As a tax lawyer assisting clients in defending themselves against the all-powerful CRA (and its equally powerful ally, the Department of Justice – Canada’s largest and best-equipped law firm), I welcome any judicial decisions that help to right that
The Canadian International Trade Tribunal (“CITT”) recently announced that it is terminating its expiry review (“Review”) on the dumping and subsidizing of photovoltaic modules and laminates (i.e., “Solar Panels”) from China. As a result, the CITT is rescinding its anti-dumping and countervailing orders because it “is of the opinion that the expiry review is no longer supported by domestic producers”. (You can read our earlier blog on the initiation of this Review here.)
Travelers entering Canada are strictly required under Section 12 of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (the “Act”) to report currency and/or monetary instruments valued at CA$10,000 or more to a Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA”) officer. Not declaring such funds can lead to severe consequences, including the immediate seizure of the currency under Section 18 of the Act.
Mid-summer, the Department of Finance released important new draft legislation, putting in place a “reverse charge system” to deal with fraud in the Telecom industry. More recently – at the Canadian Tax Foundation’s Inaugural Commodity Tax Symposium – senior officials seemed to have suggested that more could be coming to deal with similar issues in other industries.
When the Canada Revenue Agency ("CRA") assesses an individual for unremitted GST/HST on a real property transaction, the agency typically creates an administrative business number to process the assessment. Many taxpayers assume that once the CRA opens this account and assesses tax, the taxpayer is officially GST "registered" and entitled to claim offsetting Input Tax Credits ("ITCs") on related expenses, for example real estate commissions.
In our Indirect Tax Practice, we are seeing a huge increase in Ontario Ministry of Finance (“MOF”) inspections and seizures of unmarked or untaxed tobacco, including fine cut and/or loose tobacco products like Shisha (hookah tobacco), where the quantities suggest resale.
For years, many people have attempted to comply with Canada's sanctions rules by simply "name screening". New guidance from Global Affairs Canada ("GAC") may have made that approach obsolete, refocusing compliance on "deemed ownership", including aggregated ownership, board control rights and de facto control (e.g., through contracts and proxies).
A recent Tax Court of Canada (“TCC”) case highlights the harsh consequences of failing to monitor an online Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) portal, like MyCRA or My Business Account. In Web Listings Inc. v. His Majesty the King, 2026 TCC 101 (“Web Listings”), the TCC confirmed that if a business’s authorized representative receives online portal notifications and ignores them, the tax consequences for the business are severe.
In a major development for importers of aluminum products, Canada is strengthening reporting requirements for aluminum imports under General Import Permit No. 83 (“GIP 83”) via a recently published Notice to Importers (the “Notice”).
On September 17, 2026, the Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA”) released a notice of its preliminary determination of dumping and subsidizing in respect of wheat gluten originating in or exported from Italy, Poland, and the United Kingdom (the “Subject Goods”). Provisional duties are now imposed on imports of the Subject Goods released from the CBSA on or after September 17, 2026.
On October 1, 2026, the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (“CITT”) announced that it is starting its expiry review (“Review”) on the dumping and subsidizing of certain small power transformers from Chinese Taipei, and South Korea. The CITT will use its Review to determine whether existing trade protections – in place since 2021 – will continue for another five years or be allowed to expire.
As we have noted before (here and here), the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) continues to audit residential homeowners who build or substantially renovate homes for resale, regularly assessing them as “builders” liable to pay GST/HST.
As we blogged about here, the CRA continues to pursue homeowners and builders who buy, renovate or construct, and resell residential properties, often finding them liable to collect and remit GST/HST as “builders” under the Excise Tax Act (“ETA”).
A recent Federal Court (“FC”) case is a minor win for taxpayers who have struggled with the buggy, confusing mess that is the MyCRA web portal (“MyCRA”) run by Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”). It also brings to light how serious MyCRA access issues can become.
We have previously written about Canada’s Steel Tariff Rate Quota (“TRQ”) regime here and here. For Canadian importers of steel into Canada, not originating from either the US or Mexico, the name of the game has recently been to ensure that all imports fall within Canada’s applicable TRQ regime.
Taxpayers who fail to file a GST/HST rebate application within the applicable two-year limitation period may, in some circumstances, look to the relieving provisions in subsection 296(2.1) of the Excise Tax Act (“ETA”) for assistance. That provision seemed to require an otherwise unclaimed (or statute-barred) GST/HST rebate to be applied against a taxpayer’s net tax if the period was later audited.
Importers seeking duty relief under Chapter 99 of the Customs Tariff often need to establish that imported goods are “for use in” other qualifying goods or activities. In Canada (Attorney General) v. Medline Canada Corporation, 2026 FCA 74 (“Medline Canada”), the Federal Court of Appeal (“FCA”) clarified that this phrase requires more than goods being used together in a practical or commercial sense with limited or no physical connection — overturning a prior Canadian International Trade Tribunal ("CITT”) decision.
When it comes to filing a Notice of Objection (an “Objection”) in respect of a Notice of Assessment (an “NOA”) for GST/HST or income tax matters – or many other matters involving federal taxes – most taxpayers will know that they generally have a 90-day window to file that Objection.
Tariff classification is the process of identifying and categorizing goods imported into Canada under the applicable tariff provisions. It determines the applicable rate of customs duty and, in turn, how much duty an importer must pay when the goods enter Canada.
