The following outline tax considerations for visitors to Vancouver:

• Individual
• Visitor Tax Rebate

Individual
There are three levels of taxation that affect visitors to Vancouver. There's a 10% tax charged on accommodation and liquor. For most other goods and services, there is a 7% provincial sales tax (PST) and the 5% federal goods and services tax (GST.)

The hotel tax in Vancouver is a maximum of 16.5% in total
- 10% is a hotel tax
- 5% is a Goods and Services Tax.
- The majority of hotels in downtown Vancouver also charge a 1.5% Destination Marketing fee

Provincial Sales Tax (7%), liquor (10%)
Sales tax on all purchases is seven percent, except for liquor, which is 10 percent. However, if a visitor purchases goods and services and the vendor ships the goods or services directly to their home location outside of British Columbia, no sales tax is charged. This excludes automobiles, aircraft and building materials.

Goods & Services Tax (GST) (5%)
The Federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) of five per cent is an additional tax applicable to most purchased goods and services purchased in Canada, regardless of whether the buyer is a resident of or visitor to Canada. The GST can be partially reimbursed or rebated to non-residents of Canada.

Visitor Tax Rebate

BRIEFING NOTE - Elimination of the GST Visitor Rebate Program

Background
The GST is a value-added tax that applies to the vast majority of goods and services in Canada. The Visitor Rebate Program provides GST relief in respect of goods exported from Canada by non-residents, short-term accommodation and certain tour packages for non-residents, and certain property and services used in the course of conventions held in Canada.

The Visitor Rebate Program was eliminated effective April 1, 2007, as part of the package of specific spending restraint measures announced by the Government on September 25, 2006. Under the amendments, if a written agreement for a supply to which GST relief applies was entered into prior to the announcement date, the relief would generally continue to be available (as described below) to recognize the fact that contracts may have been negotiated based on the availability of that relief. In addition, the current one-year period to claim a rebate would continue to apply.

The proposed amendments would apply as follows:

Goods

• Non-resident consumers that purchase goods in Canada on which the GST becomes payable after March 31, 2007, would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of those goods. However, GST would continue not to apply where goods are shipped directly by the Canadian supplier to the non-resident's residence. (The shipping charges are also not subject to GST.)

   

• Non-resident businesses would still be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of commercial goods exported. (Not for personal use.)

   

• Non-resident businesses would also be able to avail themselves of the existing zero-rating provisions for commercially exported goods.

• Non-residents would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of accommodation (including campsite fees) after March 31, 2007, unless it is part of a continuous accommodation at the same facility starting before April 1, 2007.

   

• This GST rebate would continue to be available in respect of accommodation purchased under a written agreement entered into before the announcement date if the first night of continuous accommodation at the same facility starts before April 1, 2009.

• Non-residents would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of tour packages where the first night of accommodation in Canada included in the tour package is after March 31, 2007.

   

• This GST rebate would continue to be available in respect of tour packages purchased under a written agreement entered into before the announcement date if the first night of accommodation in Canada is before April 1, 2009.

Sponsors and Organizers of Foreign Conventions

• Sponsors and organizers of foreign conventions in Canada (generally, conventions where at least 75 per cent of participants are non-residents and the sponsor is a non-resident) would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of a convention site or related convention supplies relating to a foreign convention in Canada that begins after March 31, 2007.

   

• This GST rebate would continue to be available in respect of supplies relating to a foreign convention in Canada that begins before April 1, 2009, if the supplies were made under a written agreement entered into before the announcement date.

• Currently, a sponsor of a Canadian convention is not required to charge non-resident attendees of the convention any GST on the portion of the admission that is reasonably attributable to the provision of the convention facility or related convention supplies. A sponsor of a foreign convention is not required to charge GST on any admission to the convention (whether the attendee is resident or non-resident).

   

• Under the proposed amendments, non-residents would be required to pay GST on the full admission price to a Canadian convention that begins after March 31, 2007. Admissions to foreign conventions would continue to not be subject to GST.

   

• The existing rules would continue to apply in respect of admissions to a convention in Canada that begins before April 1, 2009, if the supply of the admission were made under a written agreement entered into before the announcement date.

• Currently, non-resident exhibitors at a Canadian or foreign convention are either not required to pay GST or are eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of the use of the convention site and any related convention supplies acquired by the exhibitor in relation to the convention.

