After more than 12 years, the CRA is finally beginning to publish a new series of GST/HST memoranda that replace the draft (!) GST/HST Technical Information Bulletin B-103, Harmonized Sales Tax – Place of supply rules for determining whether a supply is made in a province.
The draft version of GST/HST Technical Information Bulletin B-103, Harmonized Sales Tax – Place of supply rules for determining whether a supply is made in a province had last been updated in June 2012.
Much has changed since then, such as the elimination of the HST in British Columbia in 2013 and changes to the applicable HST rate in several provinces (New Brunswick’s HST rate increased from 13% to 15% on July 1, Newfoundland and Labrador’s HST rate increased from 13% to 15% on July 1, 2016, and Prince Edward Island became a participating province on April 1, 2013, with the introduction of an HST rate of 14%, which increased to 15% on October 1, 2016), which meant that the conclusions of the various examples no longer always made sense in the current context.
Fortunately, the CRA has announced that B-103 will be replaced by a new series of eight GST/HST memoranda, which are being issued progressively. The CRA published the first three memorandums in this new series on August 9, respectively titled:
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-2 Place of Supply in a Province – Overview;
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-3 Place of Supply in a Province – Tangible Personal Property;
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-4 Place of Supply in a Province – Real Property.
Future memoranda in this series, to be published in stages, are expected to cover the following topics:
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-5 Place of Supply in a Province – General Rules for Intangible Personal Property
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-5-1 Place of Supply in a Province – Special Rules for Intangible Personal Property
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-6 Place of Supply in a Province – General Rules for Services
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-6-1 Place of Supply in a Province – Special Rules for Services
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GST/HST Memorandum 3-3-7 Place of Supply in a Province – Transportation
These new memoranda contain many relevant examples that will help you better understand the different place-of-supply rules that apply depending on the type of supply.
These updates are welcome, as the application of these rules and the position of the tax authorities regarding their application is not always clear, particularly when the examples in the technical information bulletin that served as a reference on the subject were based on facts that had long since ceased to apply.
