Collingwood Real Estate News Views and Statistics - Collingwood Condos - Collingwood Real Estate News - Ontario HST

Ontario HST transitional rules for the housing industry

As of July 1, 2010, it is proposed that Ontario will introduce a Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) which will be collected by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). The construction industry, including home builders, will be greatly impacted by this new tax.

On June 18, 2009, the Ontario Ministry of Revenue issued more detailed rules related to home builders. We previously issued a bulletin discussing the enriched new housing rebate and the rule stipulating that builders must clearly indicate whether the Ontario portion of the single sales tax applies to the sale.

Many homes will be partially constructed as of July 1, 2010. To assist in the transition, the following rules have been introduced:

Example:

Ms. A has signed a contract for the purchase of new residence on May 1, 2009
The purchase price is $1,000,000
Ms. A will take delivery of the house on November 1, 2010
As of July 1, 2010, the house was 40% complete
Ms. A will pay 5% GST but she will not pay the 8% provincial portion of the single sales tax
The builder will have to pay $10,000 ($1,000,000 x 2% x 50% - see Table I). The $10,000 approximates the RST that would normally have been paid to completion if there had been no harmonization.

RST transitional housing rebate
Newly constructed or substantially renovated homes completed in full or in part prior to July 1, 2010 will have RST embedded in the cost of the homes. In order to ensure that there is no double taxation, an RST transitional housing rebate will be available.

Transitional rebate – single homes
After June 30, 2010, a transitional rebate will be available for non-grandparented single homes purchased by individuals or for builders who first rent the home.

Individuals purchasing these new homes will have the option of obtaining the RST transitional rebate through the builder or by filing an application directly with the CRA. Individuals filing their own rebate will have to obtain the percentage of completion certificate from the builder.

Transitional rebate – condominiums and apartments
The transitional rebate will be available to the builder, rather than the purchaser, for newly constructed or substantially renovated homes that are residential condominiums or traditional apartment buildings. This rebate will also be available for qualifying new additions to traditional apartment buildings.

Transitional rebate calculation
The rebate will be calculated as a proportion of the estimated embedded RST in the newly constructed or substantially renovated home. The rebate will be based on the degree of completion of the home as of July 1, 2010.
It is proposed that the rebate for the estimated RST content will be computed by choosing one of the two following methods:

Floor space method Estimated RST content calculated at a prescribed amount per square metre of floor space in the home. The prescribed rates have not yet been released.
Selling price method Estimated RST content based on the selling price of the home, calculated at 2% of the total price established for GST purposes.

See Table II for the % of completion factors necessary to compute the rebate.

Example:

A house was sold on November 1, 2010 for $500,000 (pursuant to a written agreement entered into on August 1, 2009)
The builder started construction of the house on September 1, 2009
The house was 30% complete as of July 1, 2010
The builder and purchaser agreed that the builder would file the rebate claim and that the rebate would be paid to the purchaser once received
The builder will collect $25,000 of the 5% GST plus $16,000 of the provincial portion of the single sales tax (8% of $500,000 less a new housing rebate of $24,000 (6% of the first $400,000 of the purchase price))
The transitional tax rebate will be equal to $5,000 (2% x $500,000 x 50% - see Table II) using the selling price method.

Transitional rebate time frames
If the rebate calculation is based on the floor space method, the applicant will be eligible to file a refund claim on or after July 1, 2010.

If the selling method is utilized to compute the transitional tax rebate, then such claim can be made no earlier than the day that the single sales tax or the transitional tax adjustment would be payable.

In all cases, the transitional tax rebate will need to be filed before July 1, 2014.

Table III provides a brief summary of the various transitional rules.

Other circumstances
Newly constructed or substantially renovated homes built by owners for their personal use, as well as mobile homes and modular homes, will not be eligible for the RST transitional housing rebate as the transitional rules will apply differently to these types of homes or construction. Such homes, however, may qualify for the proposed new housing rebate or the new rental housing rebate, as applicable.

The Ontario Ministry of Revenue has indicated that further details on the housing sector will be provided in the coming months.

Table I
Transitional tax adjustment

100% of the transitional tax adjustment rate of 2%, where the home is less than 10% completed on July 1, 2010;
75% of the transitional tax adjustment rate of 2%, where the home is 10% or more and less than 25% completed on July 1, 2010;
50% of the transitional tax adjustment rate of 2%, where the home is 25% or more and less than 50% completed on July 1, 2010;
25% of the transitional tax adjustment rate of 2%, where the home is 50% or more and less than 75% completed on July 1, 2010;
10% of the transitional tax adjustment rate of 2%, where the home is 75% or more and less than 90% completed on July 1, 2010; or
0% where the home is 90% or more completed on July 1, 2010.

Table II
Transitional tax rebate

100% of the estimated RST content, where the home is 90% or more completed on July 1, 2010;
90% of the estimated RST content, where the home is 75% or more and less than 90% completed on July 1, 2010;
75% of the estimated RST content, where the home is 50% or more and less than 75% completed on July 1, 2010.
50% of the estimated RST content, where the home is 25% or more and less than 50% completed on July 1, 2010;
25% of the estimated RST content, where the home is 10% or more and less than 25% completed on July 1, 2010; or
0% of the estimated RST content, where the home is less than 10% completed on July 1, 2010.

Table III
For a Detailed Summary of Transitional Rules please review the attached file

© Grant Thornton LLP. A Canadian Member of Grant Thornton International Ltd. All rights reserved.

The information contained herein is prepared by Grant Thornton LLP for information only and is not intended to be either a complete description of any tax issue or the opinion of our firm. Changes in tax laws or other factors could affect, on a prospective or retroactive basis, the information contained herein. You should consult your Grant Thornton LLP adviser to obtain additional details and to discuss whether the information in this article applies to your specific situation.

About Grant Thornton in Canada
Grant Thornton LLP is a leading Canadian accounting and advisory firm providing audit, tax and advisory services to private and public organizations. Together with the Quebec firm Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton LLP, Grant Thornton has more than 3,100 people in offices across Canada. Grant Thornton LLP is a Canadian member of Grant Thornton International Ltd, whose member and correspondent firms operate in over 100 countries worldwide.

A listing of Grant Thornton offices and contact information can be found on our Web site at: www.GrantThornton.ca