The Minister of National Revenue has announced proposed changes to electronic filing requirements for goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) registrants beginning July 1, 2010.

Currently, only GST/HST registrants who meet the criteria set by the Minister of National Revenue have the option to use electronic filing. As a result of the proposed changes, restrictions will be removed so that all registrants, including those registrants that file a return with Revenu Québec, will be able to file electronically.

Under the new proposed measures, the following groups will be required to file their GST/HST returns electronically:

• GST/HST registrants with greater than $1.5 million in annual taxable supplies (except for charities); or

• all registrants required to recapture input tax credits for the provincial portion of the HST on certain inputs in Ontario or British Columbia; or

• builders affected by the transitional housing measures announced by Ontario or British Columbia.

Regulations specifying the persons and classes of persons who will be required to file an electronic return will be proposed at the earliest opportunity.

In general, charities and most GST/HST registrants with annual taxable supplies of $1.5 million or less will not be affected by these changes, although the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) encourages all GST/HST registrants, regardless of their filing frequency and reporting requirements, to use electronic services.

To learn more about electronic filing options currently available to GST/HST registrants, go to www.cra.gc.ca/gsthst-filing.

The CRA will also provide additional information in the coming months that will assist businesses in changing their accounting and reporting systems in order to be ready for the July 1, 2010, implementation date for the HST in Ontario and British Columbia. For more information, go to www.cra.gc.ca/harmonization.

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