News of Note
CRA confirms that a group Finco is a listed financial institution for GST/HST purposes
Email this ContentCRA has revised and expanded its Memorandum on what is a listed financial institution for GST/HST purposes. New points include:
- The "insurer" branch of LFI also includes non-provincially licensed insurers such as accident and sickness insurers.
- The "money-lender" branch includes in-house Fincos (so that, for example, a group with a Finco could make s. 150 elections to eliminate HST/GST on intercompany lease or services charges).
- A person who is deemed by s. 149(3) to be an FI by virtue of an acquisition from an FI of what will be continued as its principal business is not thereby also deemed to be an LFI (unless it satisfies the specific criteria).
Neal Armstrong. Summaries of Memorandum 17-6 "Definition of ‘Listed Financial Institution’" July 2014 under ETA s. 149(1)(a) and s. 149(3).
CRA provides checklist on determining SLFI status for HST purposes
CRA has published a memorandum on the meaning for HST purposes of a "selected listed financial institution" – e.g., a mutual fund which is required to pay HST based on the provincial distribution of its unitholders rather than on the HST which is charged to it by suppliers.
Although mostly a paraphrase of the relevant provisions, the memo has an Appendix setting out a "series of tips" i.e., a checklist, to assist in determining SLFI status.
Neal Armstrong. Summary of Memorandum 17.6.1 "Definition of ‘Selected Listed Financial Institution’" July 2014 under ETA s. 225.2(1) – selected listed financial institution.
Beaudet and Saucier – Tax Court of Canada finds that the FMV of a newly-constructed apartment building is its direct and indirect cost
An apartment building which is constructed for rental by the builder generally is subject to GST on its fair market value when the first tenant moves in. Since this GST cost is non-creditable (subject to a new accommodation rebate), there is an additional GST cost to the extent that such FMV is higher than the costs of the new apartment property. Lamarre J found that because there was no evidence of some specific market anomaly such as a zoning restriction which would cause the FMV of the new apartment properties to be higher than their cost, their FMV was equal to the determined costs. Such costs included an estimated financing cost and imputed management fee of 1.5% and 5% of total costs, as well as advertising expenses, and excluded some cost overruns, e.g., because of substandard ground conditions.
Neal Armstrong. Summary of Beaudet and Saucier v. The Queen, 2014 TCC 52 under General Concepts – fair market value – real estate.
CRA finds that active business assets distributed on a non-QLAD liquidation of FA do not generate FAPI
On the liquidation of a foreign affiliate which is not a qualifying liquidation and dissolution, there is a deemed disposition on the liquidating distribution (i) under s. 88(3)(a) of shares which are excluded property for their relevant cost base and (ii) under s. 88(3)(b) of other property for its fair market value. Can the second category include property which is excluded property by virtue of being used in an active business given that such use arguably has ceased at the very moment of its distribution?
Yes. CRA indicated that it can qualify as excluded property if it was used in the active business immediately before its distribution, in which case gains from its deemed disposition at fair market value will not give rise to foreign accrual property income.
Neal Armstrong. Summary of 17 July 2014 T.I. 2014-0536331E5 under s. 88(3).
CRA confirms that negative ACB gains of non-residents from Canadian real estate or resource LP interests are exempt from tax
S. 40(3.1) deems the holder of an LP interest to realize a capital gain when the ACB calculation is otherwise about to go negative, but only goes on to deem there to be an associated disposition of property at that time for purposes of the capital gains deduction. CRA has confirmed that this means that a negative ACB gain of a non-resident from holding an LP interest which is taxable Canadian property is exempt from capital gains tax – but has drawn Finance’s attention to this anomaly.
Although not mentioned by CRA, the same result arguably occurs when the non-resident realizes a negative ACB gain on shares which are taxable Canadian property. S. 40(3) deems the non-resident to realize a gain from a disposition of the shares – but only deems the non-resident to have disposed of the shares in the year for limited purposes not including s. 2(3)(c).
Summaries of 18 June 2014 T.I. 2011-0417491E5 and 18 June 2014 T.I. 2011-0421481E5 under s. 40(3.1).
Income Tax Severed Letters 30 July 2014
This morning's release of 10 severed letters from the Income Tax Rulings Directorate is now available for your viewing.
A registrant which has been charged GST on a commercial real estate purchase should promptly apply for a rebate
Where a registrant pays GST on a commercial real estate purchase, CRA considers that the correct approach is for the registrant to apply under s. 261 for a rebate for GST paid in error, rather than to purport to offset that tax by claiming an input tax credit. Such ITC instead is an offset to its self-assessment obligation for the GST under s. 228(4).
Requiring the registrant to apply for a rebate is potentially problematic as the time limit for the rebate claim is two years after payment of the GST.
Neal Armstrong. Summary of 25 February 2014 Memo 155876 under ETA s. 221(2).
A services recipient’s contracting address is “most closely connected” with the supply for GST/HST place-of-supply purposes
A supply of services generally is made for HST purposes in the province corresponding to the home or business address of the recipient obtained by the supplier in the ordinary course of business – or, where there is more than one such Canadian address, then the address which "is most closely connected with the supply." CRA has stated, more clearly than in some previous interpretations, that "the business address of the recipient from which the supplier is hired pursuant to the agreement for the supply (the "contracting address") is generally the address that is most closely connected with the supply."
Neal Armstrong. Summary of 3 February 2014 Interpretation 126057 under New Harmonized Value-added Tax System Regulations, s. 13(1).
CRA recharacterizes a Sharia-compliant financing arrangement as a secured loan to the Islamic client
Under a Sharia-compliant real estate financing arrangement that is somewhat analogous to a reverse repo, the Islamic client pays cash for X% of the property, and FinanceCo pays for (100-X)% of the property subject to a secured "repurchase" obligation of the client to buy that interest for cost plus an accruing "profit" amount. In a somewhat apodictic interpretation, CRA stated that provided the client is liable under the arrangement to pay for the property, the applicable GST/HST is its liability rather than FinanceCo’s. By inference, CRA is prepared to treat the client as in substance being the purchaser of the property at the time of its acquisition.
Neal Armstrong. Summary of 18 February 2014 Interpretation 155500 under ETA - s. 228(4).
The 12-month period for an installation PE should stop running when work at the project is suspended for external reasons
The OECD Model Treaty states that "a building site or construction or installation project constitutes a permanent establishment only if it lasts more than twelve months." Hourdin suggests among other things that:
- As Art. 5(3) applies on a project by project basis, "it is therefore possible for an enterprise resident in a state to operate in another country on a significant scale, in terms of cumulative time and total volume of business, without having a PE."
- An example of the application of the OECD commentary statement that "a building site should be regarded as a single unit, even if it is based on several contracts, provided that it forms a coherent whole commercially and geographically," is the installation of a country-wide radar sytem for use by air traffic controllers even where there are "10 separate contracts with 10 airport companies."
- Although the OECD commentary states for purposes of the 12-month test that "a site should not be regarded as ceasing to exist when work is temporarily discontinued," this rule "should allow for a suspension of the 12-month period if the taxpayer provides sufficient evidence of total interruption of work because of external reasons."
Neal Armstrong. Summary of Pierre-Marie Hourdin, "Is the Construction PE Clause in the OECD Model Treaty Satisfactory?", Tax Notes International, July 21, 2014, p. 229 under Treaties – Art. 5.