HST and GST

HST and GST Sales Tax When Buying a Domain Name

The sale of domain names is subject to HST or GST sales tax where the seller is a Business Registrant. In this case you would receive the business number of the seller.

If the buyer also has an HST/GST business number then the buyer can recover the HST/GST as an input tax credit.

If you do not have a business number you can obtain one quickly at the Government of Canada website for either an individual or a business. Foreign buyers are exempt from taxation however meeting the Canadian presence requirements for registration of the .CA becomes problematic but is possible under certain circumstances.

Tax rates vary in Canada by province and the applicable tax rate is based on the location of the buyer. Here are the rates by location:

HST:
13% - Labrador, Newfoundland, New Brunswick, Ontario
15% - Nova Scotia

GST:
5% - Alberta, Manitoba, Nunavut, North West Territories (NWT), British Columbia,
Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon

Rates are subject to change and buyers should make their own inquiries and verification.