Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Proposed HST Benefits for Ontario's Farmers: It is estimated that Ontario farmers will save about $30 million an..

http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/busdev/facts/HSTbenefits.htm

Proposed Harmonized Sales Tax (HST)
Benefits for Ontario’s Farmers


The 2009 Ontario Budget included a comprehensive tax package that would, when enacted, provide tax cuts for individuals, families and businesses to strengthen the foundation for job creation and future economic growth.

Starting July 1, 2010, Ontario’s Retail Sales Tax (RST) would be converted to a value-added tax structure and combined with the federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) to create a single, federally administered Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).

It is estimated that Ontario farmers will save about $30 million annually under the HST on items that are currently not exempt from the RST.

Farmers would continue to pay no tax on the majority of inputs purchased such as feed, seed, fertilizer, farm equipment and machinery, which are currently point of sale tax-exempt.

Under the HST, Ontario’s farmers would no longer pay sales tax on many items such as trucks, light vans and parts, furniture, lawnmowers, computers, freezers and other equipment. This would put Ontario farmers on a more level playing field with farmers in others provinces that have harmonized sales taxes.

The HST would follow the same rules and structure as the GST. Farmers who are currently remitting their GST paperwork would continue to do so and continue to receive input tax credits on any applicable purchased farm inputs.

What the HST Would do for Ontario Farm Inputs
Most farm inputs would continue to be zero rated and would be purchased without paying any tax.
Examples: feed, fertilizers, grain bins and dryers, seed, farm equipment and machinery, livestock purchases, pesticides, quota and tractors greater than 60 hp.

Farm inputs that are currently taxed with the RST would be subject to the HST and also be eligible for an offsetting input tax credit.
Examples: pick-up trucks used on the farm, computers and office equipment used in the farm’s business.

Farm inputs that are exempt from the RST but not the GST would be subject to the single sales tax, and also be eligible for an input tax credit.
Examples: contract work, freight and trucking, veterinary fees and drugs, custom feeding, machinery lease and rental, hand tools, fuel, oil and grease.

What's New
The 2009 Ontario Budget announced temporarily restricted input tax credits (ITCs) for large businesses, but excluded the farm use of energy.

In addition to the temporary ITC exception for energy, farms with more than $10 million in annual taxable sales would also not be subject to the restrictions for:

Telecommunication services other than internet access or toll-free numbers;
Road vehicles weighing less than 3,000 kilograms (and parts and certain services) and fuel to power those vehicles; and
Food, beverages and entertainment.
HST Benefits for Ontario's Farmers

Farmers would experience a net decrease in the sales tax they pay under the new proposed HST.
There would be about $30 million in new benefits under the HST.
Ontario’s farmers would no longer pay sales tax on many items such as trucks, light vans and parts, furniture, lawnmowers, computers, freezers and other equipment.
On average, farmers would realize about $600 annually in new benefits.
No identification or Purchase Exemption. Certificates required at the time of purchase.
No extra paperwork; any input tax credits to be claimed would be part of the existing GST filing.
Many farms would be eligible for a small business transition credit of up to $1,000.
Zero rated farm inputs mean that producers would pay no tax on more than $5.6 billion worth of items.

Additional Tax Reduction Measures for all Ontarians
93 per cent of Ontario taxpayers would receive a personal income tax cut.
The corporate income tax (CIT) rate for manufacturing and processing – which includes income from farming – would be cut to 10 per cent from 12 per cent.
The small business CIT rate would be cut to 4.5 per cent from 5.5 per cent.
This comprehensive tax package includes both temporary and permanent tax relief measures totaling $10.6 billion over three years.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Will I have to fill out separate tax returns when I apply for GST/HST input tax credits for the 2010 tax year?

A. No, all input tax credits would be claimed on the existing GST return.

Q. What is the frequency for filing a tax return?

A. The filing frequency for the HST would follow the current GST rules as dictated by the Canada Revenue Agency.

Q. Will I need to present a farmer ID card when making purchases?

A. No, farmers will not be required to provide identifications to purchase goods and services on a zero rated basis.

Q. How do I apply for the small business transition credit?

A. The details on the small business transition credit are still being developed and will be shared as soon as more information becomes available.

