31 March 1999 GST/HST Ruling HQR0001498 - Tax Status of Services Provided to the by a Consultant Medical Practitioner

Dear XXXXX

Thank you for your letters of October 28, 1997 and October 16, 1998 concerning the application of the Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) to the transaction(s) described below. As we have previously informed you on January 11, 1999, your request has been transferred to us from the XXXXX[.]

Statement of Facts

Our understanding of the facts, the transaction(s), and the purpose of the transaction(s) is as follows:

You are a self-employed consultant medical practitioner providing your services directly to the XXXXX[.] You have advised this Department that there is no description of the services you supply to the XXXXX contained in the contract which you have signed with the XXXXX[.] You are not registered for the GST/HST.

You are responsible for determining donor acceptability at a XXXXX  which involves determining if a donor can donate plasma without posing a risk to either the donor or the end product.

Your presence is required at the XXXXX  in order for it to open and process donors.

You provide treatment to donors who may experience reactions during the donation process and you provide medical assessment regarding bruises or post-donation concerns.

You conduct a physical examination on each potential donor to determine their suitability to donate plasma.

Prior to a donation being made, you review the responses provided by the donor in the pre-donation history checklist XXXXX and determine eligibility to donate plasma.

You provide a copy of any of your findings regarding donors to the XXXXX[.] You do not render any health care services to donors other than counselling in the event abnormalities are found either at the time a physical examination is performed or as a result of abnormal findings in the XXXXX[.] The purpose of rendering any health care service to an individual is solely to determine donor safety and plasma quality.

In the course of your examinations and review of XXXXX  you frequently are able to diagnose previously undetected disease and abnormal pathology.

You are responsible to ensure the donor's family physician is advised of any disease or abnormal pathology diagnosed as revealed during your examination and contacts with individual donors.

Transaction(s)

You invoice the XXXXX directly for the services you provide.

Ruling Requested

1. The supply of services that you provide to XXXXX  as an independent consultant medical practitioner are exempt of the GST/HST.

2. The supply of services that you provide to XXXXX  if you were an employee medical practitioner are exempt of the GST/HST.

Ruling Given

Based on the facts set out above, we rule that

1. The services that you provide as an independent consultant medical practitioner to the XXXXX is exempt of the GST/HST pursuant to section 5 of Part II of Schedule V to the ETA.

2. The services that you would provide to the XXXXX  as an employee is not subject to the GST/HST.

On April 1, 1997, the harmonized sales tax (HST) replaced the goods and services tax (GST) and the provincial sales tax (PST) in the three participating provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Newfoundland with a harmonized tax rate of 15%, to the extent that they are taxable supplies (which are not zero-rated), tax must be collected at the harmonized rate.

This ruling is subject to the general limitations and qualifications outlined in section 1.4 of Chapter 1 of the GST/HST Memoranda Series. We are bound by this ruling provided that none of the above issues is currently under audit, objection, or appeal; that there are no relevant changes in the future to the Excise Tax Act, or to departmental interpretative policy; and that you have fully described all necessary facts and transaction(s) for which you requested a ruling.

Should you have any further questions or require clarification on the above matter, please do not hesitate to contact me at 613-952-9264.

Yours truly,

Lance G. Dixon, MHA., CHE
Municipalities & Health Care Services Unit
Public Service Bodies and Governments Division
GST/HST Rulings and Interpretations Directorate