SWLN46 - Termination of the Additional Export Charge for the Ontario and Quebec Regions

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SWLN46 - Termination of the Additional Export Charge for the Ontario and Quebec Regions

April 2014

On March 26, 2014, the London Court of International Arbitration announced that it had determined that Canada has no obligation to continue to apply compensatory adjustments beyond October 12, 2013.

The purpose of this notice is to inform exporters that the Minister of National Revenue will propose a regulation under the Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006 (the Act) that, effective October 13, 2013, would remove the additional export charge of 0.1% and 2.6% on exports of softwood lumber products originating from Ontario and Quebec respectively.

Nothing in this document should be taken as a statement by the CRA that the regulation will be made as proposed.

The information in this notice is for reference purposes only and does not replace the Act or its regulations. Should there be any discrepancy between the information in this notice and that contained in the Act or its regulations, the legislative provisions apply. As the information in this publication may not completely address your particular situation, you may wish to refer to the Act or its regulations, or call one of the numbers at the end of this document for additional information.

Background

On January 18, 2008, the United States (U.S.) submitted a request for arbitration to the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) requesting a review of various benefit programs established by the Ontario and Quebec governments for exporters of Canadian softwood lumber products. On January 21, 2011, the LCIA ruled that Canada had breached its commitments under the Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006 (the Act). As a result, effective March 1, 2011, exporters of softwood lumber products to the U.S., with a region of origin of Ontario or Quebec, were required to pay an additional export charge on these exports.

On September 30, 2013, Canada and the U.S. submitted a joint request for a limited arbitration in order to rule on a disagreement between the two countries concerning the termination date of the additional export charge. On March 26, 2014, the LCIA released its decision that Canada has no obligation to continue to apply the additional charge beyond October 12, 2013.

Terminating the additional export charges

The Minister of National Revenue will recommend to the Governor in Council a regulation that declares that section 12.2 of the Act ceases to be in force on October 13, 2013. If made, the regulation would remove the additional export charge of 0.1% and 2.6% on exports of softwood lumber products originating from Ontario or Quebec.

Exporters may choose to discontinue reporting the additional charge. However, should the regulation not be made as proposed, the exporters may remain liable for any amount of additional charge due, and accrued interest.

Refund of overpayment of the additional export charges

Once the regulation has been made, the CRA will determine the amount of any overpayment of the additional export charges and implement procedures to provide refunds to exporters. The refunds to exporters will be effective from October 13, 2013. Exporters will not be required to file individual refund claim forms.

Further information

For questions about filing an export charge return or making a payment, please call 1-800-935-0313 .

For technical enquiries about the Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006 , please call 1-866-330-3304 .

All technical publications on the softwood lumber products export charge are available on the CRA website at www.cra.gc.ca/softwood.

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Date modified:
2014-04-01