were strictly speaking a "small supplier".  There is something new to learn here every day!

Your comment got me thinking, but it really doesn't appear it would be worth it for me to register for GST to take advantage of the Input Tax Credits.  Although your example would produce significant Input Tax Credits for a seller who purchases inventory to resell, I'm in a different category, mainly focusing on being a manufacturer/publisher.  My cost of goods is invariably low, even with occasional purchases of material from the US, most of which get through without being taxed (I avoid US GSP sellers). 

As a result, I doubt I pay more than about $200/year in HST/GST for business purposes.  I actually got a significant personal GST rebate this past year (from the NS government, for some reason -- I didn't argue!).

For my particular situation, as a smaller seller who isn't a re-seller, GST registration would probably involve far more trouble, time, paperwork and study than I'm willing to take on at the moment.  Perhaps that's why the OP is registering -- maybe he has more time (and more to claim).