» Sales Taxes
Most international students are surprised by the high sales taxes in Canada. There isn’t anything you can do about it. The government uses the tax money to pay for hospitals, schools, and roads.
The Goods and Services Tax (GST in English, [TPS] in French), is a Canadian government sales tax of 5% on almost everything. The Quebec Sales Tax (QST or [TVQ] is 9.5%). Together, they are about 15%! You have to pay the GST everywhere in Canada, and most provinces have their own provincial sales taxes between 5% and 10%.
You will pay these sales taxes for haircuts, long distance phone calls, clothes, chocolate bars, a cup of coffee….almost everything but groceries (food) and books in the case of the PST. Remember the taxes when you want to buy something, especially if it is expensive. You have to add about 15% to the price. This shows how the taxes are calculated when you buy something:
Cost |
$100.00 |
plus GST [TPS] 5% |
$ 5.00 |
subtotal |
$105.00 |
plus PST [TVQ] 9.5% |
$ 9.96 |
TOTAL |
$114.96 |
The QST is calculated on the subtotal: cost plus GST.
Please note that the government of Canada or the government of Quebec could change the tax rate at any time.
» Income Tax Tuition Receipts
Every spring, Concordia University creates Tuition and Education Amounts Certificates for students who pay tuition (fees) for full time or part time study at the University. If you are a permanent resident of Canada, and you file an income tax return, you can use these forms to reduce the amount of income tax you pay to Canada and Quebec. The form for Canada is T2202A, and the form for Quebec is Relevé 8. If you are not paying income taxes in Canada, don’t worry about these forms. If your parents pay income taxes in Canada, they may be able to use these forms to reduce their taxes.
To get your forms, you have to download them from the My Concordia Portal. They are available by February 28th every year.
Intensive English Language Program 