   

• Under the proposed amendments, non-resident exhibitors would be required to pay GST, and would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST, in respect of any supply for the use of a convention site or related convention supplies for a Canadian convention that begins after March 31, 2007.

   

• In the case of foreign conventions, there would continue to be no GST in respect of a convention site or related convention supplies supplied to an exhibitor by the sponsor of the foreign convention. However, if the supplier is not the sponsor of the foreign convention, the non-resident exhibitors would no longer be eligible for a rebate of GST in respect of any supply for the use of a convention site or related convention supplies.

   

• The existing rules would continue to apply in respect of supplies to non-resident exhibitors relating to a convention in Canada that begins before April 1, 2009, if the supplies were made under a written agreement entered into before Announcement Date.

Media Release from the Tourism Industry Association of Canada

Canada rolling up welcome mat by cancelling visitor rebate program, coalition tells Ottawa

OTTAWA, October 18, 2006 - Eliminating the GST/HST Visitor Rebate Program will put Canadian jobs, economic growth and tax revenues at risk. That's the message the federal government got today from the VRP (Visitor Rebate Program) Coalition, a broad-based business group formed to fight the planned measure, announced last month as part of a wide-ranging series of spending cuts.

"Canada's competitiveness as a tourism destination is at stake," said Randy Williams, President and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC), which is leading the multi-stakeholder initiative. "While other countries are going out of their way to attract visitors, Canada is essentially rolling up the welcome mat. All of our major competitors have visitor rebate programs and a number of them have, in fact, been expanding those programs and making them easier to access."

The GST/HST Visitor Rebate Program not only entitles international visitors to a refund of the Goods and Services Tax or Harmonized Sales Tax they pay on short-term accommodation and goods they buy to take home, it enables tour operators and convention planners to price the packages they sell in foreign markets exclusive of GST/HST. The result is an average 6% price advantage that allows them to compete against other countries that do the same with their tourism offerings.

"It's a case of short-term gain for long-term pain," noted Tony Pollard, President of the Hotel Association of Canada, a VRP Coalition member. "The government was looking to save some cash up front, but it overlooked the huge long-term impact that eliminating the Visitor Rebate Program will have on the hotel convention, group and tour business which in 2005 totalled $1.28 billion. Canadian prices in foreign markets will be permanently increased by an average of 6% and this business is now in great jeopardy."

The government says the program's cancellation will save $78.8 million a year, and justifies it on the grounds that it has a take-up rate of just 3%. In fact, the savings figure only includes GST/HST refunds processed by the federal Visitor Rebate Centre and duty-free shops, and does not take into account the program's importance to Canada's volume inbound markets. And the true take-up rate among independent travellers, according to industry estimates, is likely closer to 11%, which is well in line with other countries' visitor rebate programs, and would be even higher if not for weak promotional efforts and the program's administrative complexities. The take-up rate for tour operators and convention planners, however, is effectively 100%.

"The value of the GST/HST Visitor Rebate Program to Canada's tourism competitiveness is much higher than the government has indicated," said Mr. Williams, whose organization has pegged the actual dollar value at upwards of $100 million, using data provided by tour operators, hoteliers and convention planners. As more data is collected, the total is expected to rise significantly. "But the real cost of driving away international visitors will be lost jobs, unrealized economic opportunities and lower government revenues, as Canada loses market share in the battle for international tourists and convention delegates."

The VRP Coalition delivered its message to the federal government at a news conference this morning in Ottawa. Its members are:

• Air Transport Association of Canada
• American Bus Association
• Association of Canadian Travel Agencies
• Canadian Airports Council
• Canadian Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaux
• Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance
• Frontier Duty Free Association
• Hotel Association of Canada
• National Tour Association
• North West Cruise Ship Association
• Premier TaxFree Canada
• Retail Council of Canada
• Tourism Industry Association of Canada
• Travel Industry Association of America

The industry is already struggling with a substantial decline in visitation from the United States, Canada's primary international tourism market, which was 28% lower in 2005 than in 2000. Factors include a stronger Canadian dollar, rising fuel prices, an underfunded national tourism marketing effort, and confusion about border documentation requirements under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. Now, by cancelling the GST/HST exemption for convention, group and tour business, the government is effectively revoking tourism's status as an export industry.

"The Canadian tourism industry is working hard to reposition itself in a market that has changed radically in recent years," said Mr. Williams. "Cancelling the Visitor Rebate Program is an additional blow that could prevent it from doing that. The federal government is kicking the industry while it's down."