CANADA’S NEW UNDERUSED HOUSING TAX ACT (UHT) –
TAG YOUR’E IT

 The Trudeau government keeps downloading bureaucratic red tape to its citizens unnecessarily. The UHT is intended for tax vacant and underused residential properties owned by those who are not permanent residents or Canadian citizens. Many individuals and private companies, exempt from the 1% tax on the property’s value, are still required to file a UHT return by April 30, 2023. Thanks to legislated Bill C-8, failure to file a UHT return has significant consequences. Penalties start at $5,000 for an individual and $10,000 for a corporation. Further failure to file could lead to additional interest and penalties.

 
In my world of agriculture this bill imposes on most, if not all, farming/ranching families and farm/ranch corporations. I am sure many other businesses that own residential property are caught in this web of reporting. This government has no conscience when the purpose of this bill was to tax individuals who are not permanent residents or Canadian citizens. What the heck, let’s throw the net over everyone and see what we flesh out. I believe the Trudeau government has a hidden agenda and this could be the beginning of a back door to your residential property. This government is simply being difficult and are grabbing potential future tax dollars that come from reporting our residential (principal) property. I understand that all of us, including governments, face difficult choices. To make things better one does not throw a net over all of us in an attempt to collect data and then decide to make some exceptions. Jim Barksdale, former Netscape CEO, said it all: “If we have data, let’s look at data. If all we have are opinions, let’s go with mine” (Federal Government’s)

There is a lot more technical details which go beyond the scope of this blog. I recommend that you contact your tax advisor to see if you need to file. I know we will be busy talking to our clients.

 
Your thoughts are always appreciated

Take care
Fred