12 July 1994 GST/HST Interpretation 1994-07-12 - GST Treatment of the Importation of "The Real Estate Book"

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Your memorandum addressed to Don Gagnon, Special Sectors, dated July 12, 1994, regarding the above-referenced subject has been forwarded to General Tax Policy for reply, as it relates specifically to the valuation of imported goods.

For the purposes of Division III of the Excise Tax Act, (Tax on Importation of Goods), the value of goods is determined by the provisions of subsection 215(1) of the Act, which provides that the value of imported goods for GST purposes is the total of the value for duty as it would be determined under the Customs Act plus all duties and taxes payable under the Customs Tariff, the Special Imports Measures Act, the Excise Tax Act (other than the GST) or any other law relating to Customs. We agree with your interpretation of this subsection: the provincial levies in question would not be included in the value for tax for the purposes of Division III. Subsection 215(2) is not relevant as no regulations relating to these goods have been enacted under that subsection.

Please be advised, however, that these comments relate only to goods that fall under Division III of the Excise Tax Act. If it is determined that the transactions in question do not constitute an importation, then the provisions of Division III, as stated above, would not apply. The value on which GST would be calculated would then be determined under other Divisions of the Excise Tax Act.

This interpretation is based upon our current understanding of the Excise Tax Act and regulations thereunder in their present form and do not take into account the effects of any proposed or future amendments thereto or future changes in interpretation.

Further, while we trust that our comments are of assistance to you, we would advise that they do not constitute a GST ruling and are, therefore, not binding upon the Department in respect of any particular fact situation.

Should you have further questions in this regard, please contact Mark Seigel of the Imports Units at 952-1512.

H.L. Jones
Director, General Tax Policy
Policy and Legislation
Excise/GST