Ontario and British Columbia will join Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia in their embrace of the Harmonized Sales Tax.

Suffice to say that the HST conversion presents numerous sales tax compliance challenges for vendors.   Ironically, retail customers will probably experience less turmoil than vendors in the course of this transition.  Generally, taxability and rates will remain unchanged for most everyday transactions.   The real structural changes occur behind the scenes.  

Vendors must comply with new requirements related to the collection of the HST.  Changes  include: who vendors must remit to (Canada Revenue Agency), the form by which they must file (looks like electronic filing is mandatory for most), and even a chance to fine-tune their ability to discern a rebate from an exemption.

There are also rules that regulate transactions in the time leading up to the effective date of July 1, 2010; begin your education here: transitional rules.

Lots of links today, but the Canadian documents do a fine job of laying out the new rules.

As a result of these changes in BC and Ontario, sales tax compliance is a hot topic in Canada in 2010.

We’ll let you discover the array of views on the subject, but be prepared, the debate is practically uncivil in comparison to the erudite conversation we’re used to hearing from our continent-mates to the north, (mon amis vehement dans la Province de Quebec non compris!).