April Fools’ Day HST elimination?
Today the Department of Finance proposed transitional rules, following the provincial decision to eliminate the HST in BC. Note, this is just the federal side of things; the BC government will assumedly release their own transitional rules for the reinstatement of the PST. The 12% HST in BC will be replaced, effective April 1, 2013, by the 5% federal GST and 7% provincial PST.
That’s right, April Fools’ Day, a day widely recognized and celebrated as when people play practical jokes and hoaxes on each other. A curious choice!
The Department of Finance’s release can be found here:
Transitional Rules Relating to the Elimination of the HST in British Columbia