B.C. to Harmonize Sales Tax with GST

(Patrick Brethour — Globe & Mail)

British Columbia will harmonize its provincial sales tax with the federal GST, B.C. Finance Minister Colin Hansen has just announced.

The harmonized sales tax in B.C. will be 12 per cent, the lowest for those provinces that have agreed to combine their provincial sales taxes with the GST, he said in a press conference this morning.

B.C. Finance Minister: Read the official announcement

The change, to take effect on July 1, 2010, will reduce sales taxes paid by business by $1.9-billion and save businesses $150-million in administrative costs.

That's the same date that Ontario will make the leap to a harmonized sales tax, or HST – a change that spurred British Columbia’s move.

“B.C. cannot be left behind,” Mr. Hansen said. Read more here.