Q. Will I pay more sales tax on my farm business inputs?

A. No. Over all, you would pay less tax. Ontario farmers would save an estimated $30 million annually on new farm inputs that would no longer be subject to RST.



For more information:
Toll Free: 1-877-424-1300
Local: (519) 826-4047
E-mail: ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca

Views: 126

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

but don't forget that farm families,their employees and agribusiness employees are also consumers and not all of them are exempt

Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

The Most Wanted Wheat Seed Across the Prairies — AAC WALSH

PART ONE The sign was up before anyone knew who put it there. No name. No description. Just a dark silhouette nailed to the side of the grain elevator, paper already curling at the edges where the prairie wind worried it loose. MOST WANTED. That was all it said. In a town like this, that was enough. People here understood value. They understood timing. They noticed things that arrived quietly and stayed put. By midmorning, more than a few sets of eyes had found their way to the elevator wall, lingered longer than necessary, then moved on without comment. At the café, steam rose off coffee cups and hung in the air like unfinished sentences. “Yield and protein like that,” someone said eventually, not looking up, “oughta be outlawed.” It was meant as a joke. It didn’t land like one. No one asked who that was. Nobody needed to. The phrase carried weight all on its own, passing from table to table, slipping into conversations that paused just long enough to acknowledge it. By the

Canada-China Trade Agreement Boosts Outlook for Canola and Prairie Seed Sheds

Renewed exports may narrow the basis and reduce surplus stocks, but rebuilding grower confidence will take time. Tariffs and economic trends are often discussed in the abstract, but their consequences couldn’t be more concrete for Prairie seed sheds. In recent months, real-world examples have already reared their heads — such as canola multiplications in California facing counter-tariffs — forcing Canada’s seed sector to adapt to a trade environment that can change quickly, even when agreements are reached. The recent trade deal between Canada and China has brought some much-needed relief to the sector, particularly around market access and export movement. But for many farmers and seed companies, the agreement also underscores a hard truth: the impacts of trade disruptions don’t disappear overnight. It is little surprise that global trade ripples affect local decisions: fewer seed options, changing input costs, and constrained access to genetics. “Tariffs create uncertainty in an

Canada Gains Expanded Meat Access in Indonesia

Canada has secured a major expansion of market access for beef and pork exports to Indonesia, marking a significant milestone following the signing of the Canada–Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) last September. 

'Phone in one hand, beer in the other': High-tech automation is giving farmers more time

Anyone visiting Don Badour’s cow-calf operation in the last 18 months will have noticed his cattle sporting some spiffy orange bling around their necks. The bovine baubles aren’t just for looks, however. They’re part of a sophisticated virtual fencing system that helps the Lanark County farmer monitor and track his herd’s movement and wellbeing. Badour is quite pleased with the investment — and so are the cows. “I thought that the cows might be not too happy with them on, but we put them on, they gave their heads one or two shakes, and that's it,” Badour said during a panel discussion at the 2026 Northern Ontario Ag Conference, hosted by the Northern Ontario Farm Innovation Alliance in Sudbury Feb. 6-7. “They've come to realize they're there. So we haven't had any trouble with the cows rejecting them.”? ?Made by the New Zealand company Gallagher, the eShepherd neck bands weigh about eight pounds each and are powered by solar-charged batteries. They run on GPS and the system is ope

Trump EPA sued over reapproval of dicamba herbicide as farm and environmental groups warn of renewed crop damage

Farmers and environmental organizations have launched a new legal challenge against the Environmental Protection Agency, arguing its latest approval of the controversial herbicide dicamba ignores court rulings, scientific evidence and the interests of growers harmed by chemical drift. The lawsuit, filed Friday in federal court by a coalition that includes the National Family Farm Coalition, the Center for Biological Diversity, the Center for Food Safety and Pesticide Action & Agroecology Network, challenges the EPA’s decision to re-register dicamba for use on genetically engineered soybeans and cotton. The decision marks the latest chapter in a years-long dispute over dicamba, a weedkiller widely used in U.S. agriculture but criticized for its tendency to volatilize and drift, damaging nearby crops, orchards and natural vegetation. “EPA’s re-registration of dicamba flies in the face of a decade of damning evidence, real world farming know-how and sound science, and, oh-by-the-way, t

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service