Ontario Government Making It Easier To Do Business

It will eliminate over 5,000 pages of outdated rules, regulations and operating procedures by implementing the HST. This means businesses will spend less time filling out paper work and more time focusing on what they do best: creating jobs.

When the HST begins on July 1, businesses will deal with one sales tax instead of two, one set of rules instead of two and one level of government instead of two. These changes will save businesses more than $500 million a year in administrative and compliance costs alone.

The HST also eliminates hidden taxes on business and makes them more competitive.Ontario products will only be taxed once, at the register, instead of being taxed at various steps throughout production. That will make Ontario businesses more competitive, so they can sell more products to the world. And they can use those savings to buy new equipment, build new plants and create new jobs.

The tax plan, including business tax cuts and the HST will make Ontario one of the most competitive jurisdictions in the world for business investment.

Currently, more than 140 other countries and four other provinces have value-added tax systems like the HST. The tax package is a key component of the five-year Open Ontario plan to create jobs, grow the economy and build a stronger Ontario. It will deliver $4.6 billion in business tax relief over three years and independent experts say it will help create almost 600,000 new jobs across Ontario.

QUICK FACTS

Ontario’s existing PST system was first introduced in 1961 and is out-dated. The HST is more efficient, modern and straight-forward.

A study by the TD Bank estimates that about 80 per cent of cost savings to business will be passed on to consumers in the first year the HST comes into effect in Ontario, rising to 95 per cent by the third year.

The federal government is providing Ontario with $4.3 billion to support the transition to the federally administered HST.