The tax was announced in 2020, but the legislation to enact it didn’t pass until last year. While it has been in effect for a year, the first payment, retroactive to 2022, was to be submitted on June 30.
The government intended it to overcome what Canada saw as a tax loophole, with big tech companies operating in Canada digitally, making money off Canadian users and data, but not paying tax on it in Canada.
The tax was to apply to companies that operate online marketplaces, online advertising services and social media platforms, and those that earn revenue from some sales of user data.
It meant companies such as Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb, would pay a three-per-cent levy on revenue from Canadian users.
The tax was only to cover large companies, those that have worldwide annual revenues greater than 750 million euros per year and Canadian digital services revenue greater than $20 million per year. The parliamentary budget officer had estimated it would bring in $7.2 billion over five years.
That seemed fair. He cancelled it to appease Trump, clearly. This is extremely disappointing. And we’re also losing $7.2 billion in revenue over 5 years. This could have helped fund Canadian cultural projects, artists, or finance our struggling media industry.
I’ve been thinking of starting one in my neighborhood for a while. There’s a grocery store that closed down and the space is still available. Fridges and all!
But it’s quite the enterprise. And you have to deal with disagreable people who want control. I have some experience working with groups in clubs and things like